Zio’s makes great pizza. But my favorite thing about this 13th Street staple comes not as a slice, but in ball form. For under $5, a Zio’s rice ball is a perfect hot, cheesy, meaty lunch.
Posted at 10:43 am, October 13th, 2011 under Italian.
Update 10/12/11: Ralph’s has just made some changes to the dinner and lunch menu so some of the things I ate are no longer “Midtown Lunch” budget friendly. They have, however, added sandwiches like chicken parm and homemade roast pork that are under $10.
With new food trucks and restaurants opening constantly, its easy to forget about the staples that have been around forever. At Ralph’s Italian Restaurant, started by Italian immigrants, keeping Philadelphia fed with good Italian cooking has been the goal for 100 years. Now, a long history alone is not going to win me over, i.e. Snocky’s. But the lunchtime crowd gave me a feeling there was more than just a beautiful story of the American Dream at play.
This is a story of a business’s mistake that resulted in my favor. A friend brought me to P&S Italian Deli, an outpost of the P & S Ravioli local chain that sells frozen pasta. This particular location is known for also serving some top notch sandwiches. I kind of didn’t accept this fact, mostly because I wasn’t in the mood for a sandwich and when my friend ordered a sandwich, I did not. I was in a bad hoagie place. I had just been to Atlantic City’s White House hoagie shop, and it disappointed. Had I checked the internets and known this place had gotten a seal of a approval from Philly Phoodie, and very recently, a mention on the Serious Eats slide show of best hoagies, I would have ordered my own sandwich. So when the take out sandwich was opened and we discovered that cheese was not left out as requested by my lactose intolerant friend, it was like the fates had spoken and I was meant to have the sandwich passed down to me.
Posted at 9:02 am, September 22nd, 2011 under Italian, sandwiches.
I heard that Marabella was serving Turkey meatballs this week, a special not on the regular menu. I had enjoyed the cheese covered beef and pork meatballs there, and I am curious to see how the turkey meatballs were since I have had much experienced with them being often dried out. Alas when I got there, they were out. But I was still hungry. I had never tried the chicken or veggie meatballs, and I had recently read good things about them. I also found out on this trip that you can do combo sandwiches, why did I not think of that before. I ordered the traditional with 2 chicken and 2 veggie balls ($8.50).
Posted at 12:17 pm, March 31st, 2011 under dessert, Italian, sandwiches.
I never thought much of Georgio on Pine when I passed by, it just looked generic, but after reading a glowing review from South Philly Review, I looked at the menu. I noticed they did in fact offer lunch as well as a gluten friendly menu. I knew I had to bring my recently diagnosed gluten intolerant friend. I liked that I could still get my gluten filled lunch, while she could finally get some decent pasta.
Posted at 1:09 pm, October 18th, 2010 under gluten free, Italian, pork, sandwiches.
Yesterday, Profiled Luncher Michaelango listed Modo Mio’s sandwich spin off, Paesano’s, as his favorite place to eat in Philly and I have to add it to my favorite list as well. Paesano’s is the type of place where you can stare at the menu for way too long, because it is really hard to choose from so many tempting sandwiches. The original Girard received much accolades for their sandwich creations and the birth of the Italian Market location was much anticipated. The mix of familiar Philly ingredients (long hots) and less familiar ingredients (cherry mustarda), Paesano’s balances the local and the exciting.
Posted at 10:07 am, August 4th, 2010 under Italian, sandwiches.
Shank’s, a decades old Philly staple, houses its newer Center City shack location at 15th St, right in the middle of all the hustle and bustle. Although this is not the original location, the interior has that chromey, olde-timey luncheonette appeal.
The lunch specials might be difficult to navigate. As I understand it, the chicken parmigiana is often available as a daily special for around $7. But on Mondays and Tuesdays, several sandwiches are available on special for $5.99 including a fountain soda. I discovered that to get this price you need to specifically ask for the Monday/Tuesday special.
Posted at 9:46 am, June 23rd, 2010 under Italian, sandwiches.
