#93 Pietro's - Sam's synopsis

Pietro's is a pretty solid establishment in Philly - there's more than one location and the few times I've been to one of their locales I've always been satisfied. So I went into this outing hoping for a good meal with good friends, and I wasn't disappointed.

Erin and I caught the bus and arrived around 7:30 pm... before Sandya, of course, even though she lives 2 blocks away. We had a slightly awkward interaction with the hostess and then we were seated in the bar area. It was pretty dead for a Thursday night, as I think there were maybe 2 other tables and a handful of people at the bar. 

As we waited for Sandya, Erin and I ordered drinks and then realized when Sandya arrived that maybe we should have waited so we could order a bottle of wine. But no matter, as we ordered a bottle of wine anyways (sadly, or maybe responsibly, there was no double-fisting for me as I decided to finish my sangria before moving onto the wine). We also decided on the risotto balls and brussell sprouts for appetizers, to accompany the free bread and olive oil we received. A minor side rant, that maybe I've expressed in a previous entry over these past 4 years, is I really hate it when sit down restaurants don't give you some kind of item to nibble on while you peruse the menu and order. Maybe my expectations are too high, or I'm asking too much, but can you at least give us something to eat while we wait? Even if it's oyster crackers or saltines? So needless to say, I was happy with our bread, which was warm and crispy on the outside, and soft on the inside. The risotto balls there are delicious - deep fried on the outside and creamy and salty on the inside. The brussell sprouts were fine too, they had some prosciutto pieces which were nice, but I found the balsamic glaze/sauce a bit too astringent for my liking.

For the main dish, I went with gemelli arugula pollo, which is described as chicken breast, garlic, arugula, and grape tomatoes in a white wine sauce. It was a good dish, although I felt like I couldn't really taste any garlic, and the flavors could have been better defined. I will say that I had a lot of leftovers (I guess the downside of free bread is that you always fill up too early...), and the dish was actually better the next day, because everything had time to soak in the sauce, and THEN the flavors were better defined. I was still pleased with my choice, and it was a good meal.

By the time we had finished eating, we still had some wine left, so of course we ordered dessert. The three of us split the tiramisu, which was simply to die for - one of the better pieces of tiramisu I've had in a long time. All in all, Pietro's is a great Philly establishment where you can get reliable meals.

Pietro's

121 South Street

Philadelphia, PA

(215) 733-0675

#92 - Las Bugambilias - Sandy's synopsis

Las Bugambilias (The bougainvilleas), conjures up for me an image of nostalgia. These flowers are native to more warmer climates and they definitely give me a warm fuzzy as they are common where I grew up in India. It was therefore quite perfect that we had some amazing warm weather that day, that enabled us to sit at a table outside. I am happy to note that the staff were very accommodating about it, even though we were a bigger group of 6 people. In hindsight, if you are a large group, it is easier to sit indoors.

The restaurant was definitely embracing the season/halloween as our servers and hosts were in costume and Mr. Tree-Trunk-Laughy-Face accompanied us for our meal. He was pleasant enough, but I always got the feeling like he was planning something sinister - might've been his laugh.

Mr. Tree-Trunk-Laughy-Face

Las bugambilias serves an array of traditional mexican dishes and there menu is very extensive so take your time to peruse. Additionally, on Sundays they do a brunch buffet that got some great reviews from the other diners in the restaurant.

We decided to start of our lunch/brunch with drinks and I couldn't resist ordering their classic margarita.

Classic Margarita

Besides the gorgeous presentation, the margarita itself was fantastic. Speaking of the presentation, the dining ware, tables, chairs, almost everything at this restaurant is beautiful.

Beautiful dining ware

As we sipped our drinks and enjoyed the weather, I managed to make a decision on what to order. I have for a long time wanted to try "cochinita pibil", which is a slow cooked pork dish. 

Cochinita Pibil

I really wanted to like this dish and truth be told I loved most of it. The beans, plantains and rice were delicious! I however found the pork itself to be a little under salted and lacking flavour. If I did combine the pork with everything else (which is probably what I am probably supposed to do), it was good. I was still a little disappointed. However almost everyone else at the table really liked their meals. Therefore, this will not deter me from wanting to try more things on their menu another time.

Las Bugambilias

148 South street

Phila PA 19147

215-922-3190

#92 Las Bugambilias - Sam's synopsis

Mr. Trunky Laughy Face,
lurking in the shadows

It was an unseasonably warm day-before-Halloween when we made our trip to Las Bugambilias, so we made the wise decision to sit outside and enjoy the weather and people-watching. What we did not expect was to make a friend with our sometimes inanimate neighbor, who we lovingly named Mr. Trunk Laughy Face*. This little guy was a dancing, laughing, spooky tree that was triggered by a motion sensor. He managed to go off about once a minute, which we found especially amusing as we waited for the rest of our party to join. Luckily, we had a wonderful waitress decked out in beautiful Day of the Dead make-up who temporarily disabled him for us, although I did start to miss his spooky laugh later into our meal.
*We had several other names for him, but we couldn't quite settle (or remember) all of them. This will have to stand as our substitute for now.

I could go for one of these
right now, actually

I had heard many good things about Las Bugambilias, so I was excited to try it out. We had a nice collection of friends as McKenzie was in town for Halloween/birthday shenanigans with myself and Erin, Steph brought Pavlov, and Scott had requested all the way back at the beginning of our blog to join us on this spot. We squeezed around a circular table and proceeded to order drinks. I went with a hibiscus margarita. I was impressed with the volume-to-price ratio - it was a rather large glass, and it was tasty and strong to boot. I would come back here just for margaritas, and that's before even getting to the food.

As it was Sunday, there was a brunch option that included a buffet of many different food items. One of the downsides of this option was that any of the main dishes available at the buffet were not available for individual order. In my case, I really wanted chilaquiles, but that was a buffet offering so I could not order it individually. But in the end, why would I go with one dish when I could get a plethora of food offerings? So I went with the buffet. And it was a wise choice. Once everyone else's meals arrived, I went inside and piled my plate full of deliciousness.

I'm pretty sure this is when Steph was
explaining how the patron Saint of
Mexico City looks like a vagina

On the docket were those sought after chilaquiles (my best description is breakfast nachos - tortilla chips with salsa, fried egg, pulled chicken, and crema fresca), oat pancakes, scrambled eggs with veggies, potatoes, refried black beans and some Day of the Dead bread. Everything was delicious. The chilaquiles were exactly what I was craving - the salsa verde was refreshing and flavorful and the pulled chicken fell apart in your mouth. The pancakes had a nice sweetness to them that wasn't overwhelming, but good enough to eat without syrup (this is a big deal for me - I usually drench my pancakes in maple syrup). The scrambled eggs, beans and potatoes were equally good - nothing life-changing but certainly done with the right balance of flavors. Erin and I split a sugar-dusted Day of the Dead piece of bread - it was good if a little dry (but I am not sure if this common or not for this style of bread). I left feeling satisfied, and I know everyone else did too, as there were raves all around the table. I would definitely return here for not just margaritas, but for food as well.

Las Bugambilias
148 South Street
Philadelphia, PA
(215) 922-3190

#91 - OCF Coffee House - Sandy's synopsis

This is the second OCF coffee house on South Street, which is unexpected for a coffee house run by a realty. However if there is anything a realty does have, its building space?

 As surprised as I was the first time, the coffee here is actually pretty good and they have great small eats. There is nothing overly special about it but I would choose it over a Starbucks. I ordered a cappuccino and chocolate croissant and was not disappointed by either. So, if you are in this neighbourhood and need a coffee, you could go here. 

#91 OCF Coffeehouse - Sam's synopsis

There are a lot of empires in Philly, it seems. OCF is one of them, with at least 5 coffee shop locations in the city that I can think of off the top of my head. We already stopped at one way back on the 18th block. And now we come full circle and have a new one on the 2nd block. Sandya and I came here for a pre-work breakfast at 8 am (my, how times have changed!).

It was a sunny fall morning, which was aptly noted through the expansive windows of the cafe. I really enjoyed the level of natural light coming in at this location (the one on 18th is pretty dark; however, the one at 30th and Chestnut may just be my favorite for this very reason. I spent many afternoons writing my thesis there...). It was surprisingly quiet for a workday morning, with only a few other customers coming in during our 45 minute conversation. Perhaps because this area of South Street isn't very close to the main business area of Philly, but who knows.

Per usual, I ordered a chai latte and settled in on a cheese croissant. Last time's perilous encounter with a hair baked into my bagel made me opt for a different choice. The chai was good - a nice amount of foamy milk on top and not too sweet. The cheese croissant was also delicious (from Kermit's, of course) - flaky and buttery and savory. It was a pleasant and calm start to the day - you can't ask for much more from a coffeeshop.

OCF Coffeehouse

135 South Street

Philadelphia, PA

(215) 457-3336

#90 - Me N Mo - Sandy's synopsis

Me N Mo advertises itself as a small family owned restaurant where everything is made from scratch. Where, presumably, a "Me", with a person called "Mo", run this little Italian restaurant. Well, after some deliberation, we figured that the "Me" referred to meatballs and the "Mo" referred to "more", as is spelled out below there logo. Its clever and I'm glad I didn't go in there asking if Mo was in. 

Besides the cute name, I was very excited to go here because freshly made pasta is amazing (I was less excited about the meatballs) and Me N Mos did not disappoint in that regard.

However, for starters, we ordered some of their signature meatballs and a buratta prosciutto salad.

Classic: Beef, pork and veal meatballs in vodka sauce

Chicken meatballs in mushroom cream sauce

Burratta Prosciutto salad

As I mentioned before, I am generally not the biggest fan of meatballs, and therefore not the best judge. So I will not judge and just say that they were well liked by the of the group. (There is only one meatball I have liked in my life, and that was at Little Nonna's).

The freshly made pasta however was fantastic here at Me N Mos. There is a large selection to choose from and I picked the linguine con frutti di mare - a seafood linguine with calamari, shrimp, mussel and herbs in a white wine sauce.

Linguini con frutti di mare

It was extremely delicious. The fresh pasta really takes everything up a notch with a perfect sauce and mostly great seafood (I was weirdly not a fan of the calamari).

Unfortunately, we were too full for dessert but all in all, Me 'N Mos had proven that it is a great affordable place for some traditional Italian cuisine.

So take a bottle of wine and get some pasta and more! at Me 'N Mos. (What if it was called Pasta 'N More...Pa 'N Mos....That sounds less exciting and clever I suppose).

Me 'N Mos

214 South Street

Philadelphia PA 19147
267-928-3262

#90 Me 'N' Mo - Sam's synopsis

Things have been a bit crazy the past month or so. But they've settled down. And with it, comes the last review for this block, which means we have reached THE FINAL BLOCK. Huzzah! Our journey is nearly coming to a close, but first, here's the review for Me 'N' Mo.

Tell us about the Aggro Crag

I was a little early to arrive, so I went in and secured us a table. However, we went on the later side on a weeknight (around 8 pm), so there was only one other table there - a party of 3 (daughter + parents) celebrating the daughter's birthday. I awkwardly sang along to Happy Birthday at one point. The inside decor was rustic but not in your face about it, so I found it rather pleasant. A good ambiance for spending a relaxed evening with friends. I also realized, while staring at the menu, that Me 'N' Mo was short for Meatballs and More, and not a dude named Mo and his mysterious buddy. Side note: I suppose Mo could be a girl too, because we obviously all remember the Mo on the right there.

Steph arrived, and soon after Sandya and Sandeep did as well (wow, apparently didn't realize it was the S party that night!) Me 'N' Mo is BYOB, so we indulged in a bottle of red wine and decided the best strategy was to order a few different types of meatballs, an appetizer, and individual entrees for an ample sampling of food items. For meatballs, we went with the classic (beef + veal + pork) with vodka sauce and chicken with creamy mushroom sauce. While I don't eat beef or veal, I did still feel compelled to try one of the classic meatballs, and it was tasty. That's a pretty good compliment from someone who doesn't eat red meat mainly because she doesn't like the taste. It was flavorful and moist, and the accompanying sauce worked well. I also liked the chicken, and surprisingly the mushroom sauce wasn't too overwhelming (reminder: I don't like mushrooms), but it wasn't out of this world flavor-wise. The appetizer we ordered was a caprese salad with prosciutto and fresh peaches, drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette. It was simply divine. The freshness of the tomatoes, basil, and peaches balanced well with the saltiness of the prosciutto and the sweet acidity of the balsamic vinaigrette. We also received quite a bit of bread throughout the meal. Above average for a restaurant, but not groundbreaking.

meatballs aplenty

My entree was named chicken saltimbocca (chicken that jumps into your mouth) which we proceeded to joke about for the remainder of the meal. It would be nice if my food would always just jump into my mouth - I might spill less food all over myself if this were the case. The dish was chicken topped with prosciutto and mozzarella, with a buttery sage sauce and a side of mashed potatoes and veggies. The dish was delicious - it didn't quite jump into my mouth, but mostly because I was already pretty full at that point. My only very minor complaint is that I wish the mozzarella had been melted more - it wasn't quite the level of ooey-gooey that I thought it should be for this dish. The sauce was great, not too buttery or oily and the right amount of sage. The potatoes were creamy and the veggies fresh. I was only able to eat about half and had the remainder for lunch the next day, where it was equally as delicious as the night before.

Can't you see it jumping?

Service was friendly if a bit curt near the end - they didn't really ask us if we wanted dessert, but it was also already just past closing time and we were all obviously pretty full at that point. This place is cash only, but the prices are reasonable, considering how many pricey Italian restaurants there are in Center City. I would definitely return here again, and recommend it to anyone looking to try out a new Italian restaurant in the city.

Me 'N' Mo

214 South Street

Philadelphia, PA

(267) 928-3262