Midtown Lunch

When I feast in Port Richmond, I tend to hit the same places; my beloved Syrenka and New Wave Cafe, with a stop at Krakus Market for groceries.  I forced myself to branch out and give some other, equally homey Polish stops a try. First, we checked out M & M Restaurant, a Polish diner. The older woman behind the long counter first told us they were only serving breakfast at the moment; I am pretty sure my face fell a little.  I didn’t come here for scrambled eggs. Then she quickly added, “Oh, I can make you some pierogies if you like?” The answer to that is always yes. And my smile came back.

We picked up 3 plates of pierogies; a potato, a meat, and a cabbage-mushroom. Each came with about 7 per order, drowned in butter and flecked with sauteed onions. They were all light, yet expertly packed with filling. The soft potato stuffed fellas were my favorites.

Across the street we picked up other essential supplies at the tiny, but mighty Polka Deli; several links of smoked meat, a 4 inch chunk of salami, a hunk of cheese, a tub of sheep’s milk spread, mustard, pickled beets,  a loaf of bread, and a Polish candy bar.   The ladies at the deli were happy to help us, though all their recommendations on “spicy” products ended up being nowhere close to spicy. Spice was not missed, however, our picnic had everything we could possibly want. The thin sausage was my favorite of all the varieties we grabbed. Don’t forget napkins, a decent knife, and some beer.

We set up this Polish picnic a few blocks away from the diner and deli, at Graffiti Pier on the Delaware. Despite the trash, its a pretty awesome area to explore, made more awesome, of course,  by the hearty Polish picnic.

M and M Restaurant, 2736 E Allegheny Ave, 215 423-4990