Midtown Lunch

Now that the lines have died down, and the possibility of selling out is not as dire, Federal Donuts has become a favorite place of mine to take visitors. The Center City location seems to have a steady steam of traffic at all times. They make the most out of the small space with little tables and window counter seating.

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From octopus balls to pb & js, Butter Sandwich Truck owner Nicole is all about the comfort food. A few years ago, she was helping bring takoyaki to the Gayborhood. Now, Butter focuses mostly on spruced up peanut butter and jelly and grilled cheese sandwiches. For me, what are more exciting are her rotating specials. This week, it included a chicken and dumpling stew ($6).

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A French rotisserie opened this winter, bringing the relaxing French cafe experience to Washington Square West without any of the rampant, disgusting, violent anti Semitism that you’d find in France. How nice.

Petit Roti specialized in chicken; chicken sandwiches and whole roasted chicken. Takeout is easy, but its also nice to relax at a cute table and people watch out the window facing 11th street.

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Back in February, I spent time filling my stomach with street skewers from different parts of China.  Its an experience that we haven’t really replicated here in Philly. City government wouldn’t exactly allow nightly open markets of food prepared on outdoor equipment with questionable sanitation levels. Newcomer, TT Skewers, is trying to bring at least a snippet of that to Philly.

Located on 9th Street in a teeny tiny space with only counters for sitting, TT Skewers is run by a very friendly couple from Northern China, the Liaoning province to be precise.

The menu has skewers and hotpot. Use a pen to check off what you want your meal to look like.

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When Foobooz recently reported that  a Singaporean restaurant was opening, I was exited to try a cuisine that was new to me- Singapore noodles definitely don’t count. When I stopped by and checked out the menu, I found the food would be more familiar than I realized. The menu was very similar to the menus at nearby Banana Leaf and Penang. Which makes sense since they share an international maritime border.

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I like to stay current on all the popular food trucks in Philly. Its all part of being a good Midtown Luncher. When I found out that Pie Stand won this year’s Vendy Awards, I needed to get my hands on those hand pies, especially the savory ones.

I was able to catch them at an event in Center City. The truck is adorable- very Grandma’s farmhouse kitchen, which is perfect. My order took a fairly long time to be ready, especially considering there was no one waiting ahead of me. But, when I looked in the little window, I realized everything is made to order- the filling is spooned into the dough and fried on the spot.

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