Philadelphia Eats

One of our main objectives for this trip was to eat our way through Philly.

We arrived late Friday evening and had juicy, buttery burgers topped with onions and bacon and BBQ sauce at a comfortable neighborhood pub. Early the next morning we made our way to grab coffee and pastries at the famed Metropolitan Bakery.


Roasted vegetable focaccia, almond croissant, chocolate croissant, vanilla bean rice pudding, and coffee from the Metropolitan Bakery.


Of course we had to go say hi to the Amish at Reading Terminal Market! Fresh apple dumplings! We did not partake, but they sure looked yummy.


We did go visit the sticky bun (and multiple other baked goods) stand and get some cinnamon buns: some sticky and topped with nuts and dried fruit, and some SLATHERED with cream cheese frosting!


This was our Sunday morning breakfast.


Our main food stop in the Reading Terminal Market was for a roast pork sandwich at DiNic's.


Look at all that glorious meat! We peeked over piles of roast pork legs at the guys in the back slicing up slabs of juicy brisket. *drool*


The three of us shared this roast pork sandwich topped with provolone, broccoli rabe, and sweet peppers. The meat was juicy, the broccoli rabe was just the right amount of bitter, the peppers were just the right amount of sweet, and the provolone was smooth. What a tasty (although messy to eat) sandwich!


Hello Chinatown!


Dim sum! We were too impatient to go wait at my childhood favorite dim sum place because the line was out the door, but we still scored some tasty dim sum and stuffed ourselves (despite just eating the pork sandwiches and some ice cream half an hour prior).


After Chinatown, we took a nice long afternoon walk around the neighborhood and then headed over to the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Free Library (see previous post). By the time we walked back, we'd digested enough to tackle our final food destination of the day: a Korean restaurant named Giwa. The menu is short and sweet, with everyone's favorite Korean dishes, like bibimbap and bulgogi. We had the kimchi chigae (kimchi and meat pot) and soondubu (soft tofu pot with seafood stock).


Someone had to have her dolsot bibimbap!


In the afternoon, we'd stopped at a local cupcake store to nab some cupcakes for dessert later in the evening before the shop closed/sold out. Over a viewing of the musical "1776" in honor of being in the city where American Independence was spawned, we broke out the cupcakes. These were seriously good. In contrast to many cupcake places, this place uses what must be akin to pound cake batter for their cupcakes. The stuff is DENSE yet moist. Even Cordie was interested in a bite!


On Sunday before heading back home, we stopped by this cute French-style cafe for a slightly chilly but glorious outdoor dining experience.


They're well-known for their soups. Above is a garbanzo and cauliflower curry soup. Hearty, full of veggies, flavorful.


We followed up our soups with quiches and sandwiches. The sandwich was named after the cafe itself. It had gooey cheese, creamy bachamel sauce, tender broccoli, and sweet ham (there's also turkey or no-meat options). SO good.

Yes, alas no cheesesteak. But I think we got just as good (if not better) food instead! And there's always next time!