Unlike North Indian cuisine, South Indian cuisine is a whole different thing. If you haven't experienced it, start with the Masala Dosa, a huge gluten-free, crispy crepe filled with spiced (but not spicy) potatoes. The sambar soup that comes with the Masala Dosa can be a little spicy, but they also serve it with a cooling coconut chutney. Cheap, yummy, and very gluten-friendly.
Bare Burger truly caters to all dietary restrictions: they have burgers made of meat or not (like the plant-based Impossible burger and Beyond Meat burger). They even have gluten-free buns! They have a huge variety of burgers and onion rings and fries of various types. Tasty!
Another Jose Garces restaurant, but cheap, cheap, cheap. Street tacos in the style of Baja, Mexico with the quality and rich flavor and beautiful presentation. Prices are reasonable, and they have happy hour specials that are crazy cheap. Buena Onda ("Good Vibe") is a stone's throw from the Barnes Foundation. Go to the latter first thing in the morning and follow up with lunch at the former afterwards. That's my idea of a perfect morning!
Located conveniently near the Convention Center for convention-goers, the burgers here are amazing. They are fresh and made-to-order with toppings as exotic as truffle aioli...or as simple as ketchup and yellow mustard. Their patties are Angus, but you can upgrade to Wagyu...or do a veggie or Impossible "meat" burger. I loved the word "BURGERFI" that they brand onto each bun. Just wish I could eat them. I will need to go back, as they have a keto version with a lettuce wrap. I know that this is a chain restaurant, and a chain fast food restaurant to boot. Nevertheless, it is worth it if you are craving a great burger.
Winner of the 2017 James Beard Award for Best Chef in America, Michael Solomonov branched out from his amazing Zahav restaurant to add a few small hummus shops to his empire. His hummus is the best you can get. At Dizengoff (which also has locations in University City and in the Whole Foods at 2101 Pennsylvania Avenue in Philly), you can get his delicious hummus plain or topped with a rotating menu of glorious and delicious toppings, including both vegetarian and meat toppings. They serve it with a bright little side salad and freshly baked pita bread. The shop on Sansom Street is tiny, so be prepared to wait for a seat (or do takeout). You will have no problem finding a seat at the Whole Foods location, and there are other wonderful places owned by Chef Solomonov there as well, including Goldie (falafel) and his amazing Federal Donuts, that serves incredible fried chicken in addition to the best donuts you will ever put in your mouth.
A dive bar that serves Ethiopian food. The neighborhood is off the beaten path in the upcoming Brewerytown section of Philadelphia. Cheap eats and cheap drinks. Not bad!
Another place by James Beard award-winning Chef Michael Solomonov, Federal Donuts serves donuts (of course), and they serve coffee (naturally), but they also serve fried chicken (what???!!!???). Don't knock it until you've tried it. If you have their donuts, whether the plain(er) freshly baked donuts or the fancy ones, you will never be able to eat a Dunkin Donuts again. Their fried chicken is amazing, too.
Note that they have locations all over Philly, so check out their website to find the one nearest you.
Yes, Five Guys is a hamburger chain. But it is a good hamburger chain. Originating in the Washington DC area, Five Guys has expanded quite a bit because of the quality of their food. Now if we could only get In-N-Out Burger to open up a restaurant in Philly...
The quintessential debate in Philadelphia is which Philly cheessesteak is better: Pat's or Geno's? The two are literally across the street from each other near the Italian Market area of Philadelphia. That makes your decision easy: go with someone else, order one from each, and compare.
For my money, I would rather go have a delicious roast pork sandwich.
Yes, this description is the same as the one for Pat's...
You will see Halal lunch carts everywhere in Philly. My favorite things is chicken over rice. They cook the chicken right in the cart and serve it over rice with a side salad and your choice of a white yogurt sauce, hot sauce, or both. The chicken is cooked in a red sauce that reminds me of Indian biryani, but whatever it is, it is delicious. My usual is chicken over rice, a salad with no onions, and white sauce only over everything. You also get a drink with your meal, along with a fork, napkins, and a bag in which to carry it all away.
It costs only $5...FIVE BUCKS!!!
You really can't beat the price, and the flavors are fabulous. Don't knock it until you try it.
To compare and contrast with DiNic's roast pork sandwich, John's is a very, very close second. DiNic's is in Reading Terminal Market. John's is in a gritty (but not unsafe) part of Philly. Reading Terminal Market is a place for the masses (mostly out-of-towners). You will see more locals at John's. It's a wonderful hole-in-the-wall shop with long lines that are always well worth it.
Karma is my second favorite Indian restaurant in Philly. Since it is in Old City, I don't go there as much as I would if it were closer. Their lunch buffet is wonderful.
Old-school diner. OLD-SCHOOL. Like "I think I've been transported back in time to the 70's" old-school. Maybe the eggs and hash browns are a little buttery. Wait...that's a good thing! Maybe the coffee is not as good as Starbucks. But it’s good and it’s cheap and its down-to-earth. Sometimes your body just craves that kind of breakfast. It's worth it just for the experience.
I first went to this dim sum restaurant in Chinatown in the early 2000's with two of my colleagues and a business partner (who was born in China) who remarked that you could tell the authenticity of a Chinese restaurant in America by how few non-Chinese patrons it had. My two colleagues and I were the only non-Chinese people in the place, and the food was fabulous. To be clear, the place is unassuming. There are no menus: stainless steel steamers full of hot dim sum are wheeled around the restaurant in old stainless steel carts, you point at what you want, and the servers scribble what you've ordered on a paper bill left at your table. As different carts come by with different dim sum delicacies, you keep pointing and eating until you can't point or eat any more. Very affordable. Regrettably not gluten-free.
The quintessential debate in Philadelphia is which Philly cheessesteak is better: Pat's or Geno's? The two are literally across the street from each other near the Italian Market area of Philadelphia. That makes your decision easy: go with someone else, order one from each, and compare.
For my money, I would rather go have a delicious roast pork sandwich.
Yes, this description is the same as the one for Geno's...
Yes, I realize that Shake Shack is a chain. Yes, I realize that I recommend staying away from chain restaurants at all costs. That said, they have gluten-free hamburger buns that are so good that, the first time I tried one, I took it back to the counter after having one bite because I was certain that they had made a mistake and given me a regular bun.
Being gluten-intolerant, having a hamburger in a bun in a restaurant for the first time in years was a wonderful experience. While I think their burgers are excellent, I am a purist when it comes to milkshakes. What they call a milkshake at Shake Shack, I call ice cream. I'm sorry, but when you serve it with a one-inch diameter straw because there is no other way to get anything out of the cup without collapsing a lung, it is no longer a milkshake but rather ice cream. The former, one drinks. The latter, one eats with a spoon. Thankfully they have great draft root beer to make up for their pathetic "milkshakes".
People from outside Philly ask people who live in Philly "Where can I get the best Philly Cheesesteak?" I say, forget Pat's and Gino's for cheesesteaks. Go to DiNic's for a glorious roast pork sandwich instead.
Located in Reading Terminal Market, DiNic's was the winner a few years ago of the Travel Channel's "Best Sandwich in America". When that happened, the lines at DiNic's went from long to crazy.
Before they won that award, I went there with my son when he was visiting on a college break. We sat at the counter and both got a roast pork sandwich on a wonderful long roll topped with sauteed spinach and sharp provolone cheese. As we ate the first half of our sandwiches, we laughed when we found ourselves both eating the first half of the sandwich hunched over the second half so that the delicious juice that was dripping out from the first half of the sandwich fell onto the second half so as not to waste a single drop of the juice. It was that good. Even if you have to wait a little to get a DiNic's roast pork sandwich, it is well worth it.
Being gluten-intolerant now, I remember that memory with my son with great fondness. Have one for me.
There are two VIetnam restaurants--one in Chinatown and a cafe in University City. I have only eaten at the one in Chinatown and will never go anywere else. The food is stunningly delicious--fresh, flavorful, and beautifully presented. Their pho noodle soups are good, but their House Special Vermicelli is to die for. Service is fast, and the prices are ridiculously reasonable. If you are on a per diem expense for the organization for which you work, this place will help you keep to your budget while still enjoying amazing food.