#74 - Ishkabibbles and #75 - Starbucks - Sandy's synopsis

I don't have too much more to say about Ishkabibbles or Starbucks. We've been to both these establishments earlier in our saunter and my opinion has not drastically changed.

Ishkabibbles I (one) has the same menu as Ishkabibbles II, so I decided to go with what worked the last time and learn from what didn't work. What worked the last time was the Gremlin, a grape soda and lemonade drink, and that still remains the case. I will say again, grape soda should be more popular.

What didn't work the last time was their chicken cheesesteak. So I decided to stay away from cheesesteaks entirely and play it safe. I ordered a chicken cutlet sandwich which contains deep fried chicken strips on bread with some onions and tomatoes.

You really cannot go wrong with that. I lathered it with some hot sauce and we were good to go. I would like to stress that I still probably would never come here by choice.

We used Starbucks as our dessert and post-dinner drink place. This was more of an adventure for me as I got to try something new, thanks to Sam. Turns out, one of Sam's favourite tea-based drinks is a London fog. This drink has earl grey tea with steamed milk and a spot of vanilla. In addition, we also got a toffee cookie to share.
I really liked the London fog and think I might have found my new Starbucks go to drink. I hate Starbucks coffee, but this way, if I do find myself there (after all other options were exhausted), I can get a London Fog and not have my mood ruined.

The toffee cookie was good - It was a cookie.

Ishkabibbles

337 South Street

Philadelphia PA 19147

215-923-4337

Starbucks

347 South Street

Philadelphia PA 19147

215-627-4060

#74 Ishkabibble's & #75 Starbucks - Sam's synopsis

Well, I can't say I started off these two stops with high hopes. Ishkabibble's II wasn't all that great, and Starbucks is well... Starbucks. Not to mention it was probably the coldest it's been all winter that evening, making the trek and eating in a cold, drafty restaurant all the more unenjoyable. People seem to really enjoy Ishkabibble's, given the number of signed celebrity pictures on the wall. Everyone from Weird Al to Usher have dined at this hole-in-the-wall stop, where there are a few stools at the counter and the grill is right in front of you. I did appreciate the warmth making its way to us from across the counter, but it almost immediately got sucked out of the establishment as soon as someone came in and opened the door. Even though I don't really like this place, it is a Philly staple and some people claim it has the best cheesesteak in Philly so I wasn't entirely surprised that a few more people came in to order while we were there despite the bitter cold.

I also appreciate that Ishkabibble's has a lot of chicken cheesesteak options. What I don't appreciate is when my chicken cheesesteak is made up of the chewy, ligand-y pieces of chicken that you usually cut off chicken breast because it's at the edges, it tastes bad, and you can't digest it. Which is what most of my sandwich consisted of, unfortunately. I ordered the pizza steak, which had pizza sauce and mozzarella cheese. This part of the sandwich I really enjoyed - it was warm and gooey and tasted like what a pizza steak should taste like, although it could have had a little more seasoning. It might have been the cold's doing, but I think if the chicken were of better quality, I would have even recommended this sandwich. But not this time. We also shared some mozzarella fries, which were just a plate of fries with cheese melted on them. Can't really go wrong there, they were decent. And of course, since the best thing that seems to come out of Ishkabibble's is the Gremlin (1/2 grape soda, 1/2 lemonade), I ordered one to accompany my dinner. It was just as tasty as last time, but is definitely better enjoyed as a respite from hot weather in the summer.

We were both feeling pretty full, so our stop at Starbucks was spent sipping on London fogs and sharing a toffee cookie. The toffee cookie was alright, a little on the sweet side and a little too chewy (Yes, you can have a cookie that's too chewy. And yes, I know toffee items are generally on the chewy side but this cookie was too flat to make that chewiness acceptable). London fog is one of my favorite beverages (earl grey tea + steamed milk + vanilla), so I was excited to see it on their menu, since I'd never seen it advertised at a Starbucks before. It was okay - the milk was not steamed to my satisfaction (but I really, really like foamy milk in my hot beverages, so I'll give them a pass) but the balance of flavors was done pretty well. Definitely not the best London fog I've had in the city, but it was a pleasant way to warm up from the chill outside.

I still don't get the hype about Ishkabibble's, and you either like Starbucks or you don't, so this was not one of our most exciting stops... hopefully Hurricane Alley will surprise us on our next stop.

Ishkabibble's

337 South Street

Philadelphia, PA

(215) 923-4337

Starbucks

347 South Street

Philadelphia, PA

(215) 627-4060

#73 Copabanana - Sam's synopsis

I am very sad that my good friend Kate (one of our blog's biggest fans) was not able to attend this stop while she was in town visiting. Upon hearing that someone was shot at the Copabanana in West Philly, she immediately asked "Was his name Tony?" Sadly, the joke went over all of our heads, but that's just how steeped in pop culture Kate is (or maybe she just really likes Barry Manilow). Next time Kate, next time.

residual strawberry maragarita
floating in my drink

We decided to stop here before viewing the new Star Wars movie. A large group (~11 people) of us were going to see the movie, so 5 of us (Sandya, Erin, Ari, Martin and myself) decided to enjoy some margaritas and pseudo-mexican fare beforehand. It was very empty for a Thursday evening, which is not entirely surprising because both this Copabanana and the one in West Philly tend to populate later at night, with either people from New Jersey at the South Street location or Penn and Drexel undergrads at the West Philly location. We had a nice large table to ourselves, and our waiter was probably working his very first shift ever, because he was being shadowed and kept forgetting to ask everyone how they wanted their burgers cooked. But, he was a very friendly waiter and given that he was clearly new and learning the ropes, I don't fault him in the slightest. The entire staff was very friendly, so that's a definite plus in my book.

too flimsy!

I went with a classic margarita on the rocks, which was delicious. A great balance of all the ingredients and an entire shaker full - it definitely goes the distance. My one complaint was that my margarita had a bunch of red bits floating in it - most likely from a previous strawberry margarita that was mixed in the shaker as someone pointed out. I'm pretty laid back so I didn't make a big deal out of it, but I can see how that might make some people a little annoyed. It didn't stop me from ordering a second one though, so no hard feelings.

For food we ordered some guacamole and chips as an appetizer. The guac was decent, but the chips weren't my favorite. They seemed a little stale, and were too thin to the point where they would break in half as I tried to scoop guacamole out. Gotta have sturdy chips for dipping. One thing I like about their menu is that you can order a variety of patties under the burger section: beef, veggie, chicken or turkey. I don't like hamburgers so it's nice to have a lot of other options. I went with the Charleston (cheddar, fried onions, and BBQ sauce) on a chicken patty. It was enjoyable but nothing over the top. I felt like the ingredients were well-balanced but the flavor was pretty typical. I opted for a side caeser salad (I wasn't feeling fries that night and wanted to save room for movie popcorn), which was good. The lettuce was fresh and there was just the right amount of dressing.

I don't think I'd normally choose to dine at Copabanana, but it's a great place to grab a margarita that's worth the money you pay for it.

Copabanana

344 South Street

Philadelphia, PA

(215) 923-6180

#73 Copabanana - Martin's synopsis

I’m a long time eater and a first time blogger of food. For me, food is an experience. So, in my synopsis, I will try not to just chronicle what I ate, but the experience as well.

On the day we went to Copabanana, I had just submitted my last final ever and was about to see Star Wars: The Force Awakens. When Ari and Sam asked me if I wanted to go to Copabanana before the movie, I was ready to relax and have a great time with friends, food, and margaritas.

When we sat down, we could tell our waiter was very new since he was being followed and trained by another waitress. He was wearing a Jägermeister shirt (one of my favorite types of liquor) so from now on, our waiter will be called Jäger. The first thing we did was order margaritas and nachos for happy hour. I wanted to keep the good vibes rolling with good margaritas.

When Jäger came back, he brought out our appetizers, but what caught my attention was the fact that my margarita was in a martini glass. At first, I was shocked and devastated that the margarita I was so looking forward to only came in a tiny martini glass, rather than your typical margarita glass. But, before I was flooded with disappointment, I noticed that Jäger had left a shaker on the table. What was this shaker filled with? Margarita. My sadness was instantly washed away with the realization that my drink could be refilled over and over without having to ask for another margarita. The margarita itself was delicious and strong, and when it was over, I just filled my glass right back up. And in that moment, I swear I was infinite.

Martin enjoying his burger

While I was enjoying my Margaritas on Demand, I also had some of the nachos and guacamole. My verdict – they were okay. Nothing to brag about, but I had my seemingly endless supply of margarita by my side, so I was happy. Jäger came back to get our actual dinner orders.  Copabanana has a variety of burgers to choose from, but I ultimately decided to order the Wild West Burger, a buffalo burger with chipotle ketchup and fried onion rings with a side of fries with cheez whiz. When it came back, my fries were not covered in cheez whiz, but Erin’s fries were. Jäger slightly messed up the orders, but it’s okay. We won’t hold it against him, especially since Erin and I just ate the fries off each other’s plates, and we’re not evil people who yell at waiters and waitresses. So, back to the burger. I ordered my burger medium rare. I think overall, just like the nachos, the burger was okay. Perhaps a little more than okay. It tasted like a buffalo burger should. I think I would have wanted a little more chipotle ketchup, but I enjoyed the crunch that the fried onion rings provided to the burger. However, I feel like it was missing something else. Maybe just more chipotle ketchup. If I ever go back, I’ll be sure to try a different burger and compare.

By the time I finished my burger, I also finished the margarita. One margarita goes a long way. However, I still wasn’t satisfied. I was tempted to order a dessert, but that’s not what I was craving. I was feening for another margarita. I hesitated in what to do. We still had some time to get to the movie theatre, but I didn’t want to overkill the nice buzz I had going on. During this time of great introspection, Erin decided to get another margarita, so I pretty much was on board to get another one. It was great, as expected. While enjoying the second margarita, we were chatting with the wait staff about the upcoming Star Wars movie. I shared the fact that I had just watched the original trilogy for the first time that month and then learned that if you hadn’t seen any of the movies, the best thing to do to prepare for Episode VII is to watch IV, V, II, III, and VI in that order. Interesting. We then finished our margaritas and saw The Force Awakens. If you haven’t seen it, you should.

With great staff, alright food, and beautiful, endless margaritas, my final thoughts on Copa are:

If I had visitors coming out of town, would I go there to show off Philadelphia cuisine?

No.

If I were hungry and at my house, would I go there to grab a bite to eat?

No, because Sidecar is two blocks away from me.

If I were going to the TLA, would I go there to grab food and great drinks (margaritas) to pregame?

Yes. Yes I would. And you should, too.

Keep on eating, Philly.

Copabanana

344 South Street

Philadelphia, PA

(215) 923-6180