Kid Friendly Philly Food

[Sfuffy]

My 10-year old niece is coming down to visit me this weekend. She has been raised in the suburbs by culinarily unadventuresome parents. Her restaurant experiences (besides McDonalds, diners, and Boston Market) are mainly limited to red-sauce Italian, ordinary Chinese, and Japanese steakhouse. Being a 10-year old, I don't expect her to appreciate truffles or sushi but I would like to try and introduce her gently to some new ideas about food. At the same time, I don't want to be the mean uncle who's forcing her to eat only yucky foods (the kitchen is stocked with Oreos and ice cream just in case). Any suggestions on where to go and what foods to try?

[Andrew Fenton]

Take her to the Italian Market. Start at Claudio's Caseificio. If she's a cute kid, you'll have no trouble getting invited to the back to see how they make mozzarella; then you can try it and talk about how it's different from what you get on a pizza.

DiBruno's might be interesting (if possibly overwhelming for a 10 yr old, on a Saturday). Get some awesome salami, one or two kinds of cheese (something mild, of course), maybe try an olive or two. This might be kinda hard core for a ten year old; I just don't know.

La Lupe would be fine, I think; there should be lots of kid friendly options, I'd think.

Has she had hoagies? Nobody doesn't like an Italian hoagie from Chickie's or Sarcones. (If she doesn't, send her back, I say!)

[Ed Resnick]

If you want to start her out slowly, you can try Nifty Fiftys on Grant Ave. just east of the Boulevard. It's hambergers, fries and so forth,,,but well made. Real old fashioned milkshakes and juke boxes at the tables.

[KatieLoeb]

Take her to the Standard Tap. You could have a couple of great beers and an assortment of Philly's best bar food and she could always have a burger. And their burgers are quite good. If she's feeling adventurous then there's plenty of not-too-strange but very tasty things on their menu.

[Andrew Fenton]

And the sooner you get her used to going to bars, the better, I say!

[rlibkind]

Go directly to the Reading Terminal Market. Do not pass Go. Do not collect $200. But do not go on Sunday, when they are closed.

If you want to introduce her to lots of good and fun food, this is the place. See my previous posts for details, but among the highlights:

Tommy's Roast Pork

Salumeria hoagies

Scrapple for breakfast at the Down Home Diner or the Pennsylvania Dutch Eating Place.

Freshly made Pennsylvania Dutch pretzels

Bassetts Ice Cream (one of the world's great ice creams -- try the raspberry truffle)

Delilah's mac and cheese (tell her Oprah sent you)

Take a ride on Philbert the Brass Pig

The Pennsylvania General Store for Keystate State manufactured items, like a Slinky!

And lots, lots more, including the picture-postcard cute 10-year-old Amish boys who work at their family's stands, like Kauffman's Produce.

[Behemoth]

Reading Terminal is the best. Its kind of like a food court, so it will seem like familiar turf. There is tons to choose from so she's bound to find something she wants to eat, and the exposure is likely to pique her interest in stuff that might be off the beaten path, even if she doesn't go for it the first time around. In fact, I still remember my first trip there as a 12 year old (a long time ago, this), visiting a relative. I was very impressed! (I had 12th St. Cantina! )

[KatieLoeb]

Reading Terminal is a good suggestion, but only for lunch. They are closed in the evenings. My presumption was that you were looking for dinner options, but I could have mis-read that.

That all said, definitely take the young lady to Fisher's for a real soft pretzel. She can watch the Amish ladies twist them, and then it will be brushed with butter and sprinkled with coarse salt just before it's handed over to you, still warm from the oven. YUM! What kid wouldn't like that??

[mrbigjas]

That all said, definitely take the young lady to Fisher's for a real soft pretzel. She can watch the Amish ladies twist them, and then it will be brushed with butter and sprinkled with coarse salt just before it's handed over to you, still warm from the oven. YUM! What kid wouldn't like that??

What adult wouldn't?

[Behemoth]

For dinner then -- how about one of the better (wood oven, etc) pizza places? Can't go wrong with pizza.

[herbacidal]

That all said, definitely take the young lady to Fisher's for a real soft pretzel.  She can watch the Amish ladies twist them, and then it will be brushed with butter and sprinkled with coarse salt just before it's handed over to you, still warm from the oven.  YUM!  What kid wouldn't like that??

What adult wouldn't?

A believer in the religion heretofore known as Atkins.

[Sfuffy]

Reading Terminal is a good suggestion, but only for lunch.  They are closed in the evenings.  My presumption was that you were looking for dinner options, but I could have mis-read that.

No, as always, you're absolutely astute. At lunch we'll probably be around and about doing some touristy things and I don't think we'll have any problems there. I'm definitely looking for dinner spots.

Edited August 18, 2004 by Sfuffy (log)

[Holly Moore]

It might be too late - 10 years of suburban chain fare may be impossible to overcome.

But my goal would be to open her eyes, show her there is Italian beyond Olive Garden, seafood beyond Red Lobster and Mexican beyond ChiChi's/Taco Bell.

If "weekend" means you get her for three dinners:

Dinner 1: Good, boisterous South Philly Italian like Ralph's or Villa de Roma. Not epicurean, but not Olive Garden.

Dinner 2: Sansom Street Oyster House, but don't say "oyster" or you'll have to drag her through the front door.

Dinner 3: Plaza Garabaldi or La Lupe. Or Tequilla.

And don't forget Carman's for breakfast. Carman just loves the pitter-patter of little feet racing too and fro. Or maybe I have Carman's confused with Chuckie Cheese. Come to think of it, Carman's might not be all that good of an idea.

[KatieLoeb]

If you do decide to go for pizza, definitely check out Mamma Palma's, Pizza Club's last venue and my new personal favorite. Our exploits are well documented HERE.

[Carlson1105]

You might want to try Jones for a Brady Bunch house atmosphere with good comfort food that is not too exotic (meatloaf, chicken in a basket) or the new Continental, where I saw lots of kids on a recent night

[Behemoth]

Mexican is another possibility, familiar but available in better quality than at a chain. I wouldn't worry too much though, the "cool uncle" mystique is already money in the bank. I'm sure she is looking forward to it. Hell, take her to a bar. Take her to south street and buy her a jar of manic panic (do people still do that?). She would probably love Jones or Continental, too. Be a bad influence. Every kid needs at least one

[chowfun]

How about Sang Kee Peking duck house? The roast pork wonton noodle soup is definately not too challenging, but at the same time delicious and different. Plus you can order all kinds of dumplings there. The fried wontons are delicous. After dinner you can get a bubble drink. My favorite place is the snack shop on 10th street accross from the fire station. They use real fruit in the drinks instead of syrup.

I think the authentic mexican places in South Philly may be a little challenging for someone who hasnt had much variety in foods. My kids are pretty sophisticated, but they really dont like the tacos that I bring home from south Philly. Too much cilantro and spices.

I have taken my kids to the Standard Tap. It was an unpleasant experience due to heavy smoke, large crowd and loud, loud, loud. We have sat at the upstairs bar sans children and had a better experience.

Kibbitz in the City would be a good Saturday breakfast or lunch, although the Reading Terminal is definately better.

Another fun place for any meal is the crepe place at 6th and Bainbridge, I think its called Beau Monde.

[herbacidal]

I agree with Ralph's, or perhaps another red gravy place.

If she likes it, then you can extend her experiences a little further with more real Italian stuff.

I've heard Bomb Bomb (1026 Wolf) is pretty fun too, and you'd have the backup of ribs if necessary.

I've never been there and all I know nothing about their food is that it's red gravy Italian and BBQ, Citysearch profile here.

[mrbigjas]

Kibbitz in the City would be a good Saturday breakfast or lunch,

wow, what a weird coincidence--i just noticed this place for the first time this morning. i must have walked by it a hundred times and never really seen it. what's it like? there's some other place on that corner that i saw too that i never noticed before. weird.

[Sfuffy]

It might be too late - 10 years of suburban chain fare may be impossible to overcome.

But my goal would be to open her eyes, show her there is Italian beyond Olive Garden, seafood beyond Red Lobster and Mexican beyond ChiChi's/Taco Bell.

If "weekend" means you get her for three dinners:

Dinner 1: Good, boisterous South Philly Italian like Ralph's or Villa de Roma. Not epicurean, but not Olive Garden.

Dinner 2: Sansom Street Oyster House, but don't say "oyster" or you'll have to drag her through the front door.

Dinner 3: Plaza Garabaldi or La Lupe. Or Tequilla.

And don't forget Carman's for breakfast. Carman just loves the pitter-patter of little feet racing too and fro. Or maybe I have Carman's confused with Chuckie Cheese. Come to think of it, Carman's might not be all that good of an idea.

Actually, there might be some hope yet - except for McD's (and its competitors), Boston Market, and Chili's, I think her chain experience is pretty limited. Like her uncle, she's been raised in Northern NJ so she has a lot of mom and pop red gravy in her blood and has seen a real diner or two in her day. I think even her parents would shudder at the thought of an Olive Garden. (And I somehow made it out alive besides being raised on Wetson's then Geno's then Roy Rogers with frequent Red Lobster visits. Perhaps this was all countered by Bonvini's, Canton Low, and Pal's?)

I think we'll save breakfast for quality at-home bonding time over a hot griddle cooking up some pancakes and French Toast. Weekend breakfast out is too long a wait to expect a ten-year old to put up with. But we'll definitely take an afternoon at RTM and there's probably no avoiding South Street since I'm in Queen Village.

[Sfuffy]

Kibbitz in the City would be a good Saturday breakfast or lunch,

wow, what a weird coincidence--i just noticed this place for the first time this morning. i must have walked by it a hundred times and never really seen it. what's it like? there's some other place on that corner that i saw too that i never noticed before. weird.

I've only been there for lunch (but before it was sold by Russ Cowen) after a favorable mention by LaBan. It had the best corned beef I've ever had in Philly (Being raised on NY deli fare, I can't stand the superlean, thin-sliced, tightly packed corned beef sandwich that is the Philly standard.) Unfortunately, the flabby, soft rye bread disintegrated from the moist corned beef and I had to finish it off with a fork. (Is it just me or has all rye bread become progressively softer and flabbier over the years? Especially the major brands - Arnold hasn't "made a nice sandwich" in years.) And the single pickle was a bit of disappointment as well.

[KatieLoeb]

But we'll definitely take an afternoon at RTM and there's probably no avoiding South Street since I'm in Queen Village.

Sfuffy - we're neighbors!

Certainly there's some cool places to go in our 'hood as well. Dmitri's is great and if you go early, shouldn't be too much hassle. If she likes hummus or feta cheese they have both of those, and the best grilled pita ever to dip in it. Dmitri's Sugar Snap peas with Tomatoes and crumbled feta on top are the best vegetable side dish in Philly - hands down. New Wave has decent food and the Dark Horse is a great pub with plenty of interesting things on the menu as well as some standards a 10 year old would love like burgers or Shepherd's pie. Ristorante San Carlo at 2nd and South is good solid Italian with plenty of pasta dishes and a great antipasto they place in the window to tempt hungry passersby inside. And there's always the South Street Diner if you want to give her a huge menu that makes it impossible to make a decision!

[chowfun]

Kibitz in the city has outrageously good homemade corned beef and brisket. They serve their sandwiches hot. The sandwiches are expensive, but huge, a la the Carnegie deli. The meats are actually much better than the Carnegie, however. A half sandwich comes with two sides. The matzoh ball soup has a softball sized matzoh ball in it that is light and airy and the broth is a delicous golden chicken broth. They have dinner plate sized black and white cookies that are pretty good and good rugelach. I like their stuffed cabbage that is sweetened with golden raisins. I like their rye bread. It is soft but it has a delicous slightly sour flavor and a nice crust. I wasnt aware that they changed ownership. When did that happen?

[hillvalley]

What about cheesesteaks wit? I personally prefer Delesandro's, but I am sure that will be shot down in a hearbeat.

I agree with the pretzels, although I prefer mine sold by a vender on the side of the road

What about Japanese food? Sushi is an art that most American do not understand.

Have a great time, this has the potential to be a lot of fun!

[mrbigjas]

OK for some reason my quoting tags aren't working today... so anyway:

re kibitz: wtf? how long has it been there? i've just not noticed it all these years? weird. maybe i'm insane.

re rye bread becoming flabbier over the years: i noticed recently that i couldn't keep a sandwich together--i suspect you're right. i wonder what the difference is.

re dmitri's: the other nice thing is that maybe you can sit with your niece at the bar. the guys who cook there are fun to watch and nice to talk to, as well.

Edited August 19, 2004 by mrbigjas (log)