Hey Phillystines!
 

I'm from Houston, and just registered on The Cellar a couple of days ago.

As fate would have it, I am flying into Philly on Oct. 3 (to visit a client in Cape May, NJ), but will be staying over the weekend of the 5-7th in town, probably. Can anyone make some recommendations on what to do? I always trust the locals.

Thanks for the help,

NBN

Eat cheesesteaks. Lots of them. Here's the thread. Sycamore, I believe, is our resident expert. Consult w/ him for specifics.

How old are you, and what do you generally like to do?

UT makes a valid point.

Hubris, I am flattered. If it were safe, I'd send you a cheesesteak in the mail from Philip's. However, I CAN tell you the best sub/seafood/pizza restaurant run by Asians in Northern Prince George's County if you're heading down 95 anytime soon.

I will not assume anything here, so here's an example of things I would do on a weekend in Philadelphia...if I had money...and if I didn't have to work on Saturdays.

--South Street: Lots of great restaurants, lots of great bars, lots of little shops, lots of people period--probably the most diverse locale in the city at any given time.

--Art Museum: Walk the steps Rocky walked. Fine collection of works.

--Independence Hall/Liberty Bell: Obviously significant historic value.

--Manayunk: Another location with bars, shops, and restaurants...tres chic, but not as cool IMO as South Street.

--Franklin Institute: Philadelphia's museum of science.

--Old City: Eastern section of the Central Business District...some historical buildings and a variety of restaurants...also Penn's Landing (the waterfront).

--S.S. United States: You can't go on it, but you at least have to drive by it. It may old and rusted out, but it is just huge! Bigger than the Titanic...and still floating.

If you're a fan of shopping:

--The Plaza and Court at King of Prussia: one big mall and a smaller version--lots of stores

--Franklin Mills: Huge outlet mall w/2000 stores. Okay, more like 200.

Cheesesteaks...oooooh...so many places...so little time...see the thread. But if you're in Center City, try and find one from the "Cardiac Carts." Damn, they're good.

One thing I like to do when I'm in any new place is to drive around...everywhere. I would not recommend a visitor to drive into N or W Philadelphia, although I do it in a heartbeat.

Sycamore..
 

South Street it is, apparently.

That seems to be the consensus, as it were.. I'm going to have to trust your opinion, thanks!

NBN

I was going to suggest the Mutter Museum ...

Monk's and Fergie's
 

If you want to try and get some real drinking done in a real atmosphere, with a great bar/restaurant owner, I recommend Fergie's (13th and Sansom) and Monk's (16th and Spruce).

If you like European beers, go there. It's also the friendliest atmosphere out there in this city!

Fergie is the man. He serves Duvel, Fin Du Monde, and many many good Hefeweisens. I highly recommend both places. Fergie owns both.

Ok, i gotta ask now - what the hell is a cheesesteak?
I assume its a steak wiht melted cheese on top - so much fatty goodness in one meal! Can someone send one over - i want to se it to frighten anorexic teenyboppers..

Oh Jaguar...you have no idea...
 

The bottom line on the cheesesteak: chopped meat (generally beef steak, but I prefer chicken), cheese (some like cheez whiz, but I like white American or Provolone), fried onions (sometimes), and peppers (no thanks) on a toasted hoagie roll. Some folks like ketchup, mayo, and other condiments on it. They generally cost between $3 and $6. You have your "originators"--Pat's and Geno's: both located on Passyunk Ave. in South Philadelphia. Truth be told, I think Pat's sucks! Geno's is okay, but I've had better. There is also Ishkabibble's--home of the original chicken cheese steak. Quite a tasty staple. In supermarkets here in the US, you will find Steak-Umms and the Philly Steak, or you'll have fast-food restaurants that offer some god-awful sandwich that calls itself a Philly Steak sandwich...but it will NEVER compare with a cheesesteak off the streets of Philadelphia.

You will find cheesesteak eateries on street corners, all along South Street, all throughout the city and suburbs of Philadelphia. Quite frankly, it could very well be the most popular food staple in Philadelphia, although soft pretzels and Tastykakes are up there as well.

It probably sounds so silly to the non-Philadelphian, and probably moreso to a non-American. But there is just something about the taste of one--for me, it is pure bliss. Probably the best cheesesteak I've ever had is from Philip's in South Philadelphia, although Pizza Fresh in NE Philadelphia makes a fantastic Chicken Cordon Bleu Steak.

It is probably one of the most unhealthy foods you could ever put into your body. Our Mayor, John Street, had a "vegetarian" cheesesteak from Geno's once, to which the owner of Geno's called it "sex without the orgasm." But the cheesesteak is so worth taking a day or two off your life.

Jag, as I offered Hubris Boy, I'd send you one from Philip's if it would make a trip. It'd be a hell of a lot tougher to send to you one though--Hubris only lives 90 miles away, you live about 11,000 miles away. ;)

Cheesesteak
 

A cheesesteak consists of shredded and reconsituted steak, thinly sliced and fried, with large amounts of cheese, and usually some fried onions in there too. It gets served on a hoagie roll.

Sometimes it gets served with mayo as well. As if we didn't need ENOUGH fat content.

It's a weight problem because it's mostly fat on a roll. Literally.

If you eat one for lunch every day, you will have a gut, and not just a gut, but one that hangs over your belt and makes you look bad.

This cheesesteak is so infamous that Philadelphia is one of the fattest cities in the US, I believe #2. I do not kid.

If you want to shock anorexic girls, this is the perfect way to do so. I don't even know the calorie count. It's just high enough to where I keep the intake down to once a month at most, with a long time at the gym afterward.

Literally, one of these cheesesteaks can offset a week of training at the gym. I am not kidding (and I weigh myself before every workout). The only time that they don't offset my weight or fat percentage is when they make me sick from the fat and grease. Usually that's often, because my body can't handle grease or preservatives very well.

A cheesesteak is Philly tradition, however, it's not recommended if your body can't stand grease or large amounts of fat. It WILL scare every anorexic girl around, however. Especially if you get one off of a food truck.

MBP

Re: Sycamore..
 

My personal favorite bar on South Street is the Tattooed Mom (5th and South, I believe). Lots of great beers, good food, and a great jukebox. Plus, I believe they have furniture you can write on upstairs. (Look for the endtables that have rantings about Eric Lindros on them.) Caters to the 20 and 30-somethings.

Also good, and also in the area:

--Fat Tuesday
--Manny Brown's
--Abilene
--The Pontiac (although they may have a live band playing, hence, a cover)
--Dickens Inn (at 2nd and Lombard)
--XandO (Okay, yes, it's a national foo-foo coffee chain. But their liquor-coffee drinks ARE good.)

And if you've drunken yourself into a stupor at the end of the night, head over to South Street Diner at 2nd and South for some good diner staples or Greek dishes.

Cheesesteak-wise on South: Ishkabibble's or PhilaDeli (4th and South).

*drools* Think i gonna try making one of those - i like pissing off female friends by having a diet of fat, salt sugar and caffine yet not gaining any weight =)
Does sound dman nice though...mmmmmm......I think the fat contest is still won by a lump of chrispy fat at a store next to my school that dosen't even have a name. Its a sausage thats dipped in batter, fried in fat, cooled, then fried again. The entire thing is a huge yellowy blob on a stick that sells like hotcakes. I don't even want to *think* what is in the sausage..

We call that a "corn dog" here. The meat is a "hot dog" (Do you have those down there? It's sausage made primarily of pork, turkey, and/or chicken, although they also come in beef.) Think of the hot dog as the leftovers after making all the other prime cuts of meat.

This is what you need to make a cheesesteak, Jag:

--6-8 oz. (170-230g) of boneless chicken or beef steak
--2-4 oz. (60-120g) of white American or Provolone cheese (this can be substituted with a jar of Kraft Cheez Whiz)
--a good Italian hoagie roll
--your own condiments as you prefer (onions, sweet or hot peppers, ketchup, mayonnaise)

--Chop the meat into pieces and grill up
--Toss the bun into a toaster oven or standard oven for 3-4 minutes (Don't burn it--slightly crisp on the outside yet chewy on the inside)
--You may wish to put the cheese on before you toast the bread...it's up to you.

My personal preference is to toast the bread, load ketchup and mayo on the bread, add the meat, then the cheese. If you use onions, grill them with the meat for the best flavor.

Amazingly, the only Philadelphians that seem to turn up their noses at this type of food are the college kids and the foo-foo squad in Society Hill. (No offense to any cellar dwellers in Society Hill...it just seemed like the perfect target at the moment.) As Mitch mentioned, Philadelphia is the 2nd fattest city in the United States...and we only recently lost #1 to Houston. (NBN: What are the specialty foods there that make Houstonians fatter than us now?)

I appreciate the offer, Syc, but you're right... it'd probably be a little too ripe by the time it got here!

Tell ya what... I do some consulting work for Amtrak from time to time, and I find myself at 30th St. Station about once a month or so. I'll get in touch w/ you next time I'm coming up. Maybe we can have lunch at Ishkabibble's or Jim's!

For that matter, any other Cellar Dwellars who are interested are cordially invited as well... we'll turn it into a Cellar-wide Cheesteak Tasting Event!

(Or, if somebody has an expense account we can abuse... we could head over to Le Bec-Fin instead! ;))

Sounds good Hubris. I've not had Jim's on South Street, although I haven't heard good things about it. The one here in the NE is pretty good though.

Granted, it's already September, but we SHOULD try to hold a Cellar gathering. Tony?

I used to work for CVS at their store in Society Hill (off South St. on Headhouse Square). I hated CVS, but I truly enjoyed working in the neighborhood. We always had a ton of tourists in the area, so not only was I an Assistant Manager, but I was also the restaurant conoisseur, beer guide, city map, and phone directory.

Some examples:

Customer: "What's a good restaurant around here?"
Me: "Well, if you walk up the street to South and hang a right, you're going to find about 40 of them."

Customer: "Excuse me, I'm having a really hard time trying to find a 6-pack. Your grocery stores don't sell beer?"
Me: "You're not from here, are you?"
Customer: "No, Florida."
Me: *goes into explanation of how to get beer and why it is so difficult*

Customer: "I'm trying to find (insert restaurant name here). I was told it's on 2nd St., but I don't see it around here."
Me: "Let me grab my phone book."

I do miss the unassigned part of that job...

Hey all!

Thanks for the responses. Makes me wonder, though, is there anything else to do in Philadelphia but eat Cheesesteaks and/or drink?

Since I'm from Houston, now #1 on the fat scale, does that mean I will lose weight eating Cheesesteaks? Someone mentioned you had been usurped by us. Must be the Mexican food. Lotsa cheese, lotsa fat.

How about having a Cellar Fest while I'm there? It would be nice to meet the bunch...

Peace, NBN.

If I make base camp at Broad and South, where do I go from there?

NBN, look at the info I listed in one of my first posts. We do have some degree of cooth here. ;)

Mexican...hmmm...that could be the case, but Chicago has a ton of Mexican restaurants too...and only about half the people in the city are really fat. ;)

I would not recommend making your base camp Broad and South if you can avoid it...the area there is a tad shady. I would only use that area if you're using the Subway (aka the Broad Street Line/Orange Line). Most of the restaurant, bars, and shops on South Street are between 2nd and 11th. You'll also find side street shops and restaurants off South Street between 2nd and 11th.

Will you be driving while in Philadelphia, NBN? If you are, your best bet for parking is on Lombard St between 2nd and 3rd (Lombard is one block N of South St.). It's a good starting point too, as most of the cool stuff on South is between 2nd and 6th.

Let me know when the time gets closer NBN...I'll be glad to join you for a pint or two.

Count me in for a pint
 

Sycamore,

Since I'm down here anyway, count me in. I'll even throw in a HD.

Mitch

*feels left out on the other side of a frigging ocean*
ah well - ill make my own then *hmph*
thanks for the recipe.

Sycamore..
 

I'm up for the beer, I'll keep you guys posted if I do actually make it up there...

Love, NBN

Cellar steak GTG
 

I'll go for that. It'll be worth a 1000 mile drive to be with friends again and eat cheesesteaks. But it'll have to be the last week of October if I'm to be included. I'll be in town prior to a convention in DC and took a few extra days off. I can do that.

Brian

Brian, or any other Cellar dwellers for that matter, I am ALWAYS up for a pint. ;) I live in Torresdale, but bounce around from King of Prussia to Center City to University City.

(Although lately, I've been a bit of a wino. I've been heading up to the liquor store every Saturday night after work. I don't know why, but I've just had a taste for everything from Sutter Home to Yago. I don't think I've had a beer in 2 or 3 months.)

The plans are confirmed.

Flying into PHL on Oct 3, driving straight to Cape May, checking out there on Saturday the 6th and returning to Philly.

Staying at a hotel near the airport Sat night. Gotta get up early Sunday, however, my flight leaves @ 8:45 am (damn!).

Is anyone up for a South Street pub crawl (Cellar Fest) Oct 6?

You could show me around town...

NBN

I'm game...hopefully I'll be off this new medication before then. (Can't drink while I'm on it...damnit! I had been looking forward to some good wine tomorrow night.)

OK sycamore, we're on
 

Where do you want to meet?

Lessee...

A good meeting place would be Headhouse Square at 2nd and Lombard. It's a block off South Street and will be an easy spot for folks to congregate.

Who's all coming anyway?

*reads the newly-minted subtitle on the main page*

Tony, have you been listening to the Roots again? ;) Besides, you're in 610-land...heh.

I hate Verizon...why on earth should you have to pay extra each month to:

--Call a 610 number (from where I live in 215)
--Call over to Jersey (when it's all of a mile from me)

Damnit...I got spoiled from living in Maryland.

Of course you did, Syc.

Plus, the roads are better down here AND we can buy alcohol anywhere we want! :p

For the record, I loved Maryland. It reminded me a lot of Missouri...only smaller...and full of crab cakes...and near the ocean. :) I think what scarred me so badly was living in the DC area. Had I been able to find a decent job in Baltimore, we probably would have stayed. But Philadelphia beckoned me...*gets that romantic gleam in his eye*...and it went something like this:

"Hey yo! DC sucks! Come to PHIL-a-DEL-phia...you can eat cheesesteaks every waking moment, drink some Yuengling, and root for the Iggles in the 700 section at the Vet!"

Okay, maybe it wasn't quite like that...more like, "God, I f**king hate DC. Philadelphia is nice. And we just merged with that company up in Trenton. I got a job there if I want one...whoohoo!"

When I found out where I could call in my calling area (from PG County), I was stupefied. I could call to Fairfax, into DC, to Gaithersburg, and out to Laurel...toll-free. Then I move up here, and I can only dial within the city limits, lower Bucks, and a small part of Montgomery County toll-free. Certainly a large area, but still.

Quote:

Plus, the roads are better down here AND we can buy alcohol anywhere we want! :p

Now you know that's not completely true. It was certainly EASIER to buy in Maryland and DC, but until Maryland allows beer and liquor in grocery stores and gas stations, it still pales. ;)

Most definitely. The Roots are now permanently etched in my brain.

And the Cellar did start in 215, actually - even considering that it started before the area code split to begin with. It in fact even started in S.P.

*enlightened*

These overlays are going to be the death of us. 215 sounds cool. 267 sounds...dorky. 610 sounds cool...484 sounds country.

sycamore
 

and the 420 sounds even COOLER!

I'm there on the 6th... who's with?

What syc said, Headhouse @ 2nd and Lombard, say, around 8-ish? Sounds like a good starting point.

I will have what's left of a NJ MGD 12-pack with me, you can have the rest...

See you guys there...

:D

NBN

Oh wait!

I just saw something on the map that I have to see!

A Man Full of Trouble Tavern?! What the hell is that? I have to get a pic standing in front of that place!

NBN

For info on the tavern, check out this link. It's over at 2nd and Spruce...about 2 blocks from Headhouse Square.

OK, syc
 

We'll meet at the Man FOT, for starters...

Where to park on a Saturday nite?

NBN

A couple of options:

--2nd and Lombard: There are two parking garages on Lombard--one behind Friday's and one behind XandO. I used to park at the one behind XandO when I worked down there. I believe they have the lowest rates on Saturday nights.

--Street parking on Spruce, between Columbus and 2nd St.--I don't know if the meters are still on in that section of town at night though.

One more week to go, I'm getting psyched!
 

OK here's the deal...

Dragging my sorry ass out of bed in Cape May Saturday a.m. the 6th. Driving back to Philly, probably leave there around noon. I've not decided on using the GSP and ACE on the way back. If it's more woodsy, and maybe even a little fall color creeping in, I may take NJ 55. Any recommendations will be appreciated.

Check into my hotel by the airport around 3, then it's off to downtown.

I did the Liberty Bell and Ind. Hall thing last time I was there (it was too damn cold to do anything else), so I'm looking for a new thrill.

How would you spend a beautiful afternoon in Philadelphia, if you got to see it again, with the eyes of a child, as it were?

NBN

*sycamore's netscape goes insane, so he pulls the Cellar up on IE. He is utterly confused, as it looks completely different than it does on NS.*


Aaaaaaaahhhhhh!!!

Okay then...

I have never made the drive to or from Atlantic City, other than I know you can take either the GSP and ACE to Philadelphia, or US-9 to NJ-49 to NJ-55...or something like that.

See my earliest post to this thread regarding neato stuff to do...of course though, I specialize in mixing the touristy stuff with the oddball stuff. The first time I came to Philadelphia, I just HAD to see the Spectrum...that was the first thing I wanted to see. And it's not like I could go inside of it or anything...I just wanted to see the home of the Broad Street Bullies. Then I drove around City Hall...several times.

Hell, I still do it now. And when I lived in DC (the home of traffic circles), I had a strange habit of driving around Westmoreland Circle several times every time I was in that neighborhood. *shrugs*

Thanks, sycamore
 

I'll figure out a route from NJ. My question is, are the fall colors coming in up there yet?

Undertoad suggested the Mutter Museum. Heard of it, actually made a list of one of the ten best museums in the country. I guess it's OK if you want to see one of Wm. Penn's dessicated testicles! :rolleyes:

I was actually looking for something more upscale, or even mainstream, like where do all the good looking women hang out? :D

Re: Thanks, sycamore
 

Ummm...starting to, but not a whole lot. The weather has been relatively warm until this past week.

Quote:

Undertoad suggested the Mutter Museum. Heard of it, actually made a list of one of the ten best museums in the country. I guess it's OK if you want to see one of Wm. Penn's dessicated testicles! :rolleyes:

Oh man, I want to go to that place! I was just watching one of Burt Wolf's shows on PBS, and they happened to show his trip to Philadelphia. One of the places he went to was the Mutter Museum. I've never been there, but it was fascinating to see the stuff they have.

Quote:

I was actually looking for something more upscale, or even mainstream, like where do all the good looking women hang out? :D

Tool. ;)

(NBN, this is my little piece of advice that I feel necessary to give a visitor, given that I am a resident of Philadelphia, and a non-native. No disrespect meant to the women on this list that are from Philadelphia. While I love Philadelphia, this city has some of the roughest-looking women you will ever see. Rather hard on the eyes.)

Now then, for places where you might find good looking ladies:

--Starbucks, 34th and Walnut. College coeds, although it will be a Saturday.

--Art Museum

--South Street (although I would classify some of the ladies down there as "alternachicks.")

--Society Hill: Yep, this is probably the best place to check out the ladies in Philadelphia. XandO at 2nd and Lombard (right across from the Headhouse). Many a day while working at CVS across the street, I would admire the scenery. ;)

Now then, I had better duck and run. ;)