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So many of us live far from Cleveland and have local knowledge of not to be missed food options. As someone that’s been in the Philly area close to ten years I’d like to pass on two must-eat places for anyone visiting the Delaware Valley. I’d also like to here from others on their recommendations in other locations.
1. Reading Terminal Market
If you’ve ever played Monopoly you know the Reading Railroad. The Philly Terminal no longer has trains above ground but the Reading Terminal Market is one of the great food experiences in the world and Philly’s #1 tourist attraction. Whenever I have guests from out of town we go to the market & look around but I always have one recommendation that every single guest has accepted: Dinic’s Roast pork sandwich. Don‘t stand in line like the clueless do; stand behind the people eating on the stools, wait for them to leave, sit down and order the roast pork sandwich with sharp provolone, greens, and - if you have any stones at all - the long hot peppers. It will be in front of your within three minutes. Often voted “Best Sandwich in America.” Www.tommydinics.com. Worth the trip to Philly on its own. Bonus points: Check out the Amish baked goods elsewhere in the market. Fuck counting calories, Keto, Weight Watchers, Nutrisystem and all that shit; the pallbearers will just have to carry it.
2. Dalessandro’s
So you want a Philly cheesesteak? Head to Geno‘s or Pat ‘s in South Philly - WRONG! If you do what the tourists do and eat that shit it’s all on you, because there are much better options. Go to Dalessandro’s in Roxborough. I took my wife’s nephew and Godson there over the New Year’s holiday a few years back and we froze in the cold wind waiting outside before we could enter the cramped single file ordering line. I caught a LOT of shit from the wife and nephew’s family including three kids for waiting. Once they started eating the cheesesteaks they all STFU because these are worth freezing on the North Pole or burning in hell. Sharp provolone recommended, cheese whiz if you’re into that shit, American cheese for the weak but regardless of cheese it rules. Fried onions and hot peppers for me but anyway you have these cheesesteaks they are great.
So what makes Philly sandwiches so good? Simple - the South Philly rolls are to die for. The Penn Station chain in the Midwest isn’t bad but the rolls are just tragic by comparison.
If you’re a health conscious person then either of these food options won’t help but you can mitigate the damage. Rent a bike and ride the Schuylkill River Trail which runs from Valley Forge to Center City. Philly actually has the highest percentage of bike commuters in the country (not Portland) and the SRT is a big reason why. Riding into Philly from the north is a great experience - I recently did that on July 4th and then rode to Independence Hall, truly the best way to spend that day.
I‘d like to here from others on great food recommendations in other cities.
1. Reading Terminal Market
If you’ve ever played Monopoly you know the Reading Railroad. The Philly Terminal no longer has trains above ground but the Reading Terminal Market is one of the great food experiences in the world and Philly’s #1 tourist attraction. Whenever I have guests from out of town we go to the market & look around but I always have one recommendation that every single guest has accepted: Dinic’s Roast pork sandwich. Don‘t stand in line like the clueless do; stand behind the people eating on the stools, wait for them to leave, sit down and order the roast pork sandwich with sharp provolone, greens, and - if you have any stones at all - the long hot peppers. It will be in front of your within three minutes. Often voted “Best Sandwich in America.” Www.tommydinics.com. Worth the trip to Philly on its own. Bonus points: Check out the Amish baked goods elsewhere in the market. Fuck counting calories, Keto, Weight Watchers, Nutrisystem and all that shit; the pallbearers will just have to carry it.
2. Dalessandro’s
So you want a Philly cheesesteak? Head to Geno‘s or Pat ‘s in South Philly - WRONG! If you do what the tourists do and eat that shit it’s all on you, because there are much better options. Go to Dalessandro’s in Roxborough. I took my wife’s nephew and Godson there over the New Year’s holiday a few years back and we froze in the cold wind waiting outside before we could enter the cramped single file ordering line. I caught a LOT of shit from the wife and nephew’s family including three kids for waiting. Once they started eating the cheesesteaks they all STFU because these are worth freezing on the North Pole or burning in hell. Sharp provolone recommended, cheese whiz if you’re into that shit, American cheese for the weak but regardless of cheese it rules. Fried onions and hot peppers for me but anyway you have these cheesesteaks they are great.
So what makes Philly sandwiches so good? Simple - the South Philly rolls are to die for. The Penn Station chain in the Midwest isn’t bad but the rolls are just tragic by comparison.
If you’re a health conscious person then either of these food options won’t help but you can mitigate the damage. Rent a bike and ride the Schuylkill River Trail which runs from Valley Forge to Center City. Philly actually has the highest percentage of bike commuters in the country (not Portland) and the SRT is a big reason why. Riding into Philly from the north is a great experience - I recently did that on July 4th and then rode to Independence Hall, truly the best way to spend that day.
I‘d like to here from others on great food recommendations in other cities.
