Table Talk: La Casa de tu Madre opens in Bella Vista

The name means "your mother's house," but the Day of the Dead motif at the new La Casa de tu Madre (800 Fitzwater St., 267-519-3242) presumes that Mom has a macabre sense of decorating.

Jason Evenchik and his crew have done a rapid but dramatic renovation of what was Growlers in Bella Vista into this Mexican themer. Evenchik has retained Growlers chef Michael Thomas (ex-Kraftwork, Bar Ferdinand, Honey's Sit N Eat) to turn out a simple-to-comprehend menu of tacos, nachos, enchiladas, and burritos. Hours are 5 p.m. till late on weekdays, noon till late on weekends.

The Roberts Block building at the Glenside train station, vacant for decades, is popping now since last week's opening of a bar-restaurant cleverly called Roberts Block (2 Roberts Ave., 215-690-4445).

Jack and Beth Conroy of Conroy Catering oversee the operation, run by Jose and Jennifer Vargas, who own Forcella, Leila's Bistro, and Flora in Jenkintown.

Chef Bruce Santino's American menu mixes the basics and more ambitious dishes, such as fried pig ears and pastrami beef tongue that's served with house-baked rye chips.

Entrees are $18 and $22; the bacon-stuffed scallops are $28 and the 20-ounce rib eye is $40.

Bar list includes a dozen beers on tap, plus wine and cocktails.

Interior, which includes two dining rooms besides the roomy bar area, is a tribute to reclaimed wood and exposed brick and concrete. The communal table in the bar seems to be the focal point. In its early going, it's open Tuesday through Sunday for dinner.

Things are looking up on North Broad Street and the surrounding blocks as development - including the Divine Lorraine Hotel - begins to fill in a former no-man's-land between Temple University and Center City.

Tom Baker and Peggy Zwerver of Mount Airy's Earth Bread + Brewery are building Bar Hygge, a brewpub, in the new building at 1720 Fairmount Ave. and are hoping for a November opening.

Santucci's, the square-pizza specialist, just opened a roomy bar/restaurant at the corner of Broad and Wallace Streets, where Alessandros was (655 N. Broad St., 267-639-6014).

A few blocks away in Francisville is the new Vineyards Cafe (847 N. 16th St., 215-232-3000), an adorable creperie/sandwich cafe at the corner of 16th and Ogden Streets. Owner Orest Chornodola, like his wife, Zoriana, emigrated from Ukraine several years ago. The counter seating is just fine for the grab-and-go crowd, but neighbors have discovered the handsome basement. They sell La Colombe coffee and French pastries, in addition to sandwiches and crepes.

Chef Peter Serpico of Serpico on South Street was Philadelphia's representative to the World's Fair. He was guest chef this week at the American restaurant at the Milan Expo.

North Star Bar, the Fairmount live-music landmark, has closed after 34 years. It will become a bar-restaurant whose new name has not been determined. A sale is pending, according to a filing with the Liquor Control Board.

More restaurant news at www.philly.com/mike.