El Fuego fires up with Calif.-style Mexican

The burritos, tacos and quesadillas are finally rolling out at the new location of

El Fuego

(2104 Chestnut St., 215-751-1435), which opened about 10 weeks behind schedule because of assorted construction delays.

Owners John McNamee and Garrett Goggin, whose first location opened five years ago off Washington Square at 723 Walnut St., are doing California-style Mexican eats in a spare, industrial cafe with long, common tables and flip-up windows. You order at the counter. This location has a liquor license and dispenses draft beers and margaritas. It's open from lunchtime through late night.

Blue2O

(1960 Route 70 West, Cherry Hill, 856-662-0297) - and that's "blue-two-oh," not "zero") - will open Monday where Porterhouse was before a spring 2007 fire. The high-end seafooder is a new brand from Indiana chain Quality Dining, which also has the Chili's next door. Specialty is seafood (plus steaks and chops) cooked at 1,500 degrees over a hardwood-fire grill; there will be a raw bar. Executive chef Jasper Alivia, who studied at French Culinary in New York, interned with Rocco DiSpirito at NYC's Union Pacific, and sous-cheffed with Peter "Farm to Table" Hoffman at Savoy; he last was at Cuba Libre in Old City and Atlantic City. Figure on $8.50 to $13.50 for lunch, and $22.50 to $28 for dinner entrees. Open for lunch and dinner daily.

Valentino on the Square (267 S. 19th St.), just south of Rittenhouse Square at 19th and Manning, is being remodeled (darker, cozier) as an Italian wine bar called DiVino. It's expected to open early next week.

Lynda Hoseno says she is about a week from opening Lynda's Mediterranean, a BYOB, at 1617 E. Passyunk Ave. in South Philly, which last was Clementine's. She's a home-trained cook born in Algeria, and she says the moderate-priced menu will reflect her homeland.

Neil Parish of Cherry Hill's Kibitz Room is planning a Center City location near 16th and Locust. Not to be confused with Kibitz in the City, which was founded by the Kibitz Room's former owner, Russ Cowan, who later sold both Kibitz operations.

Samantha Johnson and mother Angie Brown are shooting for an Oct. 25-ish opening of

Soul

(8136 Germantown Ave.), a 30-seat Creole-influenced regional-American BYO in the Chestnut Hill spot that last housed Citrus. Brown, who's owned a couple spots of her own (Mount Airy Cafe, Angie Brown's), will be chef; top entree price will be about $24, she says. Johnson, a former Miss Pennsylvania USA, is a server at Parc on Rittenhouse Square. It will be open for dinner Tuesdays through Saturdays and brunch on Sundays.

If plans hold, Earth Bread + Brewery (7136 Germantown Ave., 215-242-6666) will open today in Mount Airy. The brewpub/flatbread outlet, the dream of brewers Tom Baker and Peggy Zwerver of the onetime craft brewery Heavyweight Brewing, has been "finished" but ran into licensing delays. Four beers will be on tap, including the so-called Sedgwick Pale Ale, made with hops from a neighbor's back yard. It'll be open Tuesdays through Thursdays from dinnertime on, and Fridays through Sundays from lunchtime on.