Ralph's on 9th street

[philadining]

I wanted to ask Bill about a side comment he made in another topic, but in the interest of keeping the discussion straight, here's a Ralph's topic of its own. (didn't find a previous thread.)

After dinner with some out of town friends at Ralphs, ( I can't bring myself to post how mediocre, okay bad, the food was. I mean everyone there is so nice and all......)

Hey Bill, can you quickly tell us what you had (and disliked). I have usually been disappointed in their dishes that had delusions of grandeur, but always liked the simple, straightforward homey stuff like simple pastas, especially the gnocchi, ravioli, lasagna etc. Basic dishes, but ones that that I might not make at home.

I'm harboring some nostalgia for this place, and am therefore unable to be really objective about it, because it was the first if the classic South Philly joints I went to when I first came to town. But I know some natives that seem to feel the same way. And I (almost) always leave happy. When I don't, it's because I forgot my rule and ordered some fancy, expensive special, instead of gnocchi with a meatball.

What are others' experiences? I still find this a pretty reliable place to take people for a real South Philly experience. Not necessarily the greatest food in town, but good in its way.

[MarketStEl]

Ralph's is the genuine red-gravy South Philly article in my book. And no, I haven't ordered anything fancy in my two visits there.

It's hard to screw up spaghetti with meatballs in red sauce, though. Ralph's version was perfectly fine, and so was their clam sauce.

The place is a total throwback--old-school decor, turn-of-the-century tile walls and floors (though I suspect the tile walls on the first floor are a historical re-creation), huge portions at modest prices, no credit cards. Even if what you've ordered is just okay, I'd say it's worth a visit for the overall experience. I'd have to second philadining here--stick to the basics and you'll have a great meal.

[wkl]

Sunday evening we took out of town guests to Ralphs for some local flavor after sweltering through the Phillies game at the Cit. We've used Ralph's a couple times recently for the same purpose.

What was disapointing was that the basics weren't that good.The red sauce on the orders of spaghetti and meatballs was bland and watery.At the bottom of the dish the sauce had pooled into a thin watery liquid.The sauce didn't cling to the pasta very well.The pasta tasted, I'm not sure how to describe it, stale, I guess.I knew we weren't going to get fresh homemade pasta, but what we did get wasn't on the level of say De Cecco's (sp?). The meatballs were a little dry, bland, and salty.Bottom line was I didn't get that warm content feeling you should get from this type of comfort food.

One of our guests had a veal special and liked it very much, I didn't get a taste but it did look good.

An appetizer of roasted red peppers with mozzerella would have been great if they hadn't run out of mozzerella.One of our guests wondered how an Italian restaurant could possibly run out of mozzerella.

An order of clams with red sauce had shells in every other bite.Otherwise it wasn't bad.

All in all, we still had a good time.The waiters are good, funny, personable guys that give you the impression they live around the cornor.The atmosphere is priceless, and the interior of the building itself should be on a historic register, if it isn't already. You really feel like your eating with a large group of neighbors and family.That's one of the best things about Ralph's and they always deliver on that.

I wouldn't dissuade anyone from going to Ralph's, however we had a similiar experince when we were there a couple months ago, so I don't think this was just an "off night".

I'm trying to be as fair as possible here, I know they pump out alot of meals on a daily basis, but since my first visit there 15 years ago things seem to have slipped.

[Carlson1105]

I've always enjoyed Ralph's tremendously. The decor, service, and food have always been good on my visits. The mussels in red suace is a winner, and I swear by their Veal Parm, a heaping portion that hangs off the plate. Don't look for anything fancy, but along with Villa Di Roma, one of my favorite old time S. Philly red gravy joints.

[KatieLoeb]

I think of the two, Villa di Roma has better food, but far less "atmosphere" than Ralph's. And the waiters are definitely part of the ambiance at Ralph's. But for really good South Philly "red gravy" style food, Villa di Roma wins hands down. The cooking at Ralph's is too sloppy and inconsistent.

[MarketStEl]

I think of the two, Villa di Roma has better food, but far less "atmosphere" than Ralph's.  And the waiters are definitely part of the ambiance at Ralph's.  But for really good South Philly "red gravy" style food, Villa di Roma wins hands down.  The cooking at Ralph's is too sloppy and inconsistent.

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Does the fact that Rachel Ray included Villa di Roma in her "$40 a Day" visit to Philly tarnish its reputation any?

(It was her lunch stop.)

[KatieLoeb]

I think of the two, Villa di Roma has better food, but far less "atmosphere" than Ralph's.  And the waiters are definitely part of the ambiance at Ralph's.  But for really good South Philly "red gravy" style food, Villa di Roma wins hands down.  The cooking at Ralph's is too sloppy and inconsistent.

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Does the fact that Rachel Ray included Villa di Roma in her "$40 a Day" visit to Philly tarnish its reputation any?

(It was her lunch stop.)

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Probably gave it more street cred, if anything.

[Carlson1105]

Don't miss the fried asparagus or the chicken sicilian at Villa Di Roma. The waitresses have been there for ever and can be grouchy, but they love kids.

[serpentine]

Does the fact that Rachel Ray included Villa di Roma in her "$40 a Day" visit to Philly tarnish its reputation any? tongue.gif

(It was her lunch stop.)

Lemme guess, she had a small salad and a glass of wine as a "meal" then tipped 10%?

Okay, okay, I won't go there. Sorry.

Back OT, I prefer Villa di Roma to Ralph's, though even at Villa di Roma, knowing what's good and what's just respectable makes a big difference in how good the meal can be. I find the waitresses more brusque than grouchy, even. But for So. Philly Italian, I really totally luurve Marra's.

[Josephjdefelice]

Does the fact that Rachel Ray included Villa di Roma in her "$40 a Day" visit to Philly tarnish its reputation any? tongue.gif

(It was her lunch stop.)

Lemme guess, she had a small salad and a glass of wine as a "meal" then tipped 10%?

Okay, okay, I won't go there. Sorry.

Back OT, I prefer Villa di Roma to Ralph's, though even at Villa di Roma, knowing what's good and what's just respectable makes a big difference in how good the meal can be. I find the waitresses more brusque than grouchy, even. But for So. Philly Italian, I really totally luurve Marra's.

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Marra's Caesar salad is great and are all their pies (especially their peppers ans onion,. but i feel the need for draft beer here and the bottles at like $3.50-$4.00 a pop can get a little expensive.

But the chicken sorrento at ralph's give you chills with each bite. and you can't knock the decor