When New is Old Again

     It was back in 1893 that Samuel Bookbinder, a Dutch immigrant, opened his oyster house at 5th & South Streets in Philadelphia.  Five years later he moved his business to 2nd & Walnut to be closer to the docks that delivered seafood to his kitchen.  The concept was simple: unpretentious and fresh at affordable prices.  It resonated well with the public who came by the droves for things like snapper soup, oysters on the half shell, lobsters, crab cakes, and their famous cheesecake.

     The Taxin family became the eventual owners, managing the operation since 1945.  But sadly Old Original Bookbinder's closed its doors on New Year's Day 2002 and after filing for bankruptcy was shuttered for good in 2009.  The heyday of the 50,000 square foot restaurant had come and gone.



     It was just in January of this year that Jose Garces and The Garces Group reopened the shuttered landmark with its historical woodwork and decor.  And so with gift card in hand I decided to have a look-see for myself.  With my trusted culinary companion together we made our way in to enjoy dinner at The Olde Bar.



     The bar area was virtually the same with its vintage look and raw bar at the near end.  Through the massive ship's wheel there was a large open space that appeared to be a work in progress for future banquets.  We were escorted to a smaller room on the left and given a seat "near the window" as the saying goes, and handed the dinner menu for the evening.  It was different from what I expected.  Everything was a la carte.  If you ordered a crab cake (which I did) that was all you got.  Vegetables and starches were extra.  And while there were only about 5 items on the entree menu, there was an abundance of happy hour bar snacks available for $5 each, plus a "buck-a-shuck" special 7 days a week from 4-6 pm of oysters on the half shell.  That alone made my trip worthwhile.  I enjoyed them with such delight that I only remembered to take a photo of the artistic display after I had consumed a dozen of the bivalves.



     We ordered up some of the happy hour specials and downed roll mops and beef fat fries before turning our attention to the main event, broiled salmon and the afore mentioned crab cake.  Both were done to perfection.  An order of asparagus shared between us filled our plate and our stomachs.





     So what is new is old again.  Old Original Bookbinder's has made a resurgence onto the restaurant scene in Philadelphia.  Now it's up to the dining public to decide if it can return to "those glorious days of yester-year."  Hopefully the experience will be as good as the memory.