Free Republic

John Grogan | Dining in style, thanks to you allBy John GroganInquirer Columnist "Table for two, please," I said.The tuxedoed maitre d' led us past the wood-fired grill, the slabs of aged beef, and the iced tubs of imported Mediterranean fish to a linen-draped seating overlooking the Delaware River.We opened our menus."Wow!" my wife said."Pay no attention to the prices," I told her. "This meal is on the taxpayers of Pennsylvania."Or at least we could pretend. We were at La Veranda Ristorante, the unapologetically high-end eatery near Penn's Landing. It's where State Sen. Vincent J. Fumo (D., Phila.) managed to...