Sabrina’s is an hour wait. Butcher’s is closed. Where can you and your visiting family eat on a weekend morning down in south philly? You’ve got lots of options! Continue Reading »
Hardena is not the newest of restaurants, but there are lots of reasons it’s been around as long as it has. This place is amazing.
More photos and some food descriptions after the jump.
Smile Cafe
www.thaismilecafe.com
215.564.2502
105 S. 22nd St.
Smile Cafe is one our favorite finds! There are 2 dozen Thai restaurants in Philadelphia – you could have fooled me! I was aware of a few, but it wasn’t until we stumbled out of Smile Cafe (BYOB) that I knew what we found. Our first visit started out with a few tasty bites of fried tofu with a tamarind sauce, and fat New Zealand mussels in lemongrass broth. I also had a most satisfying Pad Thai.
Another time, we started with a perfectly grilled calamari salad, and the brilliant combination of escargot in puff pastry. Then I had a Crispy Half Duck and Matt had Charcoal Beef, served with sticky rice and cabbage slaw. We have never had room for dessert, but next time I must try the fried banana with ice cream. The food seems genuinely Thai and the service is exceptionally friendly (it is called Smile Cafe after all), and the prices are very reasonable. If you are planning ahead reservations are not a bad idea due to Smile’s limited seating; we tried to walk in during the dinner rush once and had to turn around and go to Erawan (luckily just a block away on 23rd, also serving killer Thai food and BYOB).
Vietnamese Hoagies (wikipedia) are one of my favorite sandwiches. I’m lucky enough to live in a location central to the three South Philly cafés that make them!
More info and pics after the jump!
Maxx’s is a venerable (I think) produce shop just a block west of Rittenhouse on 20th. I only lived over there for a summer but every time I walked in the door I felt like a whole bunch of (richer than me) neighbors were hanging out in there getting their veggie on. But it was an unwitting discovery by Karen (who forgot to look at the price label) that made this place a regular destination for us and led to the creation of this weblog.
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