BEST OF THE MAIN LINE:Personal Bests

MLT Staffers Reveal Their Personal Faves

Senior Editor Tara Behan

Appetizer: Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant

Various locations, ironhillbrewery.com

My hands-down favorite on Iron Hill’s apps menu are the cheese-steak egg rolls—chopped steak, melted American cheese and fried onions wrapped in a crispy egg roll.

Cooking Classes with Friends: Kitchen Workshop

I can’t cook and I don’t pretend to know how, but I love going to cooking classes at the Kitchen Workshop. Bachelorette parties and “girls’ night out” gatherings are great ways to celebrate BYO-style.

Eclairs: Sweet Jazmines

These miniature pieces of heaven are stuffed with a luscious Grand Marnier pastry cream and topped with a dark chocolate ganache.

Happy Hour: Boathouse

There’s always a great crowd at the Boathouse. With happy hour specials every night from 5 to 7 p.m. and an expansive outdoor deck, it’s no wonder.

In Vogue Boutique: Skirt

I always find the perfect outfit for any occasion at Skirt. With styles from Diane Von Furstenburg, Nanette Lepore, Tory Burch and AG jeans (the best fitting jeans ever—for my body, at least), I can always find something that looks great. Now, if I could just get my wish list more in line with my credit limit, I’d be set. 

Place to Buy a Gift for Your Best Girlfriend: Shopgirls

At Shopgirls, the inventory is always changing, so you never know what you’ll find. Prices range from $15 (makeup bags) to $50 (skirts) to accommodate whatever budget you had in mind.

Jewelry Shop: Dandelion

Suburban Square,

This Philadelphia-based jewelry company has a gorgeous selection of handcrafted earrings, necklaces and bracelets. If you’re looking for something unique, Dandelion is the place.

Massage: Ame

When I’m in need of some serious relaxation, I treat myself to the Thai massage, which stretches and pulls in all the right places.

Personal Training Studio: Vertex Fitness

The staff at Vertex Fitness really cares. They listen; they motivate, pushing you when you need to be pushed. With every session,
I feel stronger and better about myself.

Associate Editor Dawn E. Warden

Seafood Counter: Whole Foods (Wynnewood)

One Bala Plaza,

wholefoodsmarket.com

Whole Foods Wynnewood’s proficiency in all things seafood will save you from a bad grill day thanks to their creative pre-seasoned and marinated pecan-crusted trout; salmon filets with pistachio crust; tilapia with macadamia nut crust; seafood sausage; and more.

Crab Shumai Dumplings: Yangming

A staple in my Yangming repertoire, these purse-shaped dumplings are bursting with plump, juicy chunks of jumbo lump and back fin crabmeat bound with a light shrimp mousse.

French Fries: Georges’

As incredulous as it sounds, Georges Perrier’s team puts out phenomenal fries—cut thick with the skins on, double-fried, seasoned with Old Bay and salt, and served in a petite brown paper bag.

Mushroom Cheese Steak: Dalessandro’s

My version of cheese-steak heaven: a meaty, gooey mushroom/steak mix packed into a soft Amoroso’s roll with tangy Provolone and spoonfuls of spicy, minced hot peppers.

Place to Bring the Outside in: Smith & Hawken

Rainy winter days are the perfect excuse to visit. The colorful array of amaryllis, daffodil and hyacinth bulbs; terrariums;
jewel-toned glass vases, and whimsical garden accents always lift my spirits even if I can’t change the weather.

Place to Steal Martha Stewart’s Look: Neighborhood League Thrift Shop

Savvy Martha wannabes know that the Neighborhood League Shop is a terrific resource for previously owned silver and silver-plated serving pieces or candlesticks, formal and often collectable dinnerware, and elegant crystal glassware at affordable prices.

Store-made Maryland Crab Soup: FoodSource

I fancy several different soups at FoodSource, but the one that comes home with me most often is the Maryland crab, its hearty bits of celery, corn, zucchini, potato, she-crab meat and diced tomato simmered in a piquant tomato-based stock.

Swanky Night on the Town: Nineteen

Sweeping views of the Center City skyline, plush digs and first-rate fare—including an impressive raw bar—define Nineteen, the posh American brasserie, café and bar perched on the 19th floor of the Park Hyatt at the Bellevue.

Women’s Charity: Living Beyond Breast Cancer

While the women in my family have been lucky enough to evade breast cancer, many of my friends and acquaintances have not.
So thank heavens for the folks at Living Beyond Breast Cancer, who provide nonstop emotional and financial support to families
and patients and spread hope and awareness wherever they go.

Editorial Assistant Benjamin Berliner

Breakfast Sandwiches: Joe’s

Joe’s simple recipe is nothing new—scrambled eggs and melted cheese stuffed into an Italian roll—but somehow it never gets old.

Chai Latte: Cream & Sugar

While living in the Middle East, I drank lots of chai. No other place on the Main Line comes closer to re-creating that experience.

Dive Bar: Rusty Nail Tavern

Want to relive your misspent youth? Here’s a suggestion: Grab a buddy, head to the Rusty Nail, whoop your kid’s college pals at beer pong and then, once the band is spent, lip-sync every word of Kansas’ “Carry on My Wayward Son” on the jukebox. Who says you’re too old to party?

Mushroom Soup: Roux 3

4755 West Chester Pike,

No whitish gray Campbell’s cream here. Roux 3’s mushroom soup is a deep, dark, beautiful bowl of black broth with fresh mushrooms dispersed throughout.

Pies: Paoli Diner Family Restaurant

I thought I loved pie too much to discriminate, but Paoli Diner’s may be the most flavorful in the region. And they’re always warm.

Place for Live Music: Spence Café

When dinner’s over, Spence Café tones down its fine-dining rep to host some of the area’s best young musical acts in a downright earthy setting.

Place to Train Like an Athlete: Varsity Fitness

Stationary bikes with PlayStation, a state-of-the-art Mikado machine and other tech-savvy goodies make this the gym of choice for the Sixers’ Kyle Korver—and little ol’ me.

Place to Walk Your Dog: Harford Park

Green grass, fresh air, handy poop disposal cans and people who just doggone love dogs. Whoof.

Tuna Hoagie: A Cut Above

3523 West Chester Pike,

A Cut Above mixes its tuna with oil instead of mayonnaise. Trust me—you’ll never go back to mayo again.