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Monday, July 13, 2009
Carmine's in Bryn Mawr closes to go Spanish

The good times no longer roll at Carmine’s Creole Cafe in Bryn Mawr.

It closed last night. Owner Howard Taylor will work with Nick Farina of the nearby Blush on a Euro-Latin restaurant called Verdad, which means "truth" in Spanish. (Farina will be managing partner and executive chef.)

Verdad will serve tapas, and there will be a tequila bar and a selection of wines from Spain, Cuba, Chile, Brazil and Mexico, plus a Latin beer selection. Figure on $35 a head, including a drink and a couple of small plates. Opening is penciled in for the first or second week of August.

History: Carmine's was founded in Havertown in 1999 by New Orleans chef John Mims. It rocked the Delco scene before a move in 2005 to 232 Woodbine Ave. in Narberth, followed by its 2007 relocation to 818 W. Lancaster Ave. in Bryn Mawr, formerly Citron. That's where Mims began a partnership with Taylor, a lawyer, and picked up a liquor license. The two also opened Les Bons Temps at 114 S. 12th St. in Center City. The partnership disintegrated a year ago, and Mims left. When Mims surfaced at the Freehouse in Wayne, Taylor sued him, alleging that Mims had violated terms of their contract specifying that Mims could not work within 10 miles of Carmine's. (Still with me?) In the last couple of months, Les Bon Temps closed (as did the Freehouse). Mims owns Daddy Mims and Johnny's New Orleans Pizza Kitchen in Phoenixville. 

Posted by Michael Klein @ 11:34 AM  Permalink | File Under: TableTalk | 3 comments
Comments   
Posted 02:22 PM, 07/13/2009
mk1956
We just got a coupon for Carmine's in the mail Friday and he closed on Sunday? Sounds like Howard should stop fighting with John and get organized.
Posted 03:30 PM, 07/13/2009
asv
The food quality of Carmine's went downhill with the Bryn Mawr move..
Posted 07:45 PM, 07/14/2009
thedogatemyhomework
Those coupons in the mail are never a good sign, are they? I wondered about that, too, when I saw Carmine's at a discount. Personally, I'm not crazy about tapas. I always seem to walk out hungry, after having spent more money than I thought I would. Isn't that an 'old news' menu anyway?
3 comments
About Michael Klein
Michael Klein chronicles local people, places and things (in easy-to-digest portions) three days a week in his Inquirer column "INQlings." He also covers the restaurant scene in his Thursday Food column, "Table Talk." See his work at http://www.philly.com/inquirer/columnists/michael_klein.
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