Shabu Shabu, the dining experience that required diners to dip raw food into broth until cooked to the desired temperature, is popular in other major cities but has not yet made it big in Philly. There are a handful of Chinatown restaurants who offer hot pot and shabu shabu on the menu, but month-old Simply Shabu, is the first to offer only this high heat meal.
I am a big pig and have eaten hundreds of exciting lunches this past year. I am both grossed out and proud of myself when looking back at all the damage. I wrangled up my favorites of 2013 to share.
January started the year off strong, with peirogi’s from Donna’s smokey bar, Caribbean platters from Little Delicious, tom yom beef jerky from Ratchada, and the gooey mac and cheese brisket sandwich from MeltKraft.
In February, the Uzbeki meal from Samarkand was pretty legendary.
Taco truck, Taco El Rodeo was a pleasant surprise in April.
Pennsylvania 6 did the fancy business lunch right for me in May. Less fancy, but still satisfying: Poi Dog cart’s fried chicken and Campo’s monster of a meat sandwich called “The Stockyard”. Plus, this month brought the opening of Sizzling Woks (called Xi’an Famous Foods then), which meant slippery, spicy liang pi noodles in my mouth.
In June, I was obsessing over the lamb tacos at Border Springs Farm.
The meatball sandwich at Corner Foodery and the beef sandwich at Pura Vida were stand outs. Slightly more upscale, I loved the grilled pastrami and mac and cheese at Twisted Tail.
The meaty torta from American Sardine Bar and meaty burrito bowl from Animo provided tasty protein in August.
September is beautiful in Philly. Perfect for a picnic provided by Talula’s Daily. I was also overjoyed to find pupusas at Tamalex. I also ate a large amount of pork from Freddy and Tony’s.
The sandwiches at El Soto and cheesy tacos from Quetzally satiated Mexican cravings for October. I was also in love with the bread from High Street and much of the Cambodian snacks at Kavei Express.
Rounding out the year; in the past 2 months I was impressed by the dim sum at Wokano, the Godfather sandwich from Cosmis, and the soup dumplings from I-Green.
I think its time for a salad. Please keep your fingers crossed that I fit in to my New Year’s Eve dress tonight. So- What were your favorite lunches this year?
Posted at 12:37 pm, December 31st, 2013 under American, Cambodian, Carribean, Center City, Chinatown, Chinese, dim sum, dumplings, event, mac & cheese, Mexican, noodles, North East, pork, Puerto Rican, Reading Terminal, sandwiches, sit-down, South Philly, tacos.
Photo courtesy of Prime Stache
So some local foozball player opened an American bistro in Old City last Spring (obviously I am an avid sports fan). Its a pretty straight forward menu with a solid cocktail list. They are open for lunch/brunch Wednesday through Sunday.
Not to be a brat, but it is not often that I come across a cuisine that I am completely unfamiliar with. So while browsing for restaurants in NE Philly (one of my favorite hobbies), I was excited to find there exists a restaurant that serves traditional Moldivian food. For the sake of being practical and straight forward, it’s called Moldova Restaurant. Inside, the decor is festively kitschy. Service came with a smile, though our waiter did not speak enough English to recommend any dishes for us. We were on our own.
High Street on Market is the new darling of Old City and for good reason. Though Chef Eli Culp teased us with sandwich making in action Vines, the lunch staple formerly known as Fork etc transitioned quickly to High Street and continued providing baked goods and lunch to the neighborhood. Take out and dine in are both still possible. The main difference, besides the newly developed dinner menu, is that everything has been slightly elevated while maintaining a reasonable price point. And though the name might suggest a menu of pizza topped with Funions and Twinkies dipped in Nutella, its more of a place you can use to casually impress an out of town relative than a stoner’s retreat.
Posted at 1:25 pm, October 30th, 2013 under Old City, sandwiches, sit-down, snacks.
Two weeks ago, Dream Mexican Grill opened on Walnut Street where the San Samosa Indian buffet had reigned for at least as long as I’ve been in Philly. Not much has been done with the interior so far and the outdoor seating won’t be useful for many months. Dream is open daily for lunch and dinner with a Mexican and Caribbean menu. For lunch, you can order a la carte or choose 3 (an entree plus two out of the soup, salad, dessert choices) for $9.99
Friends from NYC came to visit our humble city to take advantage of the fact that so many of our bars serve amazing beer without pretension or annoying crowds. I mostly take that perk for granted, but my taste buds and liver were quickly reminded with the help of my friends.
One of our stops for beer and food was American Sardine Beer, because I can count on it for a good meal and interesting beer. Plus the patio is open, equipped with bright flowers and a tomato plant I may have stolen from. Read more »
Posted at 9:18 am, August 26th, 2013 under Beer with Lunch, pork, sandwiches, sit-down.
