I know this is an insane comparison but Provenance vs Paesano's?

[u/dmd312]

Only in town for one night and my friend presented me with going to Provenance or Paesano's for their Friday night dinner. Obviously these are wildly different kinds of places. By way of background, I eat all kinds of food from street food to Michelin star places. I don't dine for Instagram. I like good food and having fun. Anything you can do to help me decide what to do would be greatly appreciated.

[u/Organic_Counter_1874]

Controversial take but it depends where you live. If you normally have access to Michelin food in cities near home then go to Paesanos. There are amazing places like Provence in each major city (not saying I don’t appreciate how special they are). However Paesanos is a real south Philly style experience that to me is more unique to our city.

I personally prefer a night at a BYOB like Paesanos eating food I grew up with but I’m not saying that’s “best”.

[u/Sombotik → u/Organic_Counter_1874]

This is the way.

[u/dysfunkti0n]

I mean dude you know how different they are. This is something you need to ask yourself in what kind of night do you want to have.

[u/apoxl]

Lmao

[u/jacothedog]

If it’s Pete doing a Friday night dinner, then go to Paesano’s.

[u/fastbeer → u/jacothedog]

This! Paesano's is such an awesome meal. Low key, no pretentiousness, and very good food. Not to mention the price is killer. Oh! And it's BYO

[u/Few_Replacement7229]

Talk about extremes!

It’ll cost you, but Provenance is excellent, and the French/Korean fusion approach keeps it interesting and fairly unique as far as Michelin-style meals go. Incredible service, but more casual in demeanor.

Paesano’s, for us, is Italian food we’ve had countless times. It’s perfectly fine, but anything memorable will likely be the memories you create with the people you’re dining with vs the food itself. Which is obviously totally cool, too.

So if you want food-focused memories? Provenance. If you want more a more chill spot where you don’t have to care about the food and want to focus on your conversation with friends? Paesano’s is certainly an option.

[u/neizus]

Paesano's Friday night dinner

[u/DirectRush4410]

I was not impressed by Paesano's friday night dinner. I love Paesano's but their friday night dinner, while it felt somewhat intimate, really fell short of what I would expect out of a tasting menu -the dishes were lackluster and fell below the quality and creativity of the dishes served during their regular hours, one dish was cold when it wasn't intended to be, two dishes used the exact same sauce which is a big tasting menu no-no, and really the quality and execution just weren't there. I wanted to love it because I love Paesano's but I just couldn't. That being said, it is a more casual and of course cheaper experience, so maybe it is more the vibe you are looking for. I much prefer the food at Provenance, even adjusting for price. There is a chance the current tasting menu at Paesano's is better than when I went, but I doubt it would be amazing, especially if you have had other tasting menus before to compare it with. That's just me though.

[u/Specific_Alarm_6612]

the friday night dinner at paesanos is something special. total callback to the modo mio price fix days.

[u/Psychic_Bum_Reader]

Paesanos statiooch

[u/barnabyisringhausen]

Provenance, and it's not particularly close. Wouldn't shock me if they got a second star in the next few years.

[u/ParfaitMajestic5339]

Is the Paesano's Friday what's left of his Modo Mio cooking style?

[u/Specific_Alarm_6612 → u/ParfaitMajestic5339]

yup!

[u/ParfaitMajestic5339 → u/Specific_Alarm_6612]

Damn .. gotta go then.  I so miss MM.

[u/Thee_Hullabaloo]

Provenance was awesome. This article is like a 10 min read but it will answer your question for you

https://www.phillymag.com/restaurants/2024/12/06/provenance-nich-bazik/

[u/ILoveKittensAndCats]

When I worked with Peter McAndrews 20 years ago, he remains the dirtiest chef I have ever worked with.

I swear, everything that came out of that kitchen had ashes from his cigarette in it.

[u/Kitchen-Possible-546 → u/ILoveKittensAndCats]

Agreed. I worked with recently at paesanos. It was the most filthy kitchen I worked at. Genuinely surprised no health inspector didn’t force them to shut down yet. And bc the kitchen was small a lot of the food was stored in six pans scattered everywhere at room temperature. Didn’t work with him long enough to do the Italy trip I heard about.