Chef
Ian Moroney

Philadelphia

My Venues

Pumpkin Restaurant
1713 South St
Philadelphia, PA

Accolades

Best of Philly: Mussels
Philadelphia magazine
Top 50 Restaurants
Philadelphia magazine

Where I Go Out

Natto hand roll

Zama

$$$, Sushi, Japanese, Full Bar, Sake Bar, Center City

"Natto is a sticky mass of fermented soy beans with earthy, funky flavors that are almost cheese-like. Definitely not for everyone, but there's a bit of Japanese history in each bite, and nobody schools you better than Zama."

$$$, French, Bella Vista

"Foie gras is one of my favorite things to eat, so stuffing it inside a pig's foot elevates it to something even better than I could have imagined!"

Chef

Ian Moroney

Pumpkin

10-hour pork "kakuni"

Morimoto

$$$$, Happy Hour, Sushi, Japanese, Full Bar, Center City East

"Served over congee, this braised pork belly is rich in porky flavor with undertones of dashi and soy. The intense flavor covers the plain congee, a delicious pairing! It's my favorite pork belly dish of all time."

Chef

Ian Moroney

Pumpkin

Rabbit rillettes w/ pear preserves

Stateside

$$, Happy Hour, Outdoor Seating, Modern, Full Bar, Whisky Bar, Passyunk Square

"Not as pungent as duck and not as rich as pork, the rabbit is cured, cooked in pork fat, shredded, and then reacquainted with the fat. The pear cuts through the richness just right. So good!"

Chef

Ian Moroney

Pumpkin

Noodle w/ pork soy sauce

Nan Zhou Hand Drawn Noodle House

$, Reservations, Noodles, Center City East

"This Chinatown noodle house is the best restaurant in Philadelphia in my opinion. I always order the pork noodle soup with a view of the chefs pulling the noodles by hand, a dying art."

Chef

Ian Moroney

Pumpkin

Grilled ground beef wrapped in grape leaves

Nam Phuong

$$, Vietnamese, Passyunk Square

"The stuffed grape leaves at this South Philly Vietnamese restaurant hit on every cylinder. They're charred on the outside, but succulent inside, with a beef filling spiked with fish sauce."

Chef

Ian Moroney

Pumpkin

At My Venues

Sunday tasting menu

Pumpkin Restaurant

$$$$, Modern, American, New American, Center City

"The bomb-ass tasting menu at Pumpkin changes seasonally because they base it around what’s in season and what’s good that week. I once had this green gazpacho, and I still think about how it was poured over crème fraiche sorbet, grapes, and pumpernickel breadcrumbs. It blew my mind. Another thing that’s bomb-ass: it's five courses for only $40."