#62 - Ishkabibble's II - Sandy's synopsis

I need to preface this review with admitting that I'm not a cheesesteak fan.

Ishkabibble's II toots it's horn for two things - for having the best cheesesteak in Philadelphia and for a drink called the gremlin. That is what I prepared myself to have whilst there. 

Ishkabibble's ordering works on the number system, where you order up at the counter, you get a receipt with a number on it and then you find a table to sit and wait for your number to be called. I ordered a buffalo chicken cheesesteak (as I figured having something slathered in buffalo sauce will make me forget I'm eating a cheesesteak) and cheese fries. I also ordered the gremlin which is a drink containing grape soda and lemonade. I assume the ratios of one to the other are a trade secret. 

Sam and I proceeded to a table and people-watched while we waited for our food. There aren't too many tables to sit at but there is a rather quick turnaround of people. This isn't really a place you sit for an hour finishing your meal. 

Our number was called and our food was ready to be picked up from the counter on cafeteria-like trays.

Lets start with the cheesesteak - firstly, my devious plan failed. There was so little buffalo sauce I could barely taste it.

There was alot of cheese though which was nice, but on the whole, it seemed flavourless - just a lot of chicken in a nice soft roll. I wasn't a fan. 

The gremlin though was a pleasant surprise - grape soda should be more popular and available everywhere. It was delicious.

The best part of the meal though was the cheese fries. I also don't have a photo of it (of course I don't).

The fries were perfectly salted, perfectly sized with a healthy dose of cheese wiz. Well, healthy is probably the wrong word to use there. Also, why is cheesesteak one word?

So, I probably ordered the wrong thing again, but the cheesesteak just wasn't for me. If you are hankering for some sandwiches with fries as a quick food option when in the area, this place might be your thing. 

Ishkabibbles II

517 South Street

Philadelphia PA 19147

215-922-0494

#62 Ishkabibble's II - Sam's synopsis

Where is Ishkabibble's I? I just looked it up and it's apparently 2 blocks down South Street. Greeeeeat. I say this because I was simultaneously impressed and disappointed with Ishkabibble's II. I was only impressed in the sense that it was better than I expected, but it still wasn't all that great.

We went on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, probably the first really nice weekend in the city in a long time, so the streets were bustling with people. As I waited for Sandya outside, the speakers were blasting current pop music hits (which I don't mind all that much but other people might find annoying. Seems like a lot of restaurants on South Street in this area like to blare their music...). Venturing inside, I noticed that the restaurant was teeming with people, and that you order at the counter, pick up your food, and hope to find a table. Luckily, things move at the right pace that there is the proper ratio of people ordering/eating/leaving that it wasn't difficult to find a table. The inside color scheme is bright pinkish purple and yellow, which is a strange combination to me. Seems a little childish, but this isn't the classiest of places and they know it. I also learned while waiting for my food that ishkabibble is a yiddish/possibly German-originating word that roughly translates to "who cares?" and was used as a stage name for a character on a radio show. Ya learn something new every day I suppose.

For food, I ordered the South Philly Chicken Cheesesteak, which consisted of chicken, spinach, roasted peppers and provolone cheese. Sandya and I also split an order of cheese fries and we both ordered a beverage known as the "Gremlin" - half grape juice and half lemonade. I was underwhelmed by the sandwich - there was too much chicken and the overall flavor was on the bland size. Not enough melted cheese. The bread it was made on was very good though. The cheese fries were a little better. The fries were fine on their own, and the cheese they used was probably melted cheese whiz, but it had that "I know this is terrible for me but I still like it" flavor, as opposed to the "this tastes like plastic and I'm pretty sure it's toxic" flavor. I find that that is a very fine line that bright orange cheeses walk when melted and placed on things. The best part of the meal was the Gremlin, which had the perfect balance of sugar and tart to make it a really refreshing drink. Afterwards, Sandya and I both commented that we didn't feel that great. The food was sitting pretty heavy in my stomach and made me feel rather lethargic. Not a good feeling after such a promising Saturday afternoon.

We will see if the original Ishkabibble's is any different, but this is more of a kitsch place than anything that is somehow still a contender for best cheesesteak (maybe the beef version is better?).

Ishkabibble's II
517 South Street
Philadelphia, PA
(215) 922-0494

#61 Tattooed Mom - Sam's synopsis

friends + colors + kitsch

My first impressions upon walking into Tattooed Mom were "how have I never been here before?" - which is probably a good way to start a visit. The inside consists of overly saccharine colors and has a lot of figurines from obscure media series - Erin spotted the robot from Cromartie High, among others. I was going to link to a picture but instead I recommend everyone type in "cromartie high" into google image search and just look at the pictures that show up. The bar has a divey feel to it - I think it's the kitschy feel of the layout and the almost child-like way of ordering food. I say that because it was Thursday, which is apparently Pierogi Thursday, where you can get individual pierogis for 50 cents. But you fill out a piece of paper, almost like a worksheet assignment from 5th grade, and your writing utensil is a crayon. Also, there are bowls of dum dums on all the tables, and those frog hopper toys, except they were actually rabbits and not frogs, and mini versions of those games where you have to try and roll multiple small silver balls into holes and it's really hard because you want to throw it out the window. These things. I don't think either of those toys has an official name, but maybe someone can correct me. All of these childlike qualities, the brightly colored walls and the mismatched tables, couches and chairs gives the place a sort of surreal feel, but maybe that's why I liked it so much - it jives very well with my personality.

fill in the blanks: pierogi ed.

dem pierogis

Since it was Pierogi Thursday, I of course ordered some pierogis - 4 to be exact, which I scrawled out in crayon. I ordered a cajun lime ranch dipping sauce and decided to see how full I felt after this before ordering more food. The pierogis themselves weren't bad - they were salty and hearty but not overly flavorful, but I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing. There are a lot of dipping sauces to choose from, so it's best to keep the dipper on the blander side so you can maximize pairings of sauces. The cajun lime ranch dipping sauce was delicious, creamy and had just the right amount of kick to it. I'd definitely recommend it. After finishing my pierogis, I decided I wanted more food so I ordered a veggie burger and curly fries. The curly fries never did come out (I don't think the waitress remembered to write it down), but that was for the better. Turns out I was more full than I anticipated and those fries would have been way too much. The veggie burger was good, nothing extraordinary but a nice patty that had a mix of beans and corn. If you've been to Doobie's, I'd say the offerings on the food menus are very similar.

excuse me miss, I believe
there's a baby in your drink

As far as a bar goes, the beer selection was pretty standard. They had a nice variety of offerings with a lot of local choices, but nothing extremely rare. I had the Abita Strawberry Harvest Lager, Hop King from Evil Genius, and a Yards Brawler to end the night. They also have a nice collection of cocktails, that didn't seem to be super outstanding but do sometimes contain tiny purple baby figurines in them. Tattooed Mom also has some fun beer events, one being a barleywine extravaganza that I attended recently which had a nice selection of barleywines both local and from afar, some being more rare than others. I will comment that I was less impressed with the staff on that visit then the one for our blog outing - they were a bit rude at the end of the event and I did not appreciate that. But overall the service is fine - nothing to write home about, good or bad.

Tattooed Mom was a fun experience with a big group of friends, and it's a very laid back atmosphere. I'd definitely go back to enjoy a beer or two, or maybe spend a Friday night getting progressively drunker in a relaxed environment (*sigh* ... I still miss you Tangier...)

Tattooed Mom
530 South Street
Philadelphia, PA
(215) 238-9880

#61 - Tattooed Mom's - Sandy's synopsis

Tattooed Mom is that bar that epitomizes this part of south street - famous for it tattoo and piercing parlours. The place is what I'd classify as a dive bar - which is not a bad thing in my book. It has a very interesting decor with a lot of cool little baubles on the wall. The kind of place you find something new everytime you go. It has a ground floor bar and an upstairs bar. The ground floor bar has bright coloured walls and grand velvet couches for seating. The upstairs bar feels more like the basement with lower lighting and a dingier feel with pool tables and dart boards. 

They have a decent draft list that always has some craft brews on tap as well a standard lager of some sort. They also have a good selection of bottled beer. Their daily happy hour is awesome (half of drafts from 5-7pm) in addition to a different daily food special. 

We thankfully went on a Thursday where their pierogi's are 50 cents - Man I love pierogis.

 I highly recommend keeping it simple with Garlic oil, jalapenos and Sour cream. For 50 cents, this was a delicious snack. Trust me on the garlic oil - very potent and delicious. 

For those of you not beer inclined or have celiac's, my partner Stephanie, would like to recommend  the "Mustache Ride". Great name right,  It's basically an old fashioned with cherries, so if you love bourbon, this will be up your alley. 

I think you'll enjoy Tattooed Mom's, its a fun, relaxing place to go grab a pint. As weirdly boring as this review reads, Tattooed Mom's is the opposite - not boring - I mean, it is the official bar of Philadelphia's Zombie Crawl. How cool is that. 

Tattooed Mom

530 South Street

Philadelphia PA 19147

215-238-9880