A day in my life - part two - The Martha Stewart Blog

November 5, 2009

A day in my life - part two

As stated yesterday, my one-day trip to Philadelphia on Monday was something of a whirlwind. To celebrate the release of my latest book, Dinner at Home, my first stop was a book signing. I greeted hundreds of fans at the Williams - Sonoma store in the King of Prussia mall and signed more 600 copies. After the book signing my traveling companions and I ate lunch at Pod, a sleek and extraordinary Asian-fusion restaurant owned by the trendsetting, Stephen Starr, and designed by the Rockwell Group, a famous architecture and design firm. Our dining experience at Pod was a unique and enjoyable experience.
Following our lunch, we walked the short distance to Wharton, the business school of the University of Pennsylvania. A member of the Ivy League, Wharton is recognized as one of the world's most prestigious and influential business schools. I was invited to speak at the Zellerbach Theatre at the Annenberg Center to a group of more than 500 business students. It's always a thrill to speak to such bright and inquisitive minds. The topic was building the Martha Stewart Brand, and I must say that after my talk, they asked many impressive and intelligent questions.

: After the book signing, we headed for downtown Philadelphia in search of a lunch spot.

: This bar features a translucent amber resin bar top, lit from beneath with white neon.

: One sushi roll on its way!

: This oval-shaped sushi bar has a conveyor belt that delivers the freshly prepared sushi. Above the sushi bar, a large, screen shows non-stop video clips.

: These bright panels are actually a sliding door.

: The interior is sleek and white and has bold, bright colorful lighting,

: This is the busy sushi prep area.

: The interior of Pod was nothing less than futuristic, created by Stephen Starr, Philadelphia’s leading trendsetting restaurateur. This is one of several small eating pods for more intimate dining.

: This area is the red lounge – a sofa-like foam sculpture.

: After lunch, I visited the ladies’ room.

: The lit up symbol for not occupied

: Pink for taken

: The pods looked like a fun place to eat, so that is where we dined.

: The interior lighting can be changed according to the diners’ mood – we were happy with this pale green – Mary, Susan, Ellen, Dee, Will, and me.

: In Japan, it is customary to use chopstick rests. We decided to create our own. This is my knot design.

: Will’s was shaped like a ramp.

: Eliad, our photographer for the day, came up with this design, which he named the ‘dragon tongue.’

: Food is served family style – we had lettuce wraps with delicious tofu and chicken filling.

: Mary wanted to keep the wrapping logo in tact.

: Yummy chicken potstickers

: Lots of sushi – California roll, eel, spicy tuna, and yellowtail

: Bowls of spicy condiments

: And then, a quick touch up before leaving for the Wharton School.

: The restaurant, Pod, seemed like the perfect choice to enjoy a relaxed lunch. It was in close proximity to the Wharton School so we would not be rushed.