deprofundis

By the way, does anyone know if Samuels affiliated with Ippolito's? Their logos are uncannily similar. Behold:

Can you post the per lb prices and minimum purchase amount when you find out? I and I'm sure other eGulleters are also curious. Thanks!

Criniti's is still on the east side of Broad, they just moved south a couple doors. I haven't been to the new place yet. They were just reviewed in the South Philly Review and got I think a 1.5 out of 4. I used to eat there a lot myself. I was back a few months ago and I have to agree with the SPR. There's so much competition these days, with places like L'Angolo right around the corner. Good, basic italian joints like Criniti's are easily outdone. I have to get to this place. Maybe this weekend. I'll be sure to report back!

I don't have a problem with the service or style of the place, I just think you can get better food at just about any other diner in the area (and there are lots). Last time I went to the Melrose I had a tuna sandwich, which was OK, and a fruit cup that was obviously from a can and had a weird aftertaste.

Everybody who knows goes to Melrose. Maybe he doesn't know about it? Oh well, the Melrose stinks anyway, but it's a landmark place so I guess it deserves to be in there.

It doesn't do anything to my credit rating. I won the dispute.

I held off on writing my opinion of this place because I had a dispute with them, but since it appears to be resolved now, here goes. As a previous poster said, the decor is not that great on the inside. But as long as the food's good I'm cool with that. The service from the wait staff was, in my opinion, friendly but a little slow. When I ate lunch there I was like the only person there and it took probably 20+ minutes for my [pre-prepared] meal to arrive. I had the ribs & brisket combo with sides of collard greens and baked beans. I thought the quality of the food was excellent in general, although the ribs were IMHO on the dry side and they kind of skimped on the brisket. The prices are a little high, but this is Center City. So my dispute with them came when I made reservations for two for their superbowl party and showed up with three. They refused to allow the third person in so I cancelled and asked for a refund. Ok, maybe it was stupid of me to try something like that, but things like this happen from time to time. Anyway, the managers were apparently under orders from the owners to not issue refunds under any circumstances, and I was not offered any compensation otherwise. I would have been ok with a gift certificate so I could at least get something for my $60, but none was offered. Why they would make such a big deal out of a measly $60 is beyond me. Needless to say, I disputed the charge with my credit card company and I won, so they WILL be issuing me a refund whether they like it or not. So I think people should be warned when they try to schedule something at this place that they don't take kindly when you cancel. Would I go back? Probably. They do have good food. But I would not schedule a party or any other kind of get together there.

I think the secret is to distribute the cheese evenly throughout the sandwich. Spreading it over the meat is probably better than on the bread in this regard.

Wow I've never heard of the pizza foldover or using 2 different cheeses on cheesesteaks. That sounds like an intriguing idea though. I'm surprised so many people prefer Pat's over Geno's. I always thought Pat's meat was tougher, but both do make a fine sandwich. As for Lorenzo's, their pizza is decent but there are better places. Lorenzo's however has the advantage of being open very late (3-4am) and having HUGE slices. Most people would have trouble eating more than 2 (maybe even 1).

Don't forget scrapple. Real men eat scrapple!

There's a review of The Smoked Joint in today's Daily News: http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/living/10813774.htm The bottom line: 2.5 forks.

I still don't have my plans together yet (yeah I'm a huge procrastinator). I'm leaning towards going to the Smoke Joint's 'all you can eat' bbq (if they still have room left!). Anybody have other suggestions? Where's the best spot in Philly to enjoy the game?

I don't think anybody said this yet, but Tony Luke's is CLOSED on Sunday. (If you're going on Superbowl Sunday they /might/ be open with a very limited menu.) I'm not a big Jim's fan; I would recommend Pat's or Geno's (I prefer Geno's). You shouldn't miss Tony Luke's though.

One of my favorite restaurants as well. Congrats!

Having grown up in South Jersey and now living in Philadelphia, I am of course a huge cheesesteak fan. However I've always had to travel west of the Delaware to find a quality cheesesteak. SJ's cheesesteak places always leave a lot to be desired, imho. Actually, there's very few dedicated cheesesteak eateries in SJ. Most likely, if you want one, you're ordering it from a pizzaria (or maybe a deli). I first learned of Donkey's Place through Holly's website (hollyeats.com). I found out that Donkey's is actually only around 12 blocks from where my dad grew up. He used to ride his bike there when he was a kid. The place has been open for over 60 years. Not much seems to have changed on the inside. The bar decor is great. Walking through the door at Haddon Ave & Liberty Sts is like stepping back in time. Boxing memorabilia hangs from the walls. The owner, Bob Lucas, is the son of boxer Leon Lucas, whose photos and gloves are kept behind the bar. Old bottles of unopened Camden Lager stare at you from the shelf. Owner Bob Lucas, always behind the bar, greets you and takes your order. I always get the cheesesteak with fried onions and a bag of chips. The cheesesteaks are served on a round (!!) seeded kaiser roll (poppyseeds). It's unusual, but it works! Donkey's delivers a great cheesesteak, overflowing with onions and cheese. You're going to need several napkins to get through one of their sandwiches. Their fries are excellent too. They taste very fresh and crisp, most likely they were freshly cut from the potato. No frozen fries at Donkey's Place. The tab for a cheesesteak, coke, and chips: ~$7. Fries are I believe $2 extra. Bob's son has opened up a second location in Medford called Donkey's Too. I've never been there, but it can't have the ambiance of the original. Donkey's Place 1223 Haddon Ave. Camden, NJ 08103 (856) 966-2616 Take out: M-F 6pm-12am, Sat. 10am-12am Bar: M-F 10am-6m

My favorite beer is Paulaner Pilsner. Honorable mention goes to Weihenstephaner Lager. Also, I've been drinking a lot of Lowenbrau lately, since it's being imported from Munich again. Damn that's good stuff. -Matt

You mean Dawn Fallik? -Matt

Ok, based on everyone's comments I'd like to give this place a second chance. I'll post an update too. Thanks for your suggestions! -Matt

Hi folks, I'm new here. This is my first post. Anyways... I heard and read some good things about La Lupe (Mexican place on 9th St. behind Geno's) so I decided to check the place out for lunch today. The food, to put it quite frankly, sucked. Let me elaborate... This place has the menu posted on the door, so I looked it over before walking in. There are literally hundreds of items on the menu. In my experience, this is a Bad Thing. For example, ever go to a diner that has a menu that's longer than War and Peace? Usually they do basic things well (eggs, pancakes, tuna sandwiches), but order the Surf and Turf and you're guaranteed to get burned. But I digress. I walked in the door and took a look around. Obviously not a fancy place, so the decor was fine. I'm just as happy standing in the cold eating a Geno's cheesesteak as I am escargots at Le Bec-Fin. You can tell this place is really authentic Mexican cuisine, I would not argue that. I sat down and ordered two simple items: chorizo taco and goat taco. The service was friendly. Everything is going ok so far. Then the food arrived. They seem to use fresh, quality ingredients here. And the meat was cooked with care. The presentation was very nice. I took a bite of the goat taco. The meat was perfectly cooked and delicate. I took another bite - and bit into [what I'm assuming was] a goat bone the size of my thumb (no exaggeration). Ok, I'm going to assume this is a rare incident and chalk it up to chance. But really, how could they be so careless? I didn't complain, just pulled out the bone and kept eating. Yes, the ingredients seemed excellent and the meat was wonderfully cooked, but the food was VERY bland, imho. Not really any taste at all. Maybe my American palate is just used to our bastardized version of Mexican. If that be the case, I may as well stay out of restaurants like this in the future. Once the goat taco was done, I started on the chorizo taco. How could sausage, the spiciest meat, be bland? Well, the chorizo was OK. Nothing to write home about. BUT it was extraordinarily greasy. I'm talking a couple tablespoons of grease dripping from this one little taco. Anyway, the chorizo taco was pretty average. My brother, who I was dining with, ordered the La Lupe sandwich. I did not have a bite, but he said it was OK. I can't complain about the prices for this place. The tacos were only about $2 each. But the food, even though it seemed like quality food, was thoroughly flavorless. Does anybody else have any comments/experiences about my review or this place that they'd like to share? Thanks for reading. -Matt