Jeff L

Nan for sure. When my wife was at Hup for a procedure 10 years ago, I discovered the place. It's really a refreshing oasis in an otherwise sketchy part of the city. As Katie says, great pad thai and possibly the best soups I've had anywhere. Of course as stated above, White Dog Cafe just for the funky atmosphere if not the dependable food.

I wish I knew the secret to their tomatoes. They are incredibly full of flavor. I really like the room, too. The various pictures on the wall of the Hudson St location are a nice touch. ← It's no secret John. They use a combination of redpack whole tomatoes and "six in one" hand ground tomatoes out of California. I've been buying six in one by the case for about ten years now at a local distributor (Bova Foods in Chalfont PA) It has a nice thick consistancy and makes for a great red sauce when combined with a good quality San Marzano.. I've been using Bova's house tomato which is La Regina DOC. I'm not sure where you live but if you're up in North Jersey, I suspect you could check the website of Escalon Packers in California to find a local distributor of six in one. I've posted about these tomatoes previously on this board and the story of how Gary once showed me exactly what he does to create this perfect tomato pie. By the way he uses Maggio (commercial size) cheese and Pilsbury's bakers best flour. So there you have it now go find these tomatoes!

Katie, funny you should mention Tony Luke's. I stopped there after lunch and got them roast pork italiano's to go for the plane trip back. Nothing in Texas (or anywhere else in my opinion) comes close to these gems. In this case Criniti's worked out perfectly because we needed to sit down and firm up elements for a big contract. Much as I love Johns, the outdoor picnic tables wouldn't have cut it. I'm right there with you about Shank and Evelyn's though.

This really was an enjoyable lunch. The place looks really nice inside and out, perfect for a business lunch notwithstanding the minor issue of crowd noise. Food was quite good in the family style traditional way as James points out. I had the eggplant parm which was quite nice. Very thin eggplant slices and not too much breading, bathed in a great tomato sauce. Came with a cup of great pasta fagiole and the house baked bread stands up to Sarcones. The other guys had pastas and there wasn't much left on anyone's plate is alls I'm sayin. Throw in the 3 local gals next to us and it made for a very interesting lunch! The guys were up from Houston and it was a perfect place to show what Philly is all about. Prices can't be beat either, lunch for 4 with tax/tip was about $80. That includes 2 glasses of the house red wine each and coffee. Lastly, expert and friendly service to boot. On a side note, I almost got to be on the Parking Wars realty show. Aggresive ticketing going on on Broad Street these days!

Alternatively, you could go to New Jersey where you can make employees do just about anything I'm told. But seriously, it does make sense, as Capaneus suggests, to chat it up with your local store folks, not just the managers. I've been turned on to some really nice wines that I might otherwise have never known about. They used to do fairly regular group tastings and tasting dinners when Jonathan was still at the helm, not sure if that happens with as much frequency now that the Stalinists are back in control.

I used to spend lots of evenings at John and Peter's in my younger days. They aren't so much known for their food as their ability to find pretty good musical talent that most people have never heard of. Cool vibe to the place and great music.

I guess so. You really should try the white pie in case you haven't. It's really outstanding. The only better white clam pie I've had was up in New Haven at Peppe's.

I don't remember ever seeing tomato on their clam pies Rich. I usually get clam and spinach pie with garlic- it comes out with no tomato and no cheese - outstanding. Maybe they just know that's how I like them, not sure.

Finally, someone got over there. Their clam pies on Hudson are white with some nice fresh parsley with the chopped clams as you described. Sounds like Sam is tinkering but I'm sure it was tasty nonetheless.

I agree and also have a good relationship with two of the managers at the Newtown store. But not once did either of them call to tell me about what's coming in or otherwise great values currently on ther shelves. That would be too much like the way it works just about everywhere else don't you think? That said, it might be worth a visit soon to ask about this.

To add to Katie's post, you will also be charged a UPS shipping fee. I've done this about 3 or 4 times with my local Newtown store. I don't remember being asked for a deposit but that may be because they know me by name, gee that's scary!

I am meeting some folks from out of town next Thursday for a business lunch. They have about 3 hours before their return flight so I'm thinking South Philly but where? These are somewhat button-down corporate guys but I want to select something where the food is great and the atmosphere somewhat businesslike. Any ideas? Anyone been to Criniti's on Broad lately or Scannicchio's?

You make a good point Menton1. I've lived in Bucks County, about 20 minutes from New Hope for over 25 years now and must agree that NH is indeed a tourist trap of the worst kind. It's kind of cool to drive through in the summer with the top down but that's about it. As to restos there, I used to like Havana and Mothers back in the day but they've both slipped pretty much.

I really like No. 9 which is on Kline Court, #9 of course. Nice country French fare with pleasant service. We've been a few times and it's always very good. A really small space but nice vibe. For the life of me I can't understand how Lambertville can have some many good places and just across the bridge in New Hope, very slim pickens.

Not to belabor the point but when most people order steaks Pittsburgh style, they generally mean to have it very rare inside. Notwithstanding what is on the Pete Lorenzo site, I think it is generally understod that Pittsbugh style is the same as black and blue unless of course you order a steak Pittsburgh medium as in your case.

I'll put in my two cents for a very festive and tasty banquet at Joe Poons. I enjoyed most of the dishes with the one exception being the deep fried salmon. It was way too fishy for those at my end of the table. Everything else was well executed and professionally served. Great job Jim!

a "Pittsburgh" steak is the same as black-and-blue: that is, charred on the outside but very rare inside. I'm not too sure about Pittsburgh medium though, not actually Pittsburgh style as it is not rare, just charred on the outside. TomDel: Sounds like you guys enjoyed the meal at Chicks. It's really too bad you couldn't have tried their marinara before Dave started making it, you'd have been amazed. You lucked out with a patient waiter as the place isn't long on them. Also, you'll never see a menu let alone a website at this joint.

That's interesting news. I didn't know Terhune made donuts. I've never seen them at their stand in the Trenton Farmers market before. Their cider is top notch though

I will most definately second Estia. The fish here is so fresh you'll think you are in a Greek isle.

I don't remember there being specials on Sunday but I haven't been in a while. You can always get meatballs and limas, meatloaf (which is as good, believe me) and steaks and chops on Sunday. They might have veal chunks and of course, roast chicken which is kind of their signature dish. I stopped ordering it many years ago because I was informed by one of their food vendors they use fatback in the chicken and it used to wake me up around 3:00 am after eating it if you catch my drift. Anyway, let us know how it was...

I really liked Barclay Prime the 2 times I went. Great steaks with really attentive and professional service. Of course at these prices you would expect as much. Just took my youngest daughter who is a student at Temple to Continental midtown last week. It was ok. Nothing really stood out, her chicken caeser salad was nothing if not huge, sketchy chicken and a lot of lettuce. I had a piece of chilean sea bass which was good but way too small. I haven't been to Jones but from what I'm reading I may just keep it that way.

So am I. I had to cancel out and need to rechedule a visit. Soon I promise Rich, can you weigh in in the interim?

I have to agree with you on this. It's really hard for me to imagine what a microwaved roast pork sandwich would taste like. But as I said in my original post, if I had no means to get the real one or had never tried the real deal, I might be tempted to try a frozen one.

Philadelphia Inquirer reports Tony Luke's plans to roll out a whole line of his products nationwide including steaks, roast pork, broccoli rabe and rolls into supermarkets, home shopping TV and an online store. I'm not too sure how a frozen roast pork will be but I guess if I couldn't easily get the real thing, I'd try one. He's working with Rastelli Foods on the launch. The article goes on to mention his plans for more shops including a new one in NYC to replace the one that apparently failed.

Chick Peroni and Ed Nello were the original owners of the place with Ed in the kitchen. He was a fine chef indeed. I don't think Chick was related to the Peroni's on River Road but I could be wrong. In any event, it was not too good. Report back after you go, I'm curious to see if the food has improved since my last few times. I suppose if someone had never been to the place before, the food is real good now. I just can't help comparing it to earlier days with Ed and Primo.