Going to Philly [Philadelphia, PA ]

Next week I'm taking a short trip to the place that I was born, the City of Brotherly Love. I will be taking a camera, and hope to get with the program and put up some photos for once. (This coincides with recent camera and Mac purchases, though the Mac won't arrive for about a week after my return.)

Anyway, I will be going to the Original Tony Luke's on Oregon to document the roast pork with rabe and sharp prov. I'll also grab a slice or two out of a window and try to capture the moment.

Any other streetfood recos anyone would like for me to photo and then eat? I'll even order some scrapple for b'fast.

I didn't have any streetfood while I was there, but a fun place is "Swanky Bubbles" a champagne cocktail and martini bar with lots of interesting pan-asian food, most of which works as small nibbles and sharing food while drinking. It's on the riverfront, but I don't recall the address.

Will scrapple improve with age like my chili?

not street food, but great nuevo latino. also photo-worthy

Alma de Cuba
1623 Walnut St
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 988-1799

hattyn wrote:Will scrapple improve with age like my chili?

Not if you intend to eat it.

What a great thing this LTH is!

I was also in Philadelphia this week, and planned to make a post titled "What should I eat tonight in Philadelphia?" just as a sort of CH-nostalgia thing, but found this topic instead. Lucky me.

So off to Alma de Cuba we went. Very good, indeed.

It is a three-story place. Bar is on the ground floor, and it is a visually pleasing, with white shutters on the walls, and slides of cuban faces projected on them. Interesting and tasty varieties of ceviche, and fine mojitos. The Ecudoran shrimp ceviche was least interesting, but not bad - shrimp in something like a mild and chunky gazpacho. The fluke in a tangy citrus was very good, as was the hamachi with a touch of horseradish, pine nuts, and some other stuff. We also had a cheese empanada with spinach served in a vegetable and vinegar sauce.

On the third floor we dined among photos of tobacco plants, printed on backlit transparencies, with a central casting tobacco guy on one, raffish smile and a cigar to complete to over-the-top effect.

The food was excellent here. I started with a chicken, coconut soup - rather thai meets cuba. Then on the the roast pork. Fabulously crispy skin and lots of it, good flavor (clearly finished with a touch of vinegar), and a massive serving. The sides were just as good - beans and rice with a great pepper and vinegar tang, and nice chunks of ham, and cubed, sauteed plantains.

I finished with the coconut flan with a dab of mango sorbet.

My companions had sea bass on a bed of green rice, and a massive vegetarian plate. They all enthused. Best of all, it was restaurant week in Philly, so the whole thing was $30 prix fixe, though we managed to spend almost twice that on ceviche and drinks...

It is hepped up island food, with more vinegar and pepper than you would find in the authentic versions, which is good for me. But the key, really, is that the chef and kitchen are just executing very, very well. Every dish was deftly and properly executed with an interesting and thoughtful mix of flavors.

Mostly, I worked while in Philadelphia, but I did make it to Jim's on South Street to try my first genuine Cheese steak. It was okay. Good beef, very lightly seasoned. I went with provolone, and should have stuck with cheese whiz, I think. Good atmosphere (what Mr. Beef wants to be, I think) and decent food. I should have gone to Tony Luke's, though.

Thanks to Rich4.

Well, I'm ashamed to admit that, while I did go to Philly, and I did go to Tony Lukes, I was not able to bring my camera. There's always next time.

A few quick observations: Tony Lukes remains. Yet this spot still is not in the common vernacular of Philadelphians, even those who love cheesesteaks, roast pork, etc. This is because, best I can tell, Philly is even a more compartmentalized, segregated place than Chicago. Oregon Ave. in South Philly is right there, off the 95 (indeed, Tony Lukes' parking lot is under the interstate itself), halfway between Center City and the airport, and a very short drive from the various new stadia. So, in terms of convenience, at least, TL's is no Johnnie's. Yet, people don't go there. Sure, Oregon Ave. is something of a free-for-all, a little like the area around Maxwell St. 10 years ago, but with a mix of hard-core Italian American holdout grocers, candy stores, cookie shops and steak stands (in it's way, a little like Melrose Park/Bellwood), latino businesses (including a big Mexican wholesale grocer, NAFTA has arrived in Philly), and African American businesses. It's dirty and has its fair share of trash-filled vacant lots, but the area is incredibly vibrant.

Anyway, I got the usual on my way back to the airport yesterday -- roast pork on an Italian roll with rabe and sharp provolone. Fantastic as always, though fairly pricey at 7 bucks. I'm sure the guys at Hertz appreciated the aroma of what must have been the sharpest provolone ever served. The bread was especially good, D'Amato's good if not better. I do not think that it was the famous Amoroso's that one gets at the tourist steak stands, the Gonella (but much better) of Philly.

In the end, TL's is getting some much-deserved notariety. In Philly, as here, it's who you know. Tony knows someone, cause TL has concessions in Philly's impressive new stadiums. My old friends from Philly love the stuff, though they feel a little defensive about have been turned on to the place by a guy in Chicago. Based on the new source of cash, TL's is opening a new store, across from the ramshackle original, that looks eerily like a new Portillo's.

PS, the "famous" steak places are no big deal in my opinion. Indeed, I don't get the appeal of even relatively good steaks, when roast pork is nearby.

Moving on to pizza. With Antonius and Rich in the back of my head, I walked around after watching some baseball at a Society Hill pub (Chimay on tap, but a disappointment as it was syrupy and expensive) and had a late slice at Lorenzo & Son's on South St. This is a humble little shack looking much like Mario's lemonade stand here on Taylor (that's "water ice" in Philly, you know). There was just one conclusion, which I used to know but had to be reminded of: the same reason you can't get this kind of pie in Chicago is the reason you cant get etherial hand-patted tortillas in Philly -- technique. Lorenzo, like places around many of the "old neighborhoods" back East, has a heavy guy standing in front of a huge, hot oven, hand-tossing deceptively-simple dough, transforming a resilliant softball into a translucently-thin, umbrella-size circle that, when complete, nearly hangs to the floor when dangled from chest-high by the big guy. Onto the peel, a light topping of fresh sauce and a decent amount of good cheese and into the oven it goes. In no time, the monster pie is divided, a slice thrown on a cheap paper plate and handed over in exchange for two bucks. As for toppings, the usual are there for a whole pie. But this place focuses on the slice and the mega pies that yield it. No toppings, "don't even ask" says the sign.

The big guy is the last of a dying breed. He has a feel for the dough, has been through the apprenticeship, understands the oven. This isn't rocket science, but it is millwork, or plastering, or plumbing. The ladies at La Quebrada are journeymen, too. But Chicago doesn't have anyone who can do this, not right now in a restaurant, at least. I still like my Aurelio's, though. Different breeds within the same species. Or apples and oranges, ribs and whole hog.

For dinner, my pals wanted to go to Pasion or Alma de Cuba. But it was restaurant week (3 courses/$30) and a big convention week. Ended up at the new Continental, an expanded version of the Old City original that started life as a pretty edgy bar with food. The new spot is the opposite of edgy, more like campy. A poor man's SushiSamba Rio, I'd say. "Global tapas" is the theme. While the drinks and company were great, the food was forgettable.

Next up, LA. I promise to try harder in the photo-doc department.

PS, Looking at Dickson's report (hey, you took my place at Alma de Cuba), I'm envious of your $30 dinner. Sounds much better that what I had at a place where we could get in because it isn't part of Restaurant Week. One observation, Cuban home cooking is often very heavy on the vinegar. But, somewhat like spice in Thai cooking, in restaurants the vinegar is added at the table by the diner. Any Cuban cafeteria in Miami or Tampa should bring out a caddy with oil and vinegar to add liberally to black beans, pork, congri, etc.

dicksond wrote:So off to Alma de Cuba we went. Very good, indeed.
...
It is hepped up island food, with more vinegar and pepper than you would find in the authentic versions, which is good for me. But the key, really, is that the chef and kitchen are just executing very, very well. Every dish was deftly and properly executed with an interesting and thoughtful mix of flavors...

Glad you liked it; I feel vindicated from my bad Chinese rec in Jersey this week.

Nuevo Latino is something I miss very much after moving to Chicago. Nacional 27 and Rumba just don't do it. I was a big fan of Patria in New York in the mid-late 90s, and wish someone would make something similar here. So far, I've only come across good nuevo Latino in New York, Philly, and Miami.

Two years ago I had a bunch of visits to Philadelphia, and Tony Lukes was the first place I hit. On each subsequent visit I went there too as I figured out how close it was to the airport and how the local highway on/off worked.

On the last visit, after the Roast Pork Italian at Tony Lukes with rabe, I followed HollyEats to the Italian Market and repeated at Georges Sandwiches. George's was as good as, no, make that even a little better than Tony Luke's--and definitely different. Worth the effort.

A small narrow place, no tables and just ten seats at the counter. All the food is up front by the window open to the sidewalk. You get your own drink from the cooler. Dad and kids and grandma running it. Solid regular clientele. A buck or two cheaper than Tony Lukes. More true 'tam' (taste) to everything. Great sausage, and veal and peppers in addition to roast pork.

One thing that is confusing is that there are two places named George's. If you go, make sure you hit the right one.

Georges Sandwiches
900 1/2 South 9th, Corner Christian
Philadelphia, PA
215-592-8363
http://hollyeats.com/Geroges.htm
(that's not a typo in the url, its the way Holly has it set up)

I did recognize that Tony Lukes was on the way to the airport, but as I had just sampled my Philly Steak, I took a pass. Plus the taxi driver had already given me a good deal, and I was without photo ID so wanted to get to the airport early for what I expected to be a thorough cavity search...

Next time, for sure.

Is there anything good in the market up by the convention center? I walked through on my way to South Street that morning and it looked rather promising. Lots of food stalls. But I was focused, with limited time, and did not dawdle.

dicksond wrote:Is there anything good in the market up by the convention center? I walked through on my way to South Street that morning and it looked rather promising. Lots of food stalls. But I was focused, with limited time, and did not dawdle.

Mostly Reading Terminal Market is a food court for the convention center. I do remember one Italian stall in the back where they sold really good homemade ravioli, but a true market it is no more.

What cities have true markets left? Cleveland, Seattle, New Orleans, L.A.??? Rest are gone or turned into food courts or tourist attractions.

Most of the old markets are now tourist centers, but some clear winners have to be Toronto (St. Catherines), Seattle (Pike Pl.), and Pittsburgh (the Strip). LA too.

Chicago has what is needed for a great working market, but our clean-freak mayor, who has outlawed oyster fests and has irrational (discriminatory?) rules about what kinds of meat can be sold at Maxwell St. (oh, there's another one, though it's open only once a week), would probably never allow the real deal. He's talked about it, but I'm guessing the final product would be more Navy Pier than Fulton Mkt.

Hi all,

the chef at Alma de Cuba is a Kendall College grad, so there's a nice Chicago connection!

Lee

Check this out and report back, wouldja?

The traditional Philly cheesesteak has gone precipitously upscale at one new restaurant, where the chopped steak and melted cheese standard includes goose liver and truffles -- and costs $100.

Barclay Prime owner Stephen Starr admits the haute cheesesteak is a marketing ploy for his steakhouse, which opened Tuesday. And he thinks it will sell....

Served with a small bottle of champagne, Barclay Prime's cheesesteak is made of sliced Kobe beef, melted Taleggio cheese, shaved truffles, sauteed foie gras, caramelized onions and heirloom shaved tomatoes on a homemade brioche roll brushed with truffle butter and squirted with homemade mustard.

http://edition.cnn.com/2004/US/10/06/cheese.steak.ap/

Hi,

Last weekend, I met Holly Moore of Hollyeats.com who resides in Philadelphia.

I did my usual complaint of having searched out Tony Luke's on the Philly board, only to find out later I had visited an inferior location. This is a classic example of how including addresses and phone numbers on posts really helps. He offered a tip on the Tony Lukes, those with 'Jr' are locations sold to a 2nd party. Tony Luke's owned and managed by the originators have no 'Jr' on their name.

He also had high praise for 'Kitchen Studio,' which is a one-man restaurant. They show you how the dish is prepared, then you eat it. I had read about this place on and off on the CH Philly board and came away with some odd impressions. So something to consider.

[Mostly Reading Terminal Market is a food court for the convention center.

Calling Reading Terminal the above is like like calling Maxwell Street market "a bunch of second hand dealers and food stalls by a large supermarket." The last time I looked, old stand-bys like Bassett's, Beiler's, Kauffman.s, Termini Bros., Delilah's, and Old City Coffee among many others were still there, and I'm sure none of these are about to compromise their quality for the tourists. I don't live in Philly anymore so I can't speak for the quality, but last summer there still seemed to be plenty of purveyors of fresh produce, meats, dairy, and much imported and local grocery products. Moreover, if you're there towards the end of the week when the Amish are behind their counters you can sample not only some fine products from Lancaster County but, freshly baked, the best soft pretzels to be found anywhere, anytime. Ever. Period. 'Nuff said.

Hi,

A very unique restaurant featuring cereal all day long:

Cereality
(near the University of Pennsylvania)
3631 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA
215-222-1162

They have a location in Tempe, AZ located near a university campus. They promise to have Chicago location soon!

Last time I was in Philly, I was treated to dinner at Le Bec Fin - supposedly the best restaurant in town. I'd consider it a definite must-miss - food was comparable to many upscale restaurants here, just more expensive. Service was of the old-school/haughty style. OTOH, it's a nice room and the cheese service was excellent.

Just came back from a trip to Phillie with a friend who wanted to see the garden show (highly recommended). We ate at Azafran, which is described as "pan Latin" and which others could, and have, judged far more intelligently than I, and, my second visit, at Kabul Afgan Cuisine (nicely reviewed here )where the food is consistently interesting and I highly recommend the item on the vegetarian menu which is basically a ravioli. But I mostly want to join in the defense of Reading Terminal Market against Rich4's slander.

We were there on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (not usually open, but this week was an exception because of the flower show). Not everything was perfect, of course. We kept going back to the Tokyo Sushi bar mostly because of the adorable four or five year old who was there helping her mother with the carry out orders but never found anything we'd rush to order again. I was also underwhelmed by the oyster stew at Pearl

A good lunch hour or two in Philadelphia

Son and I did a fly through college visit last week, and found ourselves free for a late, but extended, lunchtime. My intention was to visit the Reading Terminal Market, but while heading into dowtown on Market Street, I spied a whole bunch of lunch trucks, mostly featuring soul food and/or caribbean food, on Market in front of the Post Office and across from the 30th Street Station. Going with the time-tested method of picking the busiest place, we stopped at the Caribbean Way truck (also had a lady's name on it, and referred to a restaurant location, but I can't find my notes right now).

He ordered fried fish with mac n cheese and beans and rice for sides. I went with the jerk chicken with beans and rice and collard greens.

Massive amounts of food, and pretty good. Fish fried to order, and quite tasty. Not sure if the jerk was stewed to start, or just stewed as it was held (we went there late, close to 3pm, so the food had undoubtedly been held for a while). Worth exploring some more, I think. I was told this truck was only there 2 or 3 days a week.

My next goal was to try the famous Tony Luke's (Oregon Street carry out location, as opposed to the sit down place across the street). Somehow I had trouble ordering, since I asked if I could combine cheese and rabe, and ended up just with cheese which would have been my last choice.

It is a great sandwich. Tender, savory, succulent roast pork. Not sure how they hold it warm, or if it is just about high turnover, but it was perfect. I could do without the cheese. The roll was also excellent - crusty, good flavor, light touch of sesame seeds. It added a lot, and set me to ruefully thinking about the generally mediocre rolls used for Italian Beef, and how much such a roll would improve those sammies. Gary did experiment with his own crusty french roll at Chickies on Beefathon I, and it was a great change ("would you please make my sandwich on this roll?" and they did).

Which is not meant to introduce comparisons between different sandwiches, other than to say I will go back to Tony Luke's for a roast pork and rabe sandwich before my next cheese steak. In fact, while my jerk chicken was good, Tony Luke's was much, much, better.

Thanks for the tip.

I'm headed to Philly next weekend for a friend's wedding, so I won't have too much tourist time. I'm expecting to have at least one solid chunk of exploration time, and I figure I'll be spending it in Center City. My plan is to head over to the Muttart museum and then walk my way over to Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell and all that farther east. Disregarding the few dissenters in this thread, I figure I'll stop at Reading Terminal Market on my east after Muttart, put together a picnic lunch or pick up a few prepared items and find somewhere outside to eat it (please be a nice day, please be a nice day, please be a nice day).

I fear having one shot to enjoy the market and the downtown area and not taking advantage of the best it has to offer. I would greatly appreciate your help. Any specific suggestions on stalls in the market to stop by or foods/dishes to get? Should I ditch the Market in favor of something else that's on my (narrow) path?

I'll note that I'm mostly interested in cheap eats, not looking for a sitdown meal. Thanks!

Go straight to Tommy DiNic's at Reading Terminal Market and get the "Italian pulled pork". Fantastic either by itself or adorned with sharp provolone and broccoli rabe. You can thank me later.

RTM is a chow paradise (Salumeria, Termini Bros., Le Bus, Metropolitan, Bakery, Down Home Diner), but do DiNic's for your first visit.

It probably won't be ice cream weather, but Capogiro nearby at 13th and Sansom makes some incredible gelato.

Chinatown is really close and Dim Sum Garden has excellent soup dumplings (easily equal to Joe's Shanghai), hand-pulled noodles, etc. I love Katy's in Westmont, but this is better.

I recommended some more high-end (but still very affordable) places in the other Phila thread. The recent kibbe nayeh discussion has me craving Zahav again.

(By the way, I think you mean the Mutter Museum, assuming you want to gaze upon a collection of lovingly-preserved tumors. The Muttart Museum sounds like the place to view paintings of dogs playing poker, which is quite revolting, if you ask me.)

cilantro wrote:Go straight to Tommy DiNic's at Reading Terminal Market and get the "Italian pulled pork". Fantastic either by itself or adorned with sharp provolone and broccoli rabe. You can thank me later.

RTM is a chow paradise (Salumeria, Termini Bros., Le Bus, Metropolitan, Bakery, Down Home Diner), but do DiNic's for your first visit.

It probably won't be ice cream weather, but Capogiro nearby at 13th and Sansom makes some incredible gelato.

Chinatown is really close and Dim Sum Garden has excellent soup dumplings (easily equal to Joe's Shanghai), hand-pulled noodles, etc. I love Katy's in Westmont, but this is better.

I recommended some more high-end (but still very affordable) places in the other Phila thread. The recent kibbe nayeh discussion has me craving Zahav again.

(By the way, I think you mean the Mutter Museum, assuming you want to gaze upon a collection of lovingly-preserved tumors. The Muttart Museum sounds like the place to view paintings of dogs playing poker, which is quite revolting, if you ask me.)

I like the idea of Dim Sum Garden and it's right next to the Reading Market. In addition to the soup dumplings (make sure not to order the soup with dumplings), their chive pancakes are quite good.

The Reading Market does not take that long to walk around. There are some decent eats in the Market, but I'd pass them up for Dim Sum Garden.

As for Capogiro, I love the place and would head there regardless of the weather. It's only a ten or so minute walk from the Reading Market and Dim Sum Garden so head there for dessert.

If there's time, a walk around the Italian market could be fun . . . it's not that far from Independence Hall.

BR wrote:their chive pancakes are quite good.

Love those too.

BR wrote:As for Capogiro, I love the place and would head there regardless of the weather. It's only a ten or so minute walk from the Reading Market and Dim Sum Garden so head there for dessert.

I'm with you -- I'd go there in February. A huge variety of intensely-flavored gelati and sorbets, most very well executed. By the way, they are extremely generous with samples.

Another point of interest: If you like coffee and have never had siphon coffee, check out Ray's, also in Chinatown. $4-8 for a cup and totally worth it.

If looking for Belgian food fare, check out Monk's Cafe. They also have a pretty decent Belgian-style beer list. I also enjoyed Nodding Head as an American brewpub for both beer & food.

jpreiser wrote:If looking for Belgian food fare, check out Monk's Cafe. They also have a pretty decent Belgian-style beer list. I also enjoyed Nodding Head as an American brewpub for both beer & food.

Pretty decent list? It's widely considered one of the best beer lists in the country.

Regarding Monk's, I was there earlier in the week and liked it plenty. Mussels, frites and veal cheeks for a very late dinner. I didn't scour the beer list, instead taking a recommendation. The list was impressive, though it looked significantly shorter and narrower than the obvious comparison, Hopleaf. Not a complaint, just an observation.

It looked as if there are different lists in different areas of the tavern, and I thought I saw in-the-know people in the front bar (where I was) order stuff from the back bar.

The food was solid.

jpschust wrote:

jpreiser wrote:If looking for Belgian food fare, check out Monk's Cafe. They also have a pretty decent Belgian-style beer list. I also enjoyed Nodding Head as an American brewpub for both beer & food.

Pretty decent list? It's widely considered one of the best beer lists in the country.

So I guess I downplayed it too much then.

I do consider Monk's a must-visit place whenever in Philly and enjoy both the food and beer immensely.

Thanks for all the great tips, everyone! As expected I didn't get too much time to explore but I'm extremely glad I checked here first.

Was able to try a cheesesteak from Tony Lukes, split it with a friend who prefers provolone, so I didn't get to try one with wiz (or one wiz with for that matter). Thought it was good, the bun clearly a big factor and this one a fine specimen-- light and airy but substantial. Not that they're the same thing, but my initial and lasting reaction when eating was: I'd rather have an Italian Beef.

Got a chance to walk around Reading Terminal Market on a Sunday afternoon. I was expecting more produce and raw vendors instead of mostly restaurant stands, but it's not an unpleasant surprise. Unstaffed while I was there, DiNic's got nixed. Actually found myself agonizingly unhungry in the market and headed on my merry way to Capogiro, where I made room for gelato. And quite some gelato, indeed! Small cups get 2 choices, I went w/ Fior di Latte and pomegranate. The Fior di Latte was mild and creamy, full of Amish dairy goodness. The pomegranate burst with a vibrancy that filled every bite. Incredibly cold, drizzly, dreary day, my hand numbed quickly and my entire body shivered, and I could not stop shoveling it in, one tiny spoonful at a time.

Unbeknownst to me when I posted, the post-wedding dinner was at Zahav, which I see is mentioned above. It was exceptional. I celebrated heartily, so I can't really recall each dish clearly but the passed app of roasted cauliflower and the hummus alone at the beginning sold me on the place. I will say this- their cocktails are fantastic After dinner, they had a bigger gathering at a bar called the Memphis Taproom, which seems like a great little bar that knows and loves their beer, and had a really great selection for a neighborhood place. Brunch there the next morning was nothing spectacular.

cilantro wrote:(By the way, I think you mean the Mutter Museum, assuming you want to gaze upon a collection of lovingly-preserved tumors. The Muttart Museum sounds like the place to view paintings of dogs playing poker, which is quite revolting, if you ask me.)

I did mean the Mutter, although to be honest, the kitsch-lover in me would jump at the opportunity to go to the other museum you describe and in retrospect, might have enjoyed it more than the real one full of medical abnormalities.

Zahav
237 St James Pl
Philadelphia, PA‎ 19106-3936
(215) 625-8800‎
http://www.zahavrestaurant.com/

Memphis Taproom
2331 E Cumberland St
Philadelphia, PA 19125-2205
(215) 425-4460
http://memphistaproom.com/index.htm

If looking for Belgian food fare, check out Monk's Cafe. They also have a pretty decent Belgian-style beer list. I also enjoyed Nodding Head as an American brewpub for both beer & food.

Great call on Monk's. I probably wouldn't venture too far away from the mussels and the beer, but both the offerings and final results were generally outstanding (altho I'd drop the "Ghent Mussels" from my list; Bacon, cheese, and mussels might be a good combo, but not when they're steamed together--anyway, there was enough of the garlicky kind in other buckets to make up for it.) The place has a nice dark-woody-neighborhood vibe about it, too.

If I were in Philly only one night Monk's would not be on my list, largely because of the above limitations. If I were there 2+ nights it definitely would make my GNR map. (It's not far from Capogiro, too, so that'll take care of dessert.)