Minar Palace

[Neuronix]

Why are their two phone lines disconnected?! Trying to take deep breaths here... If they are closed, my takeout world has just been destroyed. I've been eating there once or twice a week ever since I moved to this city. What happened?!?! Please someone tell me they'll be back.

/cry /cry /cry

Edited July 28, 2006 by Neuronix (log)

[KatieLoeb]

They're on that block of Sansom Street that's getting completely torn down for some big project or other. I guess their lease must have run out this week.

Sorry dude. Hopefully they will relocate somewhere. They're my favorite Indian take-out too.

In the meanwhile, perhaps you can develop a fondness for some other cuisine? There's oodles of good Mexican around. There's also a mess of Indian places up by Penn's campus, but I can't recommend any of them since I haven't lived in West Philly since 1983! Minar was always my go-to place since I usually lived/worked close by there.

[Capaneus]

They're on that block of Sansom Street that's getting completely torn down for some big project or other.  I guess their lease must have run out this week.

Sorry dude.  Hopefully they will relocate somewhere.  They're my favorite Indian take-out too. 

In the meanwhile, perhaps you can develop a fondness for some other cuisine?  There's oodles of good Mexican around.  There's also a mess of Indian places up by Penn's campus, but I can't recommend any of them since I haven't lived in West Philly since 1983!  Minar was always my go-to place since I usually lived/worked close by there.

←

I thought they were going until the end of the month, but nobody picked up when I called a week ago.

There really isn't anything else that good, that cheap, that delivers.

Is there?

[johnb102]

I walked by today and the sign on the door says they hope to open elsewhere in the fall.

[Andrew Fenton]

There really isn't anything else that good, that cheap, that delivers.

Is there?

In any category? Szechuan Tasty House delivers. I'd say the food is better; but while it's cheap, I don't know off-hand if it's cheaper.

[Neuronix]

In the meanwhile, perhaps you can develop a fondness for some other cuisine?  There's oodles of good Mexican around.  There's also a mess of Indian places up by Penn's campus, but I can't recommend any of them since I haven't lived in West Philly since 1983!  Minar was always my go-to place since I usually lived/worked close by there.

←

The Indian places by Penn's campus are not very good. I work with mostly Indian engineers, and the only place they will go out for Indian is Minar Palace as well. In general, the food at most Indian restaurants, and this applies to many of the other types of restaurants I'm about to mention, is catered to American tastes and is just plain bland even if you try to convince them you want authentic food. Quite honestly, Minar Palace IMO is the best Indian restaurant in all of Philadelphia (that I've had anyway, and I've had alot) and is half to a third of the price of the other places. That being said, I have a fondness for lots of different kinds of cuisine. I'm very much open to suggestions for take-out! What I'm looking for are authentic (i.e. well spiced, traditional ingredients) ethnic cuisines for well under $10/person. The issue I'm having is that there are very few good, cheap options in the Rittenhouse Sq. and University City districts for takeout (Jamaican Jerk Hut, Lazarro's for pizza, that's it unless you want more pizza or stuff on a roll). I do cook alot myself, but I would love to have more options for takeout. The food trucks in University City and Trader Joe's are my usual standbys. I do still think NYC beats the crap out of Philadelphia when it comes to affordable, authentic ethnic cuisine that a student can acutally get to. Why oh why can't Mahmoun's open a stand down here?! We've had a couple middle eastern places open up (Philly Falafal, Cafe a la Turca), but they just don't cut it for QPR.

Specifically since you mentioned Mexican, can you think of anything in the Rittenhouse Sq. area or UC that is good and cheap? I honestly can only think of Mexicali's restaurant over on 40th north of Walnut, which has been in constant flux and is currently shut down. For that matter, I can't think of good, cheap Mexican in all of Center City. El Fuego over in Washington Sq is decent I guess, but nothing that makes me want to run all the way over there, and I used to go to El Rey Del Sol on South St fairly regularly but they seem to have joined the Philly trend of making things more "fru-fru" after their renovation... More words on the menu, less food per order, and higher prices (and a corkage fee!). It's unfortunate, but it seems like all the good Mexican being referred to on these boards is down on Washington Ave or further away, and I just can't afford a car. I do keep a stash of chorizo at all times from Martin's (in the RTM) in my freezer, and that makes alot of good meals.

Maybe I'm too picky, but I'm from Delaware and we had a number of fantastic options in New Castle County (Mexico Lindo, Taquiera Morleon, more). In Newark we had Ali Baba's which makes great takeout for middle eastern for example. A couple excellent Indian restaurants to boot. We had Cafe Napoli which makes the best red gravy Italian standards I've ever had. But, strangely we seem to have nothing or very little right here in the heart of Center City, a haven for diverse cultures and a student population. I guess my point is that the QPR (or even just the quality) of our restaurants doesn't seem to compare to even dinky (as my mom calls it) Delaware unless you're looking for the high end. The only thing I see opening up here are the usual overpriced standbys that I can't afford (see my post in Roberto Cafe thread for example). It all makes little sense to me... Oh well, rant over.

PS: As for STH, they're great if they'll deliver to you. The attitude of the proprietor has begun to wear on me (everytime I go in there she's in a bad mood it seems), so I will only get takeout/delivery there. Chinatown here in general is excellent, and all of what I said about ethnic cuisine, QPR, etc does not apply to our Chinatown. In fact, I don't understand why some people like to say our Chinatown doesn't compare to NYC or some of the west coast cities, because quite frankly, if you know where to go it's every bit as good. Unfortunately, I had to move further away from Chinatown and the gf just doesn't like to get asian food all that often Still, someone pointed out once in another thread something I find interesting. Many of these asian restaurants in Chinatown do a great job of making affordable, excellent, and relatively authentic ethnic cuisine. Yet, so few other restaurants outside of that realm open with the same goals.

Edited July 29, 2006 by Neuronix (log)

[philadining]

I don't know, for Indian food, I've always found Tandoor out on 40th street to be good quality, and at a decent price.. And Kabobeesh certainly offers good value.

In other cuisines in West Philly, it seems Vientiane and Dahlak offer some pretty great eats per dollar. It's true enough that it would be nice to get some good basic Mexican places in West Philly, but, give it a minute or two...there are a lot of places opening, it's only a matter of time...

[Capaneus]

There really isn't anything else that good, that cheap, that delivers.

Is there?

In any category? Szechuan Tasty House delivers. I'd say the food is better; but while it's cheap, I don't know off-hand if it's cheaper.

←

Bzzzzt, Fentoni! Bzzzzt!

I could quibble on "better", but why bother when a) they don't deliver to 18th and Pine and b) they are considerably higher than the $5/dish price point of Minar Palace? Let's say twice the price. Only jet-setting academics would equate the two.

Really, aside from pizza (and there's precious little good pizza being delivered hereabouts, so even then), Minar Palace is very hard to beat on QPR.

[Andrew Fenton]

Fair enough. I confess that I hadn't eaten at Minar Palace in years, but my thought at the time was that it basically tasted like every other Indian restaurant in Philadelphia. To be honest, I haven't found any Indian within the city limits that's really worth bothering with.

[mrbigjas]

if you go just outside city limits, though, there's uddupi dosa house in bensalem...

neuronix, i know what you mean about affordable places in town. it's a sad state of affairs, and one that always surprised me in university city when i was up there--of course that was before penn bought everything and jacked up all the rents in order to turn the whole neighborhood into a bland suburban mall, so in a way it was weirder then than now.

but there were always the food trucks--they used to be on every block. the various le anhs, there was olga's, that served pizza and great cheesesteaks, there was mexican connection (since turned into mexicali and apparently still trying to make the restaurant thing work), there was korean and indian and thai and a crepe truck (since moved indoors) there were tons of chinese trucks, some of which were even good, and falafel all over the place.

if you don't like philly falafel (i went there last week and found it to still be damn good), have you tried mama's vegetarian on 20th just below market? it's my favorite falafel in town.

anyway, back on topic, as far as minar palace goes, i can only hope that they've made enough over the years to survive a move. and i have hopes that they can, because they certainly don't have to do a stephen starr-style renovation on a place.

my secret hope is that they'll take advantage of the development opportunities over here in g-ho and open up closer to my place. i'm pretty sure there's still a storefront or two....elve open between broad & 20th on south.

[Andrew Fenton]

if you go just outside city limits, though, there's uddupi dosa house in bensalem...

Yep. But I need a car first...

[Neuronix]

Thanks for the recommendations guys. Sorry for my rant, hadn't slept in about 36 hours cause I just got back from travelling, so I was cranky

Vientiane is the best Thai in this city... highly recommended by this lowly student. I just wish it wasn't so far out of the way. I think 48xx Baltimore counts as not University City! You almost have to factor $2.60 or $5.20 for two on the #34 trolley. Kabobeesh is also great. Hard to get out of there much under $10/person and it's not quite as much food as Minar's was, but at least it's mostly grilled meat. Dahlak is okay, though I haven't been in awhile. Never really thought of it as takeout. If I'm going all the way out there I just pass them by and show up it Vientiane

I'll check out Mama's Vegetarian. The best falafel I've had pretty much anywhere is at Rami's food truck on 38th street. While we're on food trucks, there's many good options. Most of them aren't open for dinner, but a few good chinese trucks like King's Wok and Yue Kee stay open late (Le Ahn real or not = gross!).

As for Andrew Fenton, you must like Southern Indian . I've given up on trying to get good dosa in Philly (other than a post-doc's wife!). To be fair, Phoebe's is still nearby on South St. I haven't been there in awhile either. The sandwiches (oh no, more stuff on a roll!) are okay, though the ribs are pretty blah. I guess Philly will just never be Texas

Today's adventure... Tokyo Lunch Box on Chestnut St (only open during lunch-ish hours). I still can't find good, cheap sushi in this city, but I'll die trying I guess. I still find Wasabi House really overpriced for what it is. $30 on sushi later (not even particularly good varieties) and I'm not even full. I don't know if I'm too picky or what? I should have never gone to places like Seattle and Vancouver (especially Vancouver!) because it spoiled me on sushi

[Neuronix]

As a follow-up, Tokyo Lunch Box was just ok. Some of the rice was undercooked, the tuna was bland, though the salmon, spider rolls, shu mai, and seaweed salad were good. Prices were right (well, under $20/person to get full on sushi). I noticed a number of good looking options in Liberty Place. Anyone tried the cafe spice takeout counters or Sarku's sushi/japanese? What time do they close?

[KatieLoeb]

Not delivery, but really good felafel and other Middle Eastern fare can be had at Bitar's at the corner of 10th & Federal. They grill everything, including the felafel and it makes for a delicious and non-greasy sandwich. The gyros and their own Angelo Cataldi sandwich is pretty good too. You can totally get out of there for less than $10/person and be stuffed.

[Capaneus]

Not delivery, but really good felafel and other Middle Eastern fare can be had at Bitar's at the corner of 10th & Federal.  They grill everything, including the felafel and it makes for a delicious and non-greasy sandwich.  The gyros and their own Angelo Cataldi sandwich is pretty good too.  You can totally get out of there for less than $10/person and be stuffed.

←

Second Bitar's for many tasty, unusual treats, plus great Eastern Mediterranean groceries.

On falafels, my runaway favorite is the food cart on the NE corner of 20th and Market.

[KatieLoeb]

My standby at Bitar's is the vegetarian platter, with stuffed grape leaves, hummus, baba gaoush, tabouli and regular salad on it, lots of pita on the side. It's like $7 and I can usually just barely finish it. The grilled meats are also excellent and come as many forms of pita wrapped sandwiches or as part of a salad.

[Neuronix]

but really good felafel and other Middle Eastern fare can be had at Bitar's at the corner of 10th & Federal.

10th and federal is pretty far out from CC . There was once a Bitar's very close to Penn's campus. To agree with mrbigjas, it seems they were tossed out of the area. Any word if they're every going to open another University City location?

Edited July 31, 2006 by Neuronix (log)

[KatieLoeb]

but really good felafel and other Middle Eastern fare can be had at Bitar's at the corner of 10th & Federal.

10th and federal is pretty far out from CC . There was once a Bitar's very close to Penn's campus. To agree with mrbigjas, it seems they were tossed out of the area. Any word if they're every going to open another University City location?

←

It's no further than West Philly, just in a different direction.

Not sure what happened with the Bitar's on Campus, but I don't think it was ever as good as the original location, which also has the grocery store attached. I've gotten some wonderful items in Bitar's grocery section that nowhere else in the city seems to carry. That makes the trip worth it unto itself, IMO.

[Capaneus]

It's (going to be) BAAAACK!

http://www.phillyblog.com/philly/center-ci...eopen-soon.html

[mattohara]

and it's RIGHT across the street from where i WOOOOOORK!!!

[johnb102]

Does anybody know what happened with this? I walked by yesterday and the storefront at 1304 Walnut is empty. Did they open and close already, or they never even opened? It is strange because when I did a Google search I found a lot of references to their new location at 1304 Walnut, but there is no sign to indicate it was ever there. They were at the old location on Sansom street for so long that I can't believe they could have opened and closed so quickly at the new location.

[philadining]

Micheal Klein posted an update on the Food and Drinq blog saying the long-awaited gas hook-up was scheduled for yesterday or today. So he was projecting mid-August for the opening. But who knows...

[johnb102]

I am not sure when it opened, but I was passing by at lunch time today and was happy to see that it is now open. I had some of the best lamb vindaloo I have ever had - really good chunks of moist lamb with a spicy sauce. At $8.95 for a large plate of food, it is still the bargain it was when on Sansom Street. The biggest difference from the old location is that while the basic set-up is the same, with a cafeteria style counter up front, the interior decor is much improved.

[mattohara]

it's been open for months. admittedly i work right across the street, but i've been there probably 20 times. in fact i was the first customer on the first day and got 5$ off my 15$ order.

i never got a chance to go to the old Minar but i can report that i've had absolutely nothing less than great here. the vindaloo is very spicy, the jalfrazi mildly spicy, the keema naan is delicious.

there are two things i don't like and they aren't food-related. i don't like the 15$ credit card minimum and i don't like the method of service. when it's crowded right around lunchtime you walk all the way to the back so that you can stand in a group of people all milling about waiting for their food. you order from one person and then walk over to the cashier, who you have to tell your order to again. then she gets your drink order and starts to talk to the first order-taker while they try to figure out who was getting what where when.

sorry for the rant. i wish the cashier would just take the order and give you a number so everybody could sit down.