This is a follow up to some of our recent and not so recent restaurant news.

• The new owners for Gold Standard Cafe, a popular establishment at 48th and Baltimore, have finally been revealed. In July, we reported that the business was up for sale when the old owners, veteran restaurateurs Roger Harman and Vince Whittacre, decided to retire. The new owners, Joseph Oh and Alice Park, previously operated a Japanese fusion restaurant in North Philly, but as they told the local weekly University City Review, their plan regarding The Gold Standard is to keep everything the same, with some minor tweaks to the menu. “They said they might put one Korean dinner on the menu at some point but otherwise keep the same general theme,” Harman told the Review regarding the new owners’ plans. 

• A new 75-seat sit-down restaurant and jazz club on the 5000 block of Baltimore Avenue opened its doors last month. The preview party for Amari’s Restaurant took place last October, but the actual the grand opening party was just held on Sept. 21. The restaurant offers breakfast, lunch and dinner menus and live jazz on weekends. Dishes, many of which have Caribbean theme, are very moderately priced. Seafood is well represented: Check out their All That Jazz lunch/dinner menu, which includes dishes like Amari’s Quartet (Jumbo shrimp, seasoned & seared, stuffed w/crab imperial and baked w/two sides). As concerns brunch, neighbors have been enjoying Shrimp & Grits:

Mmmmm shrimp and grits… delicious cheeeesy grits… Amari’s is now open at 5037 Baltimore, breakfast, lunch, dinner and live jazz on weekends. They did a great job rehabbing the long-unused space. Check it out before it gets too crowded. #brunch #sundaybrunch #shrimpandgrits #westphilly #soulfood

A photo posted by VIX Emporium (@vix_emporium) on Oct 4, 2015 at 8:49am PDT

The restaurant, which is located at 5037 Baltimore Ave., is open Monday-Thursday 6:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.; Friday & Saturday 6:30 a.m. – 12 Midnight; Sunday 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. Discounts are available for seniors (10 percent) on any meals and students (10 percent) for breakfast (please bring your student ID).

• We also have a tentative opening date for another highly anticipated Baltimore Avenue restaurant. Leigh Maida, a co-owner of Local 44, says that her new restaurant and bar, Clarkville, is expected to open at 43rd and Baltimore on December 1. We’ll let you know when we have more details. You can find more stories about Clarkville here.