Archive for October 2014

Lunch Links (The “Saucy Hoagie” Edition)

 Photo Courtesy of Adam Atkinson

  • Out in Lehigh Valley, the cheesesteaks come with red sauce [Serious Eats]
  • Where do Philly’s best chefs go to eat in Chinatown? [Zagat]
  • Pizzeria Stella and Zahav have some of the best meatballs in the country according to Travel and Leisure [Foobooz]
  • College kids love the wings and braised lamb neck hand torn noodles from Cheu [Penn Appetit]

Banh Mi Cali Takes Pity on Me

While QT has been around the longest and is the most loved in Chinatown for banh mi breaks, today I wanted to try the newer spot, Banh Mi Cali, on the corner of 9th and Arch. The only problem was that as soon as my food was put together and placed in a plastic to-go bag, I realized I had forgotten my wallet on my bed (last night I made a midnight Amazon purchase based on a stroke of genius Halloween costume idea). Since money in exchange for food is the norm, I was in trouble. But the very nice lady at Banh Mi Cali allowed me to take my food anyway! Thank you for feeding me, nice lady!

Here is what I guiltily consumed this afternoon:

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Checking to See if I’ve Changed My Mind on Ethiopian Food at Kaffa Crossing

For years now, I have been telling everyone that my least favorite cuisine comes from Ethiopia. This is personal, and ya’ll can freely disagree but I don’t like the intense spicing, the lack of variety of flavors, and the slimy injera (a fermented, moist sort of flat bread). But, it has been a while since I gave it a chance and I wanted to be more open minded. I picked Kaffa Crossing in West Philly, highly rated on Yelp.

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Lunch Links (The “Biscuits and Rendang” Edition)

Photo courtesy of Zagat 

  • Love the assortment of Indonesian spots in South Philly, now we have a new one [Passyunk Post via Eater]
  • Scratch biscuits coming to 13th and Chestnut with customizable biscuit sandwiches  [Foobooz]
  • Philly Lunch Hour was super bummed by her UCity Sand Kee experience [Philly Lunch Hour]
  • An awesome list of fancy lunch deals on Zagat, 3 out of the 10 are under $10 [Zagat]
  • Winning vegan and gluten free soups at Metropolitan Cafe [Be Well Philly]

Hitting the Classics at Red Kings 2

I wasn’t thrilled by my visit to Red Kings a few years ago; the spice wasn’t balanced and sauces were gloppy. But I had heard enough good things about Red Kings 2 to warrant a trip.  According to Menupages the menus at both places are identical, go figure.

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Round 2 Fooled Me at Cafe Fulya

Photo Courtesy of Cafe Fulya

I visited Turkish cafe, Cafe Fulya, several years ago and really enjoyed the laid back coffee shop vibe as well as the cold vegetable appetizers, Turkish toast with pepperoni, and manti (turkish dumplings). It is tucked in the corner of 2nd and Monroe, so I sort of forgot about for a while. Manti is no longer on the menu, which was the first disappointment for me.

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Lunch Links (The “Singaporean Lunch Anticipation” Edition)

  • A Thai and Singaporean restaurant is opening in Chinatown [Foobooz]
  • Noord chef Joncarl Lachman knows about great affordable lunches around town, like John’s Roast Pork and Pho 75 [Serious Eats]
  • The Insider points out the new hot pot spot Hippot has an $8 noodle lunch special [The Insider]
  • Zagat has a list of where you can get the sandwich that covers all its bases- the Cubano [Zagat]