Archive for October 2010

Lunch Links (The “Happy Halloween” Edition)

Photo Courtesy of Mac and Cheese
  • How about this idea for left over Halloween candy dessert pizza [Serious Eats]
  • b.b.go “rice bar” fails to impress [Mac & Cheese]
  • The red pie at Zavino is a viable option for vegan diets [Living on the Vedge]
  • Bad news. It looks like Ron’s Ribs is closed for renovations until Summer 2010! [Foobooz]

Judging a Book by its Buffet at San Samosa

San Samosa was not one of the places that I walk by and thought, “I have a good feeling about this place.” I think it may have been the fact that I never saw anyone in there. So when I decided to bite the bullet and try the food to stop judging this book by its cover, I was really surprised at the steady stream of traffic.  So there I was with my fellow diners, ready to hit up the $7.99 all you can eat buffet. I have to admit, I was a little scared.  The sparse setting could be an indicator of food that is sparse as well.

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Breaking the Usual Truck Grind with Gigi and Big R’s Big Chicken Legs

Today, Nick from My Inner Fatty is breaking is usual truck habits with Carribean food from Gigi and Big R.

University city is pretty much littered with food trucks, with 95% of them either serving Mexican food of some sort, Asian cuisine, or sandwiches. Now that’s all fine and good, but sometimes repetition gets boring (this isn’t a knock on any of the other food carts, I’m just saying…). After wandering down 38th street numerous times, I decided to pass on my stalwarts of Yue Kee, Bui’s, and Steak Queen, only to notice an obscenely obnoxious looking truck parked on the other side of Spruce. Plastered with random captions like “Largest Platters In the City,” “Come Try the Best,” and “Caribbean Soul Food,” I was at the very least, curious.

The truck is called Gigi and Big R’s Caribbean Soul Food (there’s apparently also a physical restaurant and 2 other trucks), and obvious from their given name, they serve Caribbean ‘soul food.’ What does that mean exactly? Well, I wasn’t entirely sure either, but a quick glance at their menu reveals a short list of options. Most of their platters are $7-9 dollars for the small orders, and $11 for the large orders, each coming with your choice of sides. While this seems kind of pricey compared to almost all the other food trucks, I suppose they fill a niche as they’re the only one of their kind on Penn’s campus. You’re paying a slight premium in order to take a break from sesame chicken and cheesesteaks (though on the plus side, the wait time is almost nil!).

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PROFILE: Philly Luncher “Rachel”

As is customary at Philly Lunch, every Tuesday we turn over the site to a different lunch’er for his or her recommendations for the best lunch in Philadelphia. This week, it’s Rachel- this lucky lady gets to play with chocolate all day. And she knows all about the Bellevue Food Court.

Name: Rachel

Age: 27

Occupation: Owner of Teuscher Chocolates of Switzerland (Philadelphia)

Where in Philly do you Work?: The Bellevue in Center City

Favorite Kind of Food: Chocolate. As far as cuisines go, it’s very hard to say, I can eat anything at any time. Sushi is up there because of how tasty, filling, and light it is. I love when sushi chefs come up with combinations that I’d never dream up and being able to make every bite as spicy as I want is awesome. I’m also a big fan of Indian food.

Least Favorite Kind of Food: Again, hard to say. I guess the cuisine I suggest the least (but still eat semi frequently) would be Mexican. I can always go for guacamole or fish tacos, but that’s about it, I have to be in the mood for Mexican to really enjoy it. I stay far away from cilantro, anise, and foie gras.

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch in Philly: I eat at Ellen’s in The Bellevue Food Court a lot and get the chicken ellen sandwich. Anastasia’s Seafood (new location in The Bellevue food court) has the best shrimp cocktail around. And I also like Maoz (1115 Walnut St) – their falafel and eggplant are good on the salads and the salad toppings are awesome! For a sitdown lunch, Caribou Cafe (1126 Walnut St) is my favorite spot, can’t go wrong with any dish.

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Just Opened: Rotisserie Chicken at the Bellevue Food Court

Last week J & D Rotisserie opened in the Bellevue Food Court. Besides the expected platters and to -go rotisserie chicken options,  buffalo wings, ribs, and a few sides make up the rest of the small menu. Sometimes plain, juicy rotisserie chicken is  exactly what I am in the mood for. And as there really aren’t that many places in town doing the rotisserie thing, I  think there is room for  J&D in the neighborhood.

For $6.99 I chose the platter that came with a half chicken breast and 2 sides.

The menu and what a platter looks like, after the jump…

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Lunch Links (The “What will become of the Prizza Steak?!” Edition)

  • Is the Philly prizzasteak over? Jim’s Pretzels on South St has closed [Meal Ticket]
  • Also, everyone is raving about the vegan pizza at Blackbird Pizzeria. I just don’t know how I feel about vegan cheese [Foobooz]
  • LeBan is digging the satay at Hardena [The Inquirer]
  • Drew Lazor loved the nacatamales at El Gallo Pinto. I haven’t had one since my trip there, great find! [City Paper]

Taste of Philly: The Recap!

Philadelphia Weekly’s 4th annual Taste of Philly event was last night. If you went, I hope you had a good time. I know I did. If you didn’t get to go, I hope this recap convinces you to get tickets next year. The organizers of this event do a great job, despite the crowds of people, most lines weren’t too long to wait on and there was enough food and drink to go around.

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