Tasty Place still Tasty

All the way back in my first month of Midtown Lunching in Philly, I was in all my newbie glory when I stumbled upon Tasty Place, the Chinese restaurant located in a basement next to an Asian grocery store. I still have yet to find a better chow fun in the city. When I realized the ridiculousness of that fact that it had been years since I ate at Tasty Place, I went back to try some other things off their extensive menu. And I stocked up on spices at the  grocery store (5 spice powder, ground lemon grass, wasabi powder, and citrus peel powder).

This past summer LaBan raved about the fried chicken wings. I figured if the chefs could fry up wings, they would probably nail fried squid too. This assumption was correct.  A plate of salt baked squid ($8) was tender and lightly fried. The batter clung to each piece. And, unlike other spots in town, they did not over salt their fried squid.

Since it still hasn’t warmed up and the days have been particularly windy, my bones were chilled and the fact that the basement was not heated didn’t help either. Soup was needed. Recalling the high quality roast pork from my last meal, we picked the roast pork and wonton noodle soup ($5.75). Pork is still good and the wontons are a nice The broth wasn’t anything special. I think the fact that my table faced a rack of over sized cans of chicken broth with pictures of chickens high on MSG didn’t help.

It seemed like our waitress had an agenda. Whether it was to get rid of certain dishes in stock or just make sure we ate well, I couldn’t tell. Either way, she essential forced the fish filet and tofu dish on us ($9). Pieces of flounder and soft tofu came in a light bean sauce. It didn’t have any particularly bold flavors, there is a hint of ginger, but the pleasant texture made this comforting and I was happy it was pushed on us.

Tasty Place is still one of the my favorite Chinese lunches in Philly. Its sketchy, cheap, and truly tasty.

THE + (What somebody who likes this place would say)

  • Big menu of cheap and delicious Chinese food

THE – (What somebody who doesn’t like this place would say)

  • There is no way I am going down those stairs to eat lunch.
  • The bathrooms are scary bad

Tasty Place, 142 N. 11th St., Basement (btw. Race + Arch St.), 215-592-8990

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3 Comments

  • User has not uploaded an avatar

    I’ve probably been going there a good 20 years now, back when there were other businesses in the “Chinatown Mall.” Was just there today, in fact.

  • oooo what else was there??

  • User has not uploaded an avatar

    It was a long time ago, but I definitely remember a little Vietnamese restaurant, where I got my first bowl of pho (and had to ask what that strong tasting herb was that I didn’t like – cilantro), a hairdresser, possibly a juice bar and a small alcove across from the original Tasty Place where the kids played video games. The Asia market and TP were there back then but both were smaller; there were only a few small tables at the old TP but there was food-court style seating available in the middle.

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