Pizza and Beer Make the Right Summer Combo at Dock Street Brewery

If you haven't ventured up Baltimore Ave into West Philadelphia, it's worth a trip. A mix of African restaurants, the lively Clark Park, another installment of Little Baby's Ice Cream and more have made it yet another great food destination for Philadelphia, but one that's still largely under-hyped (kinda nice that way). 

One spot we've heard great things about for years is Dock Street Brewery. Finally on a perfectly warm night this spring our neighbors took us there for a pizza and beer feast under the stars. It's definitely a fun place for a group, not only because of the laid back atmosphere and big tables, but because more people = more pizzas to try. The four pies below (two large, two small) plus an appetizer was plenty of food for six people. All the pies come in large or small sizes.  

There are all sorts of unique ingredient combos to keep things interesting at Dock Street and distinguish it enough from so many other gourmet pizza + wine/beer joints around Philadelphia. This was certainly the first time we had mustard on a pizza! I loved the crust, too, always a critical factor. And of course Dock Street is a brewery so it offers a host of original and tasty beers to try. There are a number of seats out front on the sidewalk so try to score one this summer. Here's what we ate:

Appetizer: trio of regular fries, sweet potato fries and grilled leeks (the leeks were the real kicker here, such a great idea that we need to try at home):

Mellow Yellow Pizza: Brown mustard, creme fraiche, portobello, white mushroom, mozzarella, gruyere, topped with scallions:

Four Things to Order at The Fat Ham and One to Skip

Oyster Slider

Kevin Sbraga first gained acclaim as a Top Chef winner and then for his namesake restaurant Sbraga, a 2011 Scarpetta Award honoree for best new restaurant.

Now Chef Sbraga has expanded with a more low key space called the The Fat Ham, which is focused on southern country cooking and traditions.

We loved the concept and enjoyed the food just as much. Here are four things you should order at The Fat Ham.

1. The Fat Apple cocktail. We recognized the bartender from his days at Pub & Kitchen. He’s the really tall guy, super friendly and knows his drinks. We took his recommendation for The Fat Apple - great, simple, whiskey drink. The kind you could have five of on a nice day. The Fat Ham also serves its own twist on the Moscow Mule in those famous copper mugs. (side note: I've had Moscow Mules at two other local bars since not served in the copper mug and it just isn't the same.)

2. Southern Hummus. If there was a “hummus” to give Zahav a run for its money this would be it. Mixing boiled peanuts with the traditional chickpeas gave it just enough distinction and the grilled bread served with it was excellent. You’ll want to lick the wooden bowl clean!

3. Oyster Sliders. These giant oysters were perfectly fried into a crunchy bite, while the coleslaw and gribiche was a tasty condiment. The real kicker, though, was the yeast roll – fluffy, buttery and quite simply perfect. Order one per person and see the photos below for other good apps/sides.

4. Hot Chicken. "Hot" in this case means to the touch and more significantly to taste. You’ll get a minor forehead sweat but also just enough sweetness to keep you diving back in for more, and taking advantage of the white bread, house-made ranch and pickles underneath. Just like the oysters, the chicken is perfectly fried. This version certainly rivals Resurrection and Federal Donuts. I’d love to see Fed Nuts come up with a spicy take like this one. Loved it. At $13 it’s an above average deal.

Hot Chicken!

One disappointment was the chocolate chip cookie skillet. From the sound of it (a hot skillet full of just-baked cookie dough) we thought this was going to be another highlight. The result tasted fine but was thinner and harder than expectations. Perhaps another scoop of ice cream and softer dough would have done the trick.

The Fat Ham is located near WXPN and World Cafe Live on Walnut Street, just before the heart of UPenn's campus in University City. Keep in mind that the space is uber small so try to get a reservation or go as a pair and sneak a spot at the bar. We’d advise against a big dinner party, as we saw one group waiting a good bit to get seated. It just doesn't have the volume seats needed to turnover quickly enough for a large group.

Have you been to The Fat Ham? What would you recommend?

Grilled Trout w/ brussels sprouts, pecan butter

Baked macaroni & cheese with BBQ potato chip crust

Hummus in a wooden bowl

Chocolate chip cookie skillet

Hot Chocolate Wars: 30th Street Station

Over the past two years, I've written about my experiences trying hot chocolate all over Philadelphia. There are still dozens more to taste test, but none are more present in my weekday working life than the hot chocolate options at 30th Street Station.

You have four choices at Philadelphia's landmark train station: Saxby's, Au Bon Pain, Cosi and Dunkin' Donuts. Here are my thoughts...  You decide what's best for your next train trip.

Delicias, a New Venezuelan Food Truck in University City

The food blogger gods are on my side in 2012... a new day job has me working in University City rather than commuting an hour away from the food haven of Philadelphia each day. That can only mean one thing: more lunches to write about!

Midtown Lunch recently highlighted Delicias, a new Venezuelan-themed food truck at 34th & Market near Drexel/Penn. These awkwardly warm winter days have been perfect for venturing out at lunchtime so I gave Delicias a try.

Choripan Sandwich - look at allll those onions!

The chorizo sandwich, called a Chorpian ($5), was great. It's a long, soft, toasted roll with several pieces of sliced, medium-spiced chorizo, covered in homemade pico de gallo and caramelized onions. Admittedly, I picked off a handful of onions so I wouldn't totally stink up the office, but there were still plenty left to enhance the flavor. The pico de gallo had a nice kick but not more than my sally-pants could handle.

Also key in food truck lunch excursions, the Choripan traveled well back to the office. It had a good 15 minute walk to survive but the tight foil wrapping worked well.

Sandwich Quest: Philly's Koja Food Truck

Who should start Game One for the Phillies - Roy Halladay or Cliff Lee? The reality is that it doesn't matter because you would be more than content with either taking the mound. Both pitchers are that good.

This is how I think about the question of which sandwich was the best so far on our Sandwich Quest. I emphasize so far because we still have many to try, such as Nick’s Roast Beef, Shank’s and McNally's Schmitter, to name just a few.

Japanese/Korean Koja Truck

The lasagna Bolognese from Paesano’s has been the clear front runner for quite some time. But then I went on my University City food truck tour, where I devoured the ridiculously good bulgoki steak sandwich from the Koja Truck. Some call it bulgogi, but Koja has bulgoki on its menu so we'll go with that name.


Which is better you might ask? I don’t know. Heads I win, tails I win. I could eat either sandwich at any time and be happy.



The debate is only fitting because both were on list of the best new sandwiches in the U.S. from Endless Simmer, the genesis for our sandwich quest. Endless Simmer, you’ve done your research!

Philly Food Truck: Cucina Zapata

The first time we came across Cucina Zapata was at the Inaugural Philly Vendy Awards.  It was my favorite truck and won the People's Choice Award.

Because the Vendy Awards were so crowded, the opportunity for personal interaction with each vendor was minimal. This limited the normal experience you might have with each truck and its owner. My interest in getting to know them more, combined with the quality of the food we tasted, made me want to visit Cucina Zapata at its regular location.

My planned tour of University City food trucks was the perfect time. Cucina Zapata is first in a line of at least 10 trucks located at 31st and Ludlow, a bit of a hidden alley on Drexel’s campus. It is one of the more decorated trucks of the bunch, too.

Philly Food Truck: Magic Carpet

Magic Carpet is a well-known vegetarian food truck with two locations - 36th & Spruce and 34th & Walnut. The Walnut Street location was the second stop on my recent one-day truck tour of University City.

The menu is lengthy with options such as seitan grinders or magic meatballs (tofu meatballs). The vendor recommended the falafel pita for a first timer. For my fellow non-vegetarians, falafel is a deep fried ball or patty made from ground chickpeas and/or fava beans.

Sandwich Quest Takes on Three Philly Food Trucks

Our Philly Sandwich Quest has taken on a life of its own. What started as a simple attempt to conquer a few famous sandwiches has turned into a much bigger crusade. We quickly learned that keeping this a small affair was not possible in sandwich-loving Philly.

Amid all the great places to get sandwiches, food trucks have turned into a quest of their own. Both of us tend to forget about them since we work outside the city, which limits our ability to grab a quick lunch at a food truck. But, like any effective quest you have to make time.

With a few extra vacation days in my pocket, I recently planned a food truck binge in University City. Visits included the Koja Truck, Magic Carpet and Cucina Zapata. Yes, three in about two hours.

Our next few posts will discuss each visit and count down to the winner. Come back this Sunday for the third place winner, next Tuesday for second, and Thursday for my favorite.

We look forward to trying more trucks so please let us know your favorites.

Manakeesh: Best Baklava in Philly?

It’s been three years since our hunt for authentic baklava in Philadelphia began. Both of us still dream about the Ottoman-era pastry we had while sitting on the curb of a small street in Santorini, Greece, one sweltering summer day. The deliciousness haunts my memories.

The search has been disappointing and frustrating to say the least. The baklava at the Greek stands in Reading Terminal Market did not seem fresh and was below average in taste. Sadly, the Greek restaurants we've been to (Kanella, Effie's, Dmitri's) either didn’t offer it or we found it to be nowhere close.

It was therefore with much anticipation and trepidation that we approached Manakeesh Cafe in West Philly, who many claim has amazing baklava. Could our three year search finally end? YES!

While still not as good as Santorini's baklava, the Manakeesh rendition was certainly close enough to become our new go-to spot to rekindle one of our fondest foodie memories.

The Food Experiments Comes to Philly Beer Week

There is nothing better than the local community coming together to share in their passion for food. We were excited to learn about a very cool event coming up during Philly Beer Week called The Philadelphia Cheese Experiment.

Theo Peck and Nick Suarez

The event is the ingenious idea of competitive food cooks-turned-hosts, Nick Saurez and Theo Peck. Bobby Flay Throwdown watchers might remember Nick when he took down Flay in an epic hot dog throwdown.

Nick and Theo launched The Food Experiments several years ago in Brooklyn, NY, and since then have been the talk of the neighborhood. They are now on a national tour sponsored by The Brooklyn Brewery and will stop at the World Café Live on June 5th for a local competition – with cheese as the main ingredient.



Birthday Brunch at Distrito

Distrito has been a 22nd & Philly favorite for a while now. Bradd even found Jose Garces' recipe for hamachi ceviche and adapted it for his birthday dinner last year. But we're not frequent brunchers, so when I had the chance to celebrate a friend's birthday over a Distrito brunch, my stomach immediately started growling.

If you haven't been to Distrito yet, the ambiance is cool enough to at least stop in the door one day and check out. The downstairs area (shown below) has a nice long bar and a good number of tables. The bar tables are not up for grabs, though, you have to be seated by the hostess. The backs of the chairs downstairs are pretty funky and look to me like giant versions of those thin rubber bracelets we used to wear as kids. Upstairs has another bar, a smaller bar seating area with fun porch swings and a ton of tables and big round, basket-looking booths.