#71 - Jim's Steak and #72 - Lorenzo's pizza - Sandy's synopsis

What do you get when you wrap a Jim's cheesesteak with a Lorenzo's Pizza? A Jimenzo's cheesesteakzza you ask? No my dear friend, who is new to Philly, what you get is called a Philly Taco. Yes. A cheesesteak + a pizza = a taco. Oh America, always striving to be multi-cultural. 

For those of who have not heard of Lorenzo's, they are a pizza joint that sells delicious cheese pizza slices that are bigger than your face. They're really the only size of slice that could possible wrap a cheesesteak,

Here is what the monstrosity looks like:

I'm sorry I didn't have a banana for scale. Maybe I can use my face instead:

I hope that helps. It was huge but I've been known to be able to pack away a significant amount of food. I once ate a whole burrito from Cantina Los Caballitos and those burritos are the size of one's face. Granted there was $50 on the line, but still. It counts. 

However, today was not one of those days. I could barely eat half of the Philly Taco before I gave up. As far as what I thought of it - loved the pizza and didn't care much for the cheesesteak. Which is what I think of them separately, so combining them did not make them any better.  

I've attempted the Philly Taco twice in my life, I have failed twice in my life and therefore do not think I will attempt it again. Thank you to everyone who came out that day to try it out with Sam and I. We hope you had a great food coma afterward.

Jim's Steaks

400 South Street

Lorenzo and Son Pizza

305 South Street

Philadelphia PA 19147

#71 and 72 the Philly Taco - Sam's synopsis

Ah gluttony. One of the better sins in my opinion, and if you're stuck in Dante's Inferno lying around in icy smelly slush, well, that's a lot better than being submerged in a river of boiling blood and fire or being turned into a thorny bush and feasted upon by Harpies or being buried in a giant pile of poop. But back to gluttony, what better time than the holidays - when Thanksgiving leftovers are still rotting in your fridge as you attend holiday party after holiday party with even more food - to post our review for the Philly Taco?

the ingredients... pretty intense on
their own

For those of you unaware, the Philly Taco is a legend of sorts. For all my Rochester friends, it's the garbage plate of Philadelphia (spoiler alert: the garbage plate is better. But we already knew that). You take a cheesesteak from Jim's (better than Pat's or Geno's IMO) and wrap it in a slice of pizza from Lorenzo's. There's some nice information on it here, with a link to the original article describing the challenge. Again, for you non-Philly folks, this area of South Street is a pretty prime spot for late-night post-drinking food indulgence. A single slice of cheese pizza from Lorenzo's is larger than the size of my head. And I don't think I need to to explain the significance of cheesesteaks. But in any case, people love weird food challenges, so this has become a thing. It's even inspired a beer which we sadly did not drink. So of course we had to do it.

The first obvious condition of this challenge is that you must not be sober. Unless you regularly eat like this, do not be sober. Do not get drunk on beer unless you have an enormous appetite and a lot of room in your stomach. Get drunk real fast on straight up liquor and then go for it, because this is not for the light-hearted. The second condition is you should probably do it with friends. You'll need the motivation. 

With this in mind, we planned for a Friday evening so as not to ruin our whole weekend and we decided to start drinking on the earlier side so we could be functional the next morning. Man, we are boring adults these days. And to be honest, I think for the truly authentic experience, the Philly Taco needs to be done more on a whim. Sure, you can plan to go out that night and do it, but don't let it be at the forefront of your mind. Just let the night of drinking happen and see where it takes you. You probably shouldn't do it before midnight anyways, but like I said, we're a snoozefest these days so what can you do. 

I proceeded to drink two gin and tonics and get a nice buzz going. There were 5 of us enjoying the evening, with 4 attempting the challenge. So we divided and conquered, and since it was only about 9:30 pm both teams acquired the goods and returned back to the apartment within 10 minutes. Now, I stopped eating red meat a long time ago (I never really liked the taste and I am cursed by my genetics with high cholesterol despite leading a relatively healthy lifestyle, all things considered) but this was a time where I felt like it was my duty to the blog to get an actual cheesesteak. Whiz wit of course. It just wouldn't be a proper Philly Taco otherwise.

Fig. A

Onto the art of wrapping the cheesesteak in the pizza slice. There's some argument about the best way to do this (see the first link above), but it made the most sense to me to tuck the end of the pizza slice into the cheesesteak and then roll it up (imagine the cheesesteak rolled inside a crescent role, see Fig. A). Once this was done, it was time to get cracking.

The overall experience was... better than I was expecting. Despite not being a big fan of cheesesteaks, having it wrapped in a giant slice of pizza made it taste better. Any bite that contained a combination of whiz and cheese from the pizza was heaven. Any bite that was mostly cheesesteak was meh. I think most people agreed that the proper pizza to cheesesteak ratio was needed for full enjoyment. I also think that if I were a little drunker I would have been able to eat the whole thing, but I only made it about 3/5 of the way before saying fuck it - although one of our brave companions ate the entire thing! Great job Josh  (if you can celebrate an accomplishment like that)! I can definitely appreciate why people like it as drunk food, but I'd rather stick to a slice of Lorenzo's alone.

the aftermath

So this has turned into a very long blog post, but I think a local legend deserves it. I would still pick an iteration of the garbage plate over the Philly Taco any day, but I understand why people like it. If I had been a little drunker, I think I could have fully appreciated the concoction and maybe even finished it. But that will have to wait for another time in my life, which may (hopefully) never actually come. For now though, I'll stick to the slightly more traditional methods of gluttony, which involve eating a lot of free food at the department holiday parties while I still can.

Jim's Steaks
400 South Street
Philadelphia, PA
(215) 928-1911

Lorenzo and Sons
305 South Street
Philadelphia, PA
(215) 800-1942

#69 - Subway and #70 - Phileo Yoghurt - Sandy's synopsis

Sam and Sandy went to Subway for the second time as the blog demanded it. Neither one of them enjoyed the experience. 

Hello blog readers, welcome to the 70th review on our blog. It's always fun seeing how high we are getting in the numbers. I'm curious to know what the final number will be (+/- a couple of restaurants of course as we wont be accounting for all the places that opened after us). I noticed a new Afghani  place near South and broad the other day...many new places...

If it isn't apparent by now, yes, I am stalling as I don't have much to say about Subway or Phileo Yoghurt. 

This Subway looked like every other Subway. We each ordered a pizza, or rather a "Flatizza" to change things up. I get the feeling neither Sam nor I are hoagie fans. It was a flat piece of bread with some bottled sauce and a sprinkling of veggies on top. It tasted as exciting as I am making it sound. It's not terrible, just, boring. I also wonder if I went to a Pizza Hut and order a subway-esqe sandwich, what it would be called - a "Roundwich"? trademarked.

Phileo yoghurt was also quite awful. I always feel overwhelmed by the number of choices at yoghurt places. I therefore decided to order a strawberry banana smoothie and bypass all the yoghurt toppings and choices. 

It was overly artificially sweet and tasted like I was drinking a smoothie made from canned fruits. I couldn't even drink a quarter of it.

Nothing really to write home about, this experience was very forgettable. 

Subway

411 South street

Philadelphia PA 19147

215-592-4660

Phileo Yoghurt

419 South Street

Philadelphia PA 19147

215-873-8361

#69 Subway and #70 Phileo Yogurt - Sam's synopses

What can I really say? It's a Subway. Again. We were really hoping we'd be past this place before it opened, but alas, it was not meant to be. So we went here for dinner. They have pizza-like dishes now known as "Flatizzas," which are basically a piece of flatbread with sauce and cheese and whatever other toppings you want. I ordered the basic cheese, and it was pretty meh. Very bland and there were no salt and pepper shakers or packets to help spruce up the flavor a little. At least it was warm and the cheese had melted? Yeah, just don't buy things at Subway. Especially after all the horrendous things in the news about Jared the Subway Guy. He's a pretty terrible human being.

This was a twofer (hey, I didn't realize twofer was recognized as a real word and not slang. Also, the word "two" is really weird when you think about it for a long time, don't you think?), so we hit up Phileo Yogurt for dessert. I got a combo of chocolate and cake batter froyo with some assorted candy and strawberry toppings. I have to say I wasn't all that impressed. The froyo flavors weren't all that nuanced and the toppings weren't great either. They had some candy and some cookie bits, etc. as well as some fresh fruit, but their liquid toppings were limited and no sign of whipped cream anywhere! I like Kiwi a lot better (maybe because it's close to campus so I go there more often, but it also has a better selection of toppings and I found the froyo flavors themselves better and more... well.. flavorful). But let me admit something - I don't really care much for the whole froyo mentality. Maybe it's growing up in a summer vacation paradise where there are several homemade ice cream shops in every town within a 30 mile radius, but froyo is not really my thing - give me real ice cream any time of the day!

Subway

411 South St.

Philadelphia, PA

(215) 592-4660

Phileo Yogurt

419 South St.

Philadelphia, PA

(215) 873-8361

#68 Tuk Tuk Real - Ed's synopsis

You read that correctly... we've got a review of the now-defunct Tuk Tuk Real thanks to our good friend Ed. Ed finished up in the spring and moved to lovely England; but, he was (and still is!) a big fan of our blog and wanted to jump ahead and try Tuk Tuk before leaving Philly forever. We of course obliged, and were able to celebrate good friends and memories at one of our blog spots. Turns out Tuk Tuk didn't last so long, so you dear readers get a review of a fleeting moment in time (how fitting) as well as the current thai restaurant Circles from Sandya. So without further ado, here is Ed's guest review!

Our featured blogger
with Sandya!

Way back on March 24th, I got together with a great group of friends for one of my last dinners in Philadelphia before I moved to Manchester, UK just 6 days later! In addition to South Street stalwarts Sam, Sandya, Steph, the group included Lauren, Matt P. and Lukas. The place: Tuk Tuk Real, an intriguing Thai/Mexican fusion BYO that had opened up just a few months earlier. We brought an adventurous attitude, a big appetite, and lots of delicious beer. As for the food, I remember a really delicious plate of massaman curry nachos and some good tacos, but not much else. What I really treasure from that night was getting that group together, some of whom were meeting for the first time, and whom I almost certainly will never see again all in the same place.  When Tuk Tuk closed a few months later, it felt entirely fitting, as if to underline the nostalgia I feel for that night and the last years I spent in Philly. 

Thanks guys for all the good memories on and off South Street. Here are the more "restaurant review" thoughts I had immediately after the meal which I would have included in a more timely review (like if the restaurant were still open!). 

I love Mexican food, and I love Thai food, so I was really excited when I read about Tuk Tuk Real opening. Chili, lime, cilantro.... tamarind? Great! I also liked the backstory: Circles head chef Alex Boonphaya teaming up with his sous chef, Silvestre Rincon to bring us a combination of their national cuisines. Look at that photo, these dudes seem like friends, not just coworkers, Boonphaya drinking Modelo and Silvestre drinking Singha. My dad was a cook for many years in a kitchen with people from Austria, Germany, Mexico, Scotland and Switzerland, and learned bits of culture from all of them. (Science also involves working long, stressful hours with a very multinational coworkers, come to think of it). 

So what could go wrong, right? I think their biggest mistake was lack of clear focus in the menu. What does "Thai-Mexican fusion" mean, and what do we want from it? Typical Thai dishes (curries, noodles, salads) with Mexican flavors, or Mexican preparations (tacos, burritos, nachos) with Thai flavors. Tuk Tuk's approach appeared to be "all of the above." There were whole sections for tacos, burritos, tortas, curries, stir fries and other large plates, salads and starters.  Pretty much everything sounded good, but it was tough to choose, and it wasn't clear how big things would be or how we should order for a big group. We ended up ordering a lot of dishes which came out in an unpredictable hodgepodge. Some were good and creative (nachos), some good but not surprising (tacos with thai-flavored meat) and some were bland and poorly executed (obligatory vegan tofu/nopales curry). I think a Thai Mexican concept could be fantastic, but it would have to be really clearly focused on a few good dishes, not coincidentally like my favorite taco/burrito places in Philly: Tacos Don Memo and Honest Toms.

Tuk Tuk Real (now Circles)

429 South Street

Philadelphia, PA

#68 - Circles - Sandy's synopsis

I was extremely disappointed when I heard Tuk Tuk Real was closing. To have Circles take it's place however is the best consolation prize.  Circles is my wife's and mine go-to delivery place for Thai food - we think they are fantastic. We love getting their curries and soups on days when cooking at home seems too gargantuan a task. Now, we can walk 5 mins to go pick food up and eat it at home in our pyjamas. If it wasn't for the blog, I would never have known what it was like to have a sit down dinner at Circles.

Eating Circles food in clothes that were not my pyjamas was definitely weird, but definitely worth it. For some reason, when ordering delivery from Circles, I couldn't bring myself to order appetizers or any of their specialty curries. It was too fancy for delivery. And my pyjamas. So having the option to have a sit down meal meant ordering appetizers and fancy specialty curries.

For appetizers, we ordered the vegetarian steamed dumplings and papaya salad to start. I wasn't the biggest fan of the dumplings but the papaya salad was a win.

For the specialty curry I ordered the Roasted Rohan Duck Curry - which conjured up images of the vast plains of Rohan where...the duck roam alongside the majestic horses? I then realized that the default pronunciation for Rohan in my brain is the Lord of the Rings movie's pronunciation. Even though I grew up in an area of South India where Rohan (pronounced Ro-hun) is a very common name. I'm not sure how it is pronounced in Thailand but I guess what really matters is whether the curry tasted good - and it did. 

   

That duck was succulent and paired wonderfully with the coconut milk based, Panang like curry. 

I also got to taste a bit of the Khao Mok Gai - a braised chicken with a sweet chili and lime sauce on turmeric rice.

The sweet chili lime sauce was unbelievably fresh and delicious and paired very well with the chicken.

All in all, this was a great night of food, and a nice change from sitting on the couch and eating their massaman curry with tofu (also delicious). Circles makes some of the best fried tofu I've had in Philly. If you haven't ordered from Circles before you should. If you can bring yourself to order the fancy stuff on delivery you should, because Rohan would taste wonderful in pyjamas. If not they have three locations - Northern Liberties, South Philly and now Headhouse to choose from for a sit down meal. 

Circles

429 South Street

Philadelphia PA 19147

267-639-2396

#67 - Fat Tuesday - Sandy's synopsis

My favourite thing about Fat Tuesday was the 90s music they played in the background. The upbeat tunes of the Backstreet Boys was better than the food and drink at this fine establishment.

Fat Tuesday is known for their alcoholic frozen daiquiris. You can mix and match flavours and also add an extra shot of Everclear for a dollar extra. (Neither Sam nor I took them up on that generous offer, unfortunately). I ordered a combination of the banana and pina colada flavours and it unsurprisingly tasted like cough syrup instead. It made me regret not getting the extra shot of Everclear. At least that way, I might be too drunk to care about how awful it tasted.

For food, Sam and I shared a couple of appetizers - the fried green beans and the nachos. The green beans were actually decent and tasted like fried chicken wings.

The nachos  however were probably the worst nachos I have ever had. Food rarely makes me feel nauseous, but something about the cheese wiz on these nachos made me want to hurl.

We powered through as much of the food and booze as we could before leaving, vowing to never return. 

Fat Tuesday

431 South Street

Philadephia PA 19147

215-629-5999

#67 Fat Tuesday - Sam's synopsis

We tried really hard not to go here. I was really hoping they didn't have food, because I had no interest in taking a trip down Bourbon Street in Philadelphia. But alas, we were fated to go anyways. So we went, and it was exactly what I expected. Crappy boardwalk-style food and giant alcohol slushies. The second part isn't so bad, except the slushies are more sugar-y and less alcohol-y. You can get an extra grain alcohol shot for $1, but we weren't really feeling it on a Tuesday night (but hey, at least we went on a Tuesday for comedic value). The place was pretty dead but I imagine fills up with the crowd of Jersey folks that you'd rather not know on the weekends. We ordered fried green beans and Irish nachos. The fried green beans started out okay, because they did have a nice crunch to them, but after eating 10 or more my stomach was no longer having any of it. Irish nachos are just waffle fries with toppings - in this case; cheese whiz, tomatoes, lettuce and onions. These also started out okay, but I was pretty sick of them after a few bites. This is not surprising, as I imagine this food is purely meant as drunk fare. And I'll give Fat Tuesday that - this stuff probably tastes pretty great if you're drunk. But if you're there completely sober, stick to the slushies. You can mix and match to make a drink of your liking - I went with strawberry daiquiri and margarita - and add extra booze as I mentioned. But the drinks are a bit expensive and you can certainly get more bang for your buck by buying a shot of whiskey at any other bar in the city.

Fat Tuesday

431 South Street

Philadelphia, PA

(215) 629-5999

#66 - Woolly Mammoth - Sandy's synopsis

This has been a long hiatus. Perhaps our longest so far and Sam is correct - it is mostly my fault. I've been rather busy since the last posting and so our blogging came to a bit of a standstill. However, I officially do not have anymore more major life events coming up and can dedicate more time to eating. Not that writing one's PhD thesis doesn't involve a lot of eating, it does, but now I can resume our systematic interrogation of South Street's awesome food offerings.

Next on the docket was a bar called Woolly Mammoth. It has a really cool logo and has always intrigued us. It reminded me of Tangier a little bit (sadface!) - a dive bar that had good beer and was never too crowded. As can be seen in the introductory photo, Woolly Mammoth has a nice selection of draft beer. Additionally, they subscribe to Philly's obsession with the beer+shot specials (fondly called citywide specials) and have a plethora of daily citywide-esque specials that are guaranteed to make you regret things the next morning.

They have a standard bar food menu from wings to french onion soup (very like Tangier). I ordered the wings and they were good. I don't think they were as good as Tangier, well nothing can be right? They were very enjoyable though.

There are a few things I really enjoyed about Woolly Mammoth. I loved their dive bar atmosphere. I loved that they weren't overcrowded. I enjoyed their choice of draft beers. Finally, I enjoy that they seem to have regulars that have a good rapport with the staff. If I was in the neighbourhood for a low key night, this would be a place I would consider going.

Woolly Mammoth

430 South Street

Philadelphia PA 19147

215-923-8780

#66 Woolly Mammoth - Sam's synopsis

Greetings fervid blog readers! It has been quite some time since our last post, and again I blame Sandya. Not only did she get married this past year, she also adopted a three-legged dog, successfully defended her thesis in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, and received the first job she applied for - way to go Sandya!

So needless to say, there's been some lag time between our last visit and this post. But even though I am currently pursuing a similar path as Sandya (only on that thesis defense route - my cat certainly prefers to stay a one-pet only household, and check back in a few months on that whole job front), we are committed to finishing this blog! And we are so close! So here is my review for Woolly Mammoth, and we'll be getting back into gear over the next few months to complete our saunter.

local brews + Jeopardy!

We began our journey attempting to eat at Fat Tuesday's. It didn't appear that this was a food-friendly place (or a place we wanted to spend much time at in general), so we left. We've since discovered that Fat Tuesday's DOES in fact serve food, so that will be our next stop, although somewhat begrudgingly (who knows, maybe they'll surprise us). The next stop was Woolly Mammoth, a somewhat dive bar that Sandya, Erin and I spent an afternoon at during the winter. We didn't order food at that time, but had a few beers and enjoyed a pleasantly relaxed time. This time around though, we did of course order food and enjoyed several beers before Monday night quizzo. 

The beer selection is pretty good, especially considering the bar's location on the touristy part of South Street. There were a lot of local beers on tap, so I went with an IPA from PBC. Solid beer for a solid meal. For dinner, I ordered the french onion soup (because of course I did) and a caprese wrap with a side of fries.

deceptive cheese!

The french onion soup came out first. Upon first glance, I felt cheated by the seemingly lack of cheese in my soup. However, upon immediate physical inspection, it turns out the giant glob of cheese was actually just submerged in my soup - what a glorious revelation! In addition to cheesy goodness, the soup had a nice balance of salty and sweet broth, lots of onions and a sufficient supply of bread for dipping. Definitely one of the better french onion soups I've had in awhile - I would order it again.

My caprese wrap came out shortly after, and it was also great. Fresh, balanced ingredients, with balsamic dressing on the side (which I appreciated since it helped prevent the sandwich from getting too soggy), and perfectly crispy french fries. Since I ate all that soup as well, I saved half my wrap for lunch the next day and it was equally delicious. 

Our waiter was very pleasant and quite unique; he had a very distinct style and was chatting with a regular for most of the time we were there, but still attentive to our needs. The place was pretty empty, but it was obvious from the vibe and the clientele actually in attendance that it's a bar with many eccentric regulars, but is still successful at attracting a wide variety of tourists and locals alike. The prices were on the cheaper side too, and given that it's a sports bar-like establishment, the food was definitely high quality. I'd be happy to return here on a weekday night or a weekend afternoon for a bite to eat, a local brew, and some people watching.

Woolly Mammouth

430 South Street

Philadelphia, PA

(215) 923-8780

#65 - Johnny Rockets - Sandy's synopsis

This review is going to be pretty short because Johnny Rockets is basically a fast food restaurant. However, it looks like a diner and it will make you feel slightly better about yourself for not going to McDonalds. It reminds me of the diners in Archie comics where the milkshakes looked delicious and the burgers looked so small Jughead somehow managed to eat 10 of them. 

Their shakes were indeed very good. They were served in an old-timey glass with extra shake on the side. I ordered their chocolate banana milkshake and it did not disappoint. I'm a sucker for banana in liquid form. 

The burgers however were not so small that I could eat 10 at a time. The burger was delicious though (by fast food standards). A more substantial bun than the usual fast food chain. 

We also ordered some fries and onion rings to go on the side. I personally prefer McDonald's fries, they are thinner and had more salt. These are more like steak fries that I'm not a fan off.  However, Johnny Rockets does win in the onion rings department - purely because I don't know of any other fast food place that offers onion rings...

In summary, if you're hankering for some fast food and are in the area, Johnny Rockets is a solid choice. The service was very friendly and competent, they are accommodating of your gluten allergy and they have a fantastic range of milkshakes. Also, you get to pretend you are in an Archie comic. 

Johnny Rockets

443 South Street

Philadelphia PA 19147

215-829-9222

#65 Johnny Rockets - Sam's synopsis

For those of you unaware, Johnny Rockets is a chain fast food restaurant that attempts to emulate the feel of a 1950s diner. Unfortunately, I can't comment on how valid that claim is, being born in 1986 and all, but it does give off an old-timey vibe while you're in there. And it's a fun atmosphere, if you're into that kitschy stuff. The staff did some singing for someone's birthday while we were there, which apparently is a regular occurrence (singing, not birthdays, but who knows how many people go to Johnny Rocket's for their birthday? Or claim its their birthday for free dessert? Definitely pulled that stunt in high school at TGIFs before).

The first thing you should know about Johnny Rockets is that they definitely always have milkshakes available. On our saunter we have oft been disappointed by the promise of a milkshake, only to find out it was all a lie. So I was very excited to order one knowing full well that it would be available. There are several fancy options, but since I'd been deprived of a milkshake so many times, I went for a classic chocolate shake, topped with a sizable amount of whipped cream (an essential component of any milkshake). It's pretty hard to mess up a standard milkshake, and I'm happy to say that JRs did not disappoint. First off, the quantity they give you is about the equivalent of two full milkshakes, which is already pretty great. They use Hershey's syrup, which isn't always my favorite but they mix it in with vanilla at the right ratio to really hit the spot. The whipped cream on top allows for a delectable blending of smooth and creamy flavors, and there's quite a bit to last the milkshake (unless of course you're Leslie Knope). 

For food, I was really craving chicken tenders, so I got an order of that and the table split fries and onion rings. The chicken tenders hit the spot, crispy on the outside, moist on the inside, greasy but not too greasy. They also reheated a lot better than I was expecting (a bold move on my behalf regardless). The BBQ dipping sauce was good too - nothing extraordinary but better than what you get at some other fast food places. I was pretty underwhelmed with the french fries, they weren't very flavorful or crispy. Not their strongest quality. The onion rings were much better, coated nicely and fried to a nice crisp. They weren't so greasy that they destroyed my stomach - but that might have come from only having a handful of them instead of an entire basket. 

Overall, I'd pick Johnny Rockets over a lot of other fast food places to satisfy a greasy food-craving or as a good place to stop by while you're currently inebriated. And it definitely wins in the fast food milkshake contest.

Johnny Rockets

443 South Street

Philadelphia, PA

(215) 829-9222

#64 - South Street Souvlaki - Sandy's synopsis

Ah, to be transported to Greece for an evening - South Street Souvlaki attempts to do this and since I haven't been to Greece, I cannot tell you if they succeeded. I can tell you, based on their website, that the owner Tom Vasiliades, is a charismatic man, who seems passionate about his restaurant. (Their old website had more direct quotes from him that made this more apparent. I was slightly disappointed to see that their newly re-vamped website removed most of his words.) 

Coming out of the virtual world and onto their doorstep you are first greeted by music, I'm assuming it is greek music? Once inside, you are greeted by the bar. 

It was a very striking sight to me and I loved the lights strung up top highlighting its presence. We somehow fought it's sirens' call and didn't order any alcohol, but I would be interested to give into it on a different day. Speaking of greek mythology, if you are seated on a table next to the wall, you will be surrounded by dramatic paintings from greek myth - something to peruse while you wait for your food.

Sam and I took sometime to look over the menu. Be warned, it is very extensive and the choice can be overwhelming. I am personally a "sucker" for octopus (see what I did there...) so I ordered the charcoal broiled octopus as an appetizer. We also got some houmus to start.

The octopus was delicious, with a few nice crispy burnt bits complemented by some very tender meat. The houmus with pita was fantastic as well and so we were off to a brilliant start, like Odysseus, assuming a pleasant and delicious journey home to Ithaca (or our main course) ahead. 

Well, turns out I had angered the food gods again, for I did not enjoy what I had ordered for the main course. I know Sam had much better luck so be sure to read her review. I tasted some of what she ordered and it was very good. 

Back to my poor choices, I decided to go with the Greek trio for my entree. The trio consists of moussaka. pastitsio and spinach pie. Now, two of those dishes are very similar and contain a lot of ground meat. From their menu, pastitsio is "ground meat with macaroni in a bechamel sauce" and moussaka is "ground meat with layers of potato and eggplant under our bechamel sauce".

I am also not a fan of ground meat, but for some reason thought this would be the dish I should order. 

There you have it, Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos, waiting to screw me over. My biggest complaint about the trio was that it was bland. Even the spinach pie fell flat and I was fighting to secure some taste on my tongue that wasn't just white flour sauce. I prefer my ground meat to have some other flavour than just the meat. I don't want to fault the restaurant on this. I know I have a particular taste when it comes to meat and perhaps this is exactly how most people like their pastitsio. It just wasn't for me. 

In conclusion, I might come back here to order something else. Perhaps give those kebabs a shot and definitely get some of the vegetarian dishes Sam got. For now, my main course left no taste in my mouth and I left disappointed. 

South Street Souvlaki

509 South Street

Philadelphia PA 19147

215-925-3026

#64 South Street Souvlaki - Sam's synopsis

Well, let me first off say apologies for the long absence. It's been a crazy month or so, with the other half of this blog getting married and having family in town, and me having quite the busy few weeks at work (but with a graduation date in sight!). But it's officially summer time, so things tend to slow down a bit and we can back into the swing of sauntering! Anyways, on to the review...

South Street Souvlaki seemed like a serious place when we looked it up, as they close every Monday to power clean all their equipment. When we arrived there, it seemed much more like the type of restaurant you find in the touristy part of town, plastered with photos and paintings of Greece and people who were clearly important to the owners in some way. It was a lot busier than I was expecting for a weekday evening, but I suppose that's a good sign.

We started with an appetizer of hummus (it seemed like the appropriate one to get) and Sandya really wanted calamari so I obliged. I'm not the biggest fan of calamari and wouldn't order it if I had the choice, but it's not something I absolutely despise and it was another appropriately-themed appetizer. I ended up enjoying both appetizers. The hummus was flavorful and smooth, and the pita they gave us was warm and not too dry. I don't know why I'm so opposed to calamari, since it's basically just covered in batter and fried and doesn't have too much of a seafood-y taste to it. I think it's the whole pieces that kinda freak me out, even though I've eaten some weird food items before. But yes, the calamari was fried and tasty and not too chewy or weird in flavor so I ate more than I anticipated.

Onto the main meal! I ordered the vegetable platter, which was (as indicated by its name) an ample variety of different vegetarian dishes, including: spanikopita (spinach and cheese in filo dough), turlu (stewed vegetables), dolmades (stuffed grape leaves), and lima beans. It also came with lemon potatoes and orzo, so it was quite the large meal. I thought the food was fabulous. Each portion had a different flavor, but they all accentuated each other very nicely. If I had a better memory, I might be able to tell you what sorts of spices were invoked, but it was definitely a Mediterranean-style set of flavors (makes sense, right?). Everything was cooked to a nice consistency (this can be surprisingly difficult with just vegetables) and the food held up the following day for leftovers. Each vegetable portion was delicious and I would definitely recommend this dish to meat eaters and non-meat eaters alike.

Overall, I really enjoyed the food and was even a little pleasantly surprised at how good it was given the restaurant's touristy feel and cheaper prices. The staff was friendly as well and the service was good, so that's another plus. I've been to Greece before, but it's hard to really comment on the authenticity. While I was there, I had some straight-out-of-the-water seafood and real homemade food that doesn't really compare to this experience, but I also had some standard off-the-street restaurant food that is more on par with what we had at South Street Souvlaki. And given that the owners are Greek, I'm pretty sure their food does get a stamp of authenticity.

South Street Souvlaki
509 South Street
Philadelphia, PA
(215) 925-3026