Every time I visit a new city, I look up its city market. Boston, Milwaukee and Cleveland all have lovely ones. Add Philadelphia's Reading Terminal Market to the list.

The Reading Terminal Market has tons and tons of shops. From fresh meats and cheeses to candies and pastries to hot food to order, they have a little bit of everything.






So, I tried some cheese samples that were AMAZING, and I also had a nibble of some beef jerky. Oh, and a birch beer!

After nibbling, we sat down at Tommy DiNic's Roast Pork and Beef to split a roast pork sandwich. We ordered it complete with cheese and sweet peppers. Thankfully we split one, because they're huge. We ordered in the to-go line (oops), but then we ate it there. I guess that's not what you're supposed to do.


So, this sandwich was fine. I'm not sure I am aboard the whole giant carnivorous sandwich (hello, give me some sauce or SOMETHING), but this is good for what it is. It's hearty, no frills, filling and full - FULL - of roast pork. I definitely think it needs the cheese and peppers just for some flavor and texture variation. But, solid, nonetheless.


Grade: B
 

What goes together better than fried chicken and donuts? Very few things, I tell you.

Philly's Federal Donuts knows this best. This donuts-by-morning, chicken-by-lunch shop blends both worlds beautifully. Kaitlynn and I rose early to get our mitts on some fresh donuts during our first morning in Philly.

Hot fresh donuts include ones like strawberry lavender (which I ordered one of), and there are the "fancy" donuts as well, like this delicious strawberry cheesecake one. The fried chicken - which comes with seasonings like za'atar, coconut curry and buttermilk ranch - wasn't available quite yet. Oh well.

After I selected a strawberry lavender and a strawberry cheesecake donut, we sat outside to enjoy the sun before it became too unbearably scorching. The strawberry lavender is a bit messy with the sugar tumbling off all sides as I took a bite. But the very sweet, almost-floral flavor was refreshing. The strawberry cheesecake, while I didn't get much of the cheesecake flavor, was also decent. Not mind-blowing, but good.

I think to get the true experience, I'll have to try some of the chicken. Will save that for next time.

Grade: B

Today's Italian ice, also known as water ice (particularly in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley), is a sweetened frozen dessert made with fruit (often from concentrates, juices or purées) or other natural or artificial food flavorings, similar to sorbet.[1][2] Italian ice is not shaved ice that is flavored; rather, it is made by the same process by which ice cream is made: freezing the ingredients while mixing them. Italian ice is similar to sorbet but differs from American-style sherbet in that it does not contain dairy or egg ingredients, though it may contain egg white.[1]Common flavors include blue raspberry, cherry, lemon, mango, orange, strawberry, and watermelon, with numerous other flavors available. It is believed to be derived from the Sicilian granita,[3] a related dessert which may have been brought by immigrants to the United States. Authentic Italian ice contains no pieces of fruit: smooth tiny grains of flavored ice, lemon being the quintessential flavor.

John's Water Ice is one of the iconic shops for it, so Kaitlynn and I took a stroll to get out hands on some. This cash-only shop is window service only, and on a hot summer day, it was certainly busy.f

At first, I thought this was going to be a snow cone, and while it's similar, the flavoring is actually within the ice and not added afterward. It's also much smoother. I went with a cherry flavor, which was pretty good. Because it was so hot, the thing just practically melted apart as I was holding it - red going all over my hands. BUT, the flavor? Way better than a snow cone. And a good way to cool off, too.

Grade: B

The man had two boxes of steaks, a few hot dogs, and $6 in his pocket when he turned on the grills at 9th and Passyunk. Neighboring joints predicted he’d last six months, tops. 

Joey didn’t listen. He stuck to what he knew and what he knew was steaks. Joey learned the ropes working in his old man’s steak shop in the 40’s. It was in that kitchen that Joey mastered cooking a steak to mouth-watering perfection and grilling an onion so it had just enough bite. 

Little by little the shop at 9th and Passyunk drew more attention. Before long, people were saying they were the best steaks they’ve ever had. Joey kept at it. 

Business was booming in 1971 when Joey and his wife Eileen had a baby boy. Always one to do things his own way, Joey decided to name his son (yep, you guessed it) Geno. 

As soon as he was old enough, Geno was right there beside his dad, learning about the family business. From 17 on, you could find him at the shop, making steaks, taking orders, and meeting with customers – learning every aspect of the business Joey built.
Joey Vento passed away in 2011. Geno has since taken over the shop and is carrying on Joey’s legacy by serving up Philly’s famous cheesesteaks.

There's a friendly competition between Geno's and Pat's, and it's common to see tourists walk from one shop to the other to compare. We did just that. I ordered the same cheeesesteak at Geno's as I did at Pat's: One Whiz wit -- aka, one cheesesteak with Cheez Wiz and onions.

So, I try to visit Boston every so often now that my good friend Kaitlynn lives there. And, Boston is great, but funds were running low, so we decided to meet halfway: Philadelphia. Neither of us had ever been to Philadelphia, so adventure!

First stop? Cheesesteaks, obvi.

There are two notable cheesesteak places in Philly that all the tourists flock to: Pat's King of Steaks and Geno's Steaks. There are also a dozen others that people in Philly will SWEAR are the ACTUAL best cheesesteak places. But, I only have so much room in my belly for cheesesteak, so I wanted to start off with the ~iconic~ places.

Pat's King of Steaks is the originator and inventor of the cheesesteak sandwich. One day in 1930, Pat Olivieri, a hot dog vendor, put some some beef from the butcher on his grill. A taxi driver apparently noticed the delicious smell and asked for his own steak sandwich.

The next day, as the story goes, rumor of the delicious lunch had spread, and cabbies around the city came to Olivieri demanding steak sandwiches. Soon after, Olivieri opened up a shop at the southern end of South Philly's Italian Market, Pat’s King of Steaks, to sell his new creation. Eventually, according to legend, he added cheese to the recipe. This restaurant is still owned and operated by the Olivieri family today.

So - what exactly is a cheesesteak? Well, it's a long, crusty roll that is filled with thinly sliced sautéed ribeye beef and melted cheese. The most common one is Cheez Wiz, but there is also American and provolone. Also, you can denote whether you want it with or without onions. And, some other toppings are available at a cart nearby, like peppers.

So, we got in line to order our cheesesteaks, which apparently has very specific instructions. There are three main components:

1. How many cheesesteaks you want
2. What type of cheese (Cheez Whiz, Provolone or American)
3. If you want onions

So, [Quantity] + [Cheese] + [With or without onion]. One American with, Two whiz without, etc. It's basically three words so you can move through the line quickly. Got it? Hopefully, because if not, you could be sent to the back of the line.

I ordered "one whiz with," so I got a cheesesteak with Cheez Wiz and onions. The long bun was filled with nicely browned, griddle-chopped steak. The Cheez Wiz melts on top of this steaming sandwich, and the sweet, crunchy bits of onion are - to me - what makes this sandwich.

This typically isn't my kind of sandwich, but this was tasty. The meat was tender, the cheese just coated the entire thing, and the onions added some crunch and sweet. Pretty good. Now, onto their competition...

Grade: A

Ever wondered how Thanksgiving dinner could get any better?

Put it on a sandwich. All of it.

Well, the good parts at least.

While on a weekend roadtrip (more about that in the next post), I drove through Delaware for the first time ever. And, I wanted to be able to document that experience so I reached out to my good friend Maggie - a Delaware native - where I should stop for a quick bite to eat.

"Capriotti's!!" she responded. This sandwich shop, founded in Wilmington, Delaware, focuses on turkey sandwiches (and even roasts whole turkeys overnight). They have begun franchising locations and have shops around the country now.  The business has been named a top franchise by Entrepreneur magazine and Forbes.

They're known for "The Bobbie," which is homemade turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing and mayo on a sub. AOL named this the best sandwich in America at one point, and USA Today ranked it in their top 10.

I got a medium thinking that would be a safe route. Wrong. A medium = footlong. Ooooof. BUT, wow. A fresh roll, slathered with mayo, topped with delicious turkey, sweet cranberry sauce and fluffy, savory stuffing. This is what Thanksgiving dreams are made of. If you dig the salty/sweet combo like I do, this is right up your alley.

My only regret is that there isn't one closer.

Grade: A

I've been on a quest lately to knock off some of those restaurants I've had on my list for quite a while. They're often ones I've heard about, but they're on the outskirts of town or they are those "bar & grills" that are heavier on the bar side than the grill side. Or, I just don't know much about them.

RJ's Grill & More - Homemade and Beyond is located on Dunkard Avenue in Westover. I don't traditionally have the best luck with Westover restaurants, but I wanted to give this place a try. So, I headed over there for lunch.

Lodged next to an asbestos removal company and across the way from a secondhand Subaru lot, the restaurant is definitely in a part of town that I don't see often. The space used to be a former hot spot, I think, and the smell of smoke still overcomes the tiny place. The walls are adorned with chalkboard pain and the menu, which is pretty expansive.

The menu has really great sounding items like the "Goldened Blue Burger," which is topped with a Portabella mushroom in a blueberry bacon cream, provolone & pepper slaw. Or there's the "Colonel Mustard" sandwich, which is turkey smothered in spicy mustard butter topped with barrel slaw and onions petals on rye.

I learned the owner previously the Rusted Musket, but he grew tired of the college kid crowd and sold the business. Now, he's catering to the Westover crowd and has seen some decent business due to delivery via OrderUp. He suggested the open face chicken sandwich, which was on special. I was gravitating toward that Goldened Blue Burger, but he said he hadn't currently made that and he only does so every four days. Instead, he suggested the Blue on Black (which isn't on the paper menu), which had cajun seasoning, mushrooms and bleu cheese. Got that with a side of potato salad.

There are maybe 10 or so seats inside - half along the front bar area and half in front of the window. A large TV up in the corner was playing Law & Order. It's cramped, a bit dark and has some questionable area visitors, but the food wasn't bad. Points for some creativity on the menu, but the execution was pretty average, I think.

The burger wasn't especially thick or juicy, but it was fine, and the bun was better than most places. The potato salad had some kick to it that I'm still feeling the residual effects from. The owner. who was friendly, in a rough-around-the-edges sort of way, didn't skimp on the cheese - which I like. The area is a little less than ideal. Overall: Average. But, would I go out of my way to come back? Nah. If I were in the area? Maybe.

Grade: C

Out past the "other" Walmart on Grafton Road, there is a restaurant space. I first went there some five years ago when it housed "Big Kahunas." (Can we also just take a moment and lament Blogger couldn't recognize when photos were vertical or horizontal and just put them in any which way it thought was best? Sigh.) Big Kahunas and its Hawaiian-themed menu are no longer there, but a new restaurant has taken its space.

It is now Whitetail Crossing, which takes on more of a hunting theme as evidenced by the deer on the wall. I ran here during lunch one day to see what it's about. Plenty of parking here, and the outside looks a bit questionable. No windows or way to really see inside, so at first, I thought it was more of a gambling joint. Inside, there was a large dining space to the left - but the lights were out - and to the right was a bar area that had two other customers seated. I decided to sit at the bar. I noticed another dining space on the opposite side of the bar.

The menus had seen better days - pieces of paper that were stapled together with stains of various colors and sizes littering the pages. But, it's a comprehensive menu with pizza, burgers, chicken, sandwiches, wings, hot dogs and even a kids menu. I asked the bartender what the favorites were, and she said pizza or calzones, but they're huge. So, she suggested the wings and noted they also have boneless ones, even though they're not on the menu. She suggested the Hot Honey Hawaiian sauce, and I took her up on that.

The service was friendly, but entirely too slow. I waited for a half hour at noon to get my10 wings, with the only other patrons being the two at the bar - and they both ordered salads. And, she rang me up as a to-go order. I didn't ask for it, but I assume since Iw as by myself she assumed it was to-go. Which was fine, because after waiting that long for the food, I was ready to get back to work. And, I just spent $14 (with tip) for some wings. Meh.

So, once I got to work, I opened the box. It seems like they mixed a bottle of Frank's Red Hot and a can of pineapple chunks. There was no trace of honey. And the hot sauce really dominated the flavor. The pineapple bits didn't taste at all like pineapple - just hot sauce. I don't mind some heat - but as long as there is flavor to accompany it. There was no underlying of sweet or even depth of flavor here. The chunks of chicken were decent quality, but the sauce was not.

I think it's too expensive, I think the wait was way too long, and I think the food is average - at best. I think it joins a host of other restaurants in Morgantown under the "bar & grill" category that cater more to the bar, less to the grill, and it shows.

Grade: C

There are few reasons to go to the Mountaineer Mall (aka, the OTHER, old abandoned mall). But Hometown Hot Dogs is one of them. 

The half-occupied building has a hodgepodge of businesses or services that continue to reside there, and it is where Woodburn Shanks got its start. That restaurant has since moved out, but Hometown Hot Dogs moved in not quite a year ago to fill the lunchtime business void. 

Hometown Hot Dogs has a location in Westover, as well as ones in Fairmont and Kingwood. There's a real "hot dog culture" throughout West Virginia, though it's much stronger in the southern part of the state. But, I always enjoy seeing a little sliver of it in Morgantown.

Hometown Hot Dogs is located in the Center Court of the Mountaineer Mall (5000 Greenbag Rd., Suite B1, Morgantown, WV, 304-435-0015). There are a few tables and chairs nearby if you wish to eat in. No cards, but there is an ATM available if need be.

The menu features hot dogs, of course. But there are also pepperoni rolls, pizza, chili, chicken sandwiches or wraps, salads, fries, nachos, and weekly specials. A cooler full of sodas is available, including Cheerwine! 

These hot dogs are pretty decent. I only wish the dog itself was a bit warmer, and the slaw is pretty liquidy. It kept seeping into the bun, but the flavors are all good. I've had some pretty damn good hot dogs, so it's hard to rank this up there with them. But it's definitely one of the best you'll find in Morgantown; its competition being Haught Diggity Dogz.

Grade: B

Recently, I was in the Parkersburg area and had lunch at the mall. The food court has a few local options that I'm slowly working my way through. I started with The Pizza Place, and now we've moved on to China Max.

This isn't the first time I've come across a restaurant named China Max, though I'm unsure if they are connected in any way. I tried some of the sesame chicken, noodles and cheese wontons. The chicken was of meh quality, but I was a fan of the creamy cheese wontons. They weren't dry and crumbly like many others. But, so far, Pizza Place is winning in the race.

Grade: C