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Craig LaBan’s search for Israeli soul; Philly’s payroll system is miscalculating checks | Morning Newsletter

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Henry Morgan, Caitlin McMillan, Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook (L-R) walk through Carmel Market, Tel Aviv, Israel, February 12, 2019.
Henry Morgan, Caitlin McMillan, Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook (L-R) walk through Carmel Market, Tel Aviv, Israel, February 12, 2019.Read moreCorinna Kern / For The Inquirer

    The Morning Newsletter

    Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter

Whatever you had for breakfast this morning, chances are it wasn’t fresh hummus eaten near the ancient port of Jaffa, followed by fresh-baked clouds of crunchy-gooey meringue and a feast of borekas. But that’s how Inquirer food critic Craig LaBan began his three-day, 36-stop tasting marathon in Israel with Philly restaurateurs Steven Cook and Michael Solomonov, and it only got better from there. In other news, Philadelphia’s new computer payroll system has been sending out inaccurate checks for the last month, and city workers say that’s a hard pill to swallow.

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— Oona Goodin-Smith (@oonagoodinsmith, morningnewsletter@philly.com)

For years, their dishes have distinguished Philadelphia’s food scene, while his palate and pen have critiqued it. But what happened when acclaimed restaurateurs Steven Cook and Michael Solomonov of Zahav fame and Inquirer food critic Craig LaBan boarded a plane together to Israel, diving pita-first into a three-day marathon tasting spree?

Formality fell to the wayside, kebabs were consumed, and a deeper understanding between the critic and culinary duo grew. For LaBan, the trip pulled back the curtain on the process of finding the flavors that go into creating a new restaurant.

And for Cook, it was all about showing his guests — critics included — where his cooking inspiration comes from, and creating greater appreciation for what his team has to offer.

In the span of three days, the crew made 36 stops — yes, 36 — and if your stomach isn’t already rumbling, wait until you feast your eyes on what they ate.

Over the last month, Philadelphia’s new payroll computer system has been miscalculating paychecks, inconveniencing and frustrating employees across all city government departments.

Some, like a prison worker who received $0 for 80 hours’ work, are severely underpaid, while others got checks for sometimes twice their regular pay.

And though employees and labor unions are saying, “Enough,” to the four-week pay problem, city officials have been slow to publicly identify and quantify the issue, let alone fix it.

A lot of people want to run Philadelphia’s elections. In the largest city commissioner field in 36 years, 14 people — one Republican and 13 Democrats — are vying for the top jobs in overseeing Philly’s election operations in the May 21 primary.

Responsible for safeguarding smooth, fair elections in which every vote is secure and accurately counted, the usually obscure city position is in the spotlight this year among heightened concerns over election security and orders from Gov. Tom Wolf to upgrade all county voting machines.

To learn more about who’s running to regulate voting, the Inquirer gathered the candidates’ questionnaire and forum answers, voting histories, campaign finance records and more.

For more on the approaching May 21 election, check out our voter’s guide and visit philly.com/election.

What you need to know today

  1. Years after the Philadelphia Union promised its Talen Energy Stadium would transform the struggling city of Chester to little effect, the soccer team’s parent company is once again vowing to develop the distressed city’s waterfront.

  2. The U.S. House of Representatives approved a bill Thursday that would prevent President Donald Trump from pulling the United States out of the Paris climate accord and keep a pledge to reduce greenhouse gases, one day after a Pennsylvania Senate committee held a research “workshop” with testimony from climate denialists.

  3. Google is under fire in Philly this week after Twitter users uncovered that the map tool labels an area near the Fairhill neighborhood in North Philadelphia as the “Philadelphia Badlands.”

  4. A new ruling from the Pennsylvania Supreme Court could upend hundreds of criminal convictions that grew out of traffic stops, and force the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office to change how it prosecutes some defendants, lawyers say.

Through Your Eyes | #OurPhilly

Stay gold, Philadelphia. 🌇 Thanks for the photo, @kslouf!

Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and we’ll pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout out!

That’s Interesting

  1. Could a sprawling development complete with stores, a hotel, restaurant and real estate uproot rural farm life as Manheim Township knows it? Lancaster County Amish and Mennonite farmers are questioning the proposal, calling it akin to “plopping a small city in the middle of farmland."

  2. The Sunset Beach gift shop in Cape May Point will join Wildwood in continuing to play Kate Smith’s rendition of “God Bless America” this summer after the New York Yankees and Flyers cut ties with Smith due to her racist song lyrics.

  3. After a less-than-all star performance against the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday, 90s band Smash Mouth attempted to troll Bryce Harper on Twitter. But in the end, it was the band that looked kind of dumb with its finger and its thumb in the shape of an "L" on its forehead.

  4. If you’ve ever wanted to live in the home of a Super Bowl MVP, now’s your chance. Eagles hero Nick Foles’ Haddonfield digs are on the market for $800,000.

Opinions

“No matter how long it takes, she tells her son, someone will answer for killing him before his 30th birthday and the birth of his youngest child, Neila, the same way someone had answered for the shooting death of the 25-year-old cousin who he’s buried next to.” - Columnist Helen Ubiñas on Elsa Alicea, a Hunting Park mother who visits her son’s grave for coffee every day.

  1. While no mayor can be expected to eradicate poverty in just four years, an effective manager should be able to fix potholes and keep the city clean, says architecture critic Inga Saffron, who examined how Mayor Jim Kenney has maintained his quality-of-life campaign promises.

  2. Gov. Tom Wolfe’s proposal to reduce methane emissions from Pennsylvania’s natural gas industry is too little too late, writes State Rep. Greg Vitali (D., Delaware-Montgomery).

What we’re reading

  1. If you’re participating in the Broad Street Run this weekend, your brain will thank you. Even one workout can boost your semantic memory, the part of your memory that helps you to remember names and life’s context, the New York Times explains.

  2. Seventh-graders in a Fishtown science class have become fond of their gilled classmates this year. Billy Penn introduces the school of 35 tilapia living at the Adaire Alexander School.

  3. Millennials have killed the hotel industry, diamonds and Applebees. Next on the hit list: cheating, The Atlantic reports.

Your Daily Dose of | Shear bliss

With the spring weather here to stay, area sheep are ditching their winter coats. Now, ewe too can partake in the sheepshearing scene in and around Philadelphia.