Midtown Lunch

Luncher John is at the Bellevue Food Court this week for sandwiches

While not widely known even among Center City workers and residents, The Bellevue, located at Broad Street and Walnut Street, sports a quality food court known as the Eatery. With only three chains among its eleven establishments, the Bellevue Eatery features plenty of local flavors and eateries. One long-standing spot is Ellen’s Bagels, Hoagies & More, which has had a presence at the Bellevue for almost ten years. And just as the name implies, Ellen’s serves up breakfast, sandwiches, and a lot more.

Named after owner Bret Goldman’s late mother, Ellen’s is much more than a standard sandwich shop. It starts its breakfast service at 7 a.m. on weekdays, with an extensive selection of breakfast sandwiches, egg dishes, fruits, and, of course, bagels (picked up each morning by Bret from South Street Bagels). The lunchtime menu aims to provide the tastes of South Philly in Center City. There are hoagies, cheesesteaks, salads, and Ellen’s chicken sandwiches.

My first order was the Special Italian ($7.99). The hoagie has salami, pepperoni, capacola, prosciutto, sharp provolone, romaine lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and roasted sweet peppers – all served on a Carangi Bakery roll. A good way to compare hoagie establishments is through their Italian sandwiches. Ellen’s definitely held its own. Both the meats and vegetables were fresh, and I did not get cheated with portion size. In fact, the tomatoes and sweet peppers were overflowing. The Carangi roll also was substantial enough to hold all the ingredients together without falling apart. It was one of the better Italian sandwiches I had in a while.

Where Ellen’s really makes its mark is with its chicken sandwiches. Using its deep fryer and four burner stove, Ellen’s can fire up breaded chicken cutlets and grilled chicken. I tasted the Chicken Ellen ($7.99) with the chicken cutlet, sharp provolone, romaine lettuce, tomatoes, onions, long hots and special house dressing. This sandwich was fantastic. The chicken cutlet was well cooked and seasoned. There was also a nice blend of flavor from both the homemade Dijon mustard-based dressing and the spiciness of the long hots.

Ellen’s also serves its offerings in wraps. The Chicken Salad wrap ($7.99) has romaine lettuce, tomatoes and onions. While simple, the chicken salad sandwich was also a solid selection.

Another nice feature of Ellen’s is its daily breakfast (free La Colombe coffee with the purchase of a breakfast sandwich) and lunch (free soda with the purchase of the sandwich of the day) specials. There is also online ordering, so you can place your order for pick-up when you arrive. With its food quality and customer-friendly features, Ellen’s definitely breaks the mold of what one typically perceives food court establishments to be.

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

· Extensive breakfast menu and good variety of chicken sandwiches.

· The Special Italian had plenty of meat and veggies.

· Chicken Ellen blends flavors from house dressing and spiciness of longs hots.

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

· It may take a few minutes for your order to be prepared.

· I am not fond of eating in food courts.

Ellen’s Bagels, Hoagies & More, The Bellevue Eatery, 200 S. Broad St., ellensbagelsandhoagies.com, @ellens_phl, 215-732-8477