BY NORA TAPLIN

In print | Published February 9, 2006

A fun new place called the Chapterhouse Café and Gallery opened up this past November, one block off of South Street. Going out for coffee is a great casual Valentine’s Day date; it’s a good idea if a really extravagant dinner on Valentine’s Day is more Swat-marriage-like than you can handle. If things go well, small tables and cozy couches can be fun. If things go badly, it’s just coffee and you can pretend it wasn’t even a date. Of course, I am always for a good cup of coffee, regardless of the occasion.

Because my roommate and I thought the Chapterhouse might also be a good place to discuss Screw dates, we checked it out last week. We almost walked past it because the front blends in with the dark townhouses on South 9th street. The décor inside is much sleeker. It has a modern rustic urban look (i.e. Urban Outfitters meets restoration hardware).

The best part of this place is its creative drink menu. The guy working the counter was nice, if not a little distracted (we had to order our croissant twice). It looked like this place already has regulars, since he was striking up conversations with other customers. I ordered a Berry Chocolate (chocolate and raspberry) and my roommate got the Sweet Tooth (hazelnut, vanilla and chocolate). One other drink that looked tempting was the Vermont, which had maple syrup. They also had some appetizing baked goods, of which we ordered a croissant and lemon-lime teacake.

The seats in the first room, which included a couple small tables and two green armchairs facing a fireplace full of candles, were mostly taken. On the walls were photographs by Mike Tyler and Cathleen McCarthy. In the back room, where we sat, there were silver wire mobiles by Robert Cortez were hanging from the ceiling. There was a lot of interesting artwork. It could have taken hours to look at everything on the walls, but the place wasn’t too busy-looking.

We took a two-person table across from a 30-something man with two rather large dogs. At the next table over from him sat a trendy-looking 20-something women. Like most people there, they were sitting alone. Both of them were on laptops (the café has free wireless). The coffee house has a contemplative quietness to it, but it seemed like conversation with strangers was not uncommon there.

My partner-in-crime put it best when she said, “it felt like drinking air” and “you could actually taste all the flavors.” The Berry Chocolate had just the right amount of the flavored syrup, which made it taste slightly like a fruit-filled chocolate truffle, but without any sticky syrup-like texture. The coffee was served in large bowl-shaped cups — perfect for dipping. Tearing off pieces of croissant and dunking them makes for a great treat. The teacake is a sweet and tart delight, which I recommend.

The bookshelf is one part of this place you can’t miss. It featured titles that would make a Swattie who forgot her seminar reading very happy: the Gnostic Bible, Einstein’s Relativity, William Shakespeare: The Complete Works and 10,000 Answers Trivia Encyclopedia. The book selection and the café‘s use of Equal Exchange (fair trade) coffee make the Chapterhouse Café and Gallery a great spot for Swarthmore students. If you want to feast your eyes on interesting artwork, enjoy a beautiful intimate setting and satisfy you’re palate with novel drinks, the Chapterhouse should be your spot for Valentine’s Day — with or without a date.

Chapterhouse Café and Gallery
620 South Ninth Street
215-236-2626
www.chapterhousecafe.org

Don’t Forget: Philly Restaurant Week is Feb. 19 to 24. Enjoy some of Philadelphia’s best restaurants for $30 a person for three courses.

« RETURN TO LIVING & ARTS

« PREV ARTICLE | NEXT ARTICLE »