The city of brotherly love seems to be a bit of my focus as of late. It isn't far from my residence and since having some family and friends present, it makes it a bit more of a second home to mine. It is within a 3 hour drive (sometimes less if I'm feeling a wee bit like the fast and furious - RIP Paul Walker) so visiting Philadelphia isn't a big deal for me and my family.
I make it a habit when I visit the Philly that I get myself the staples - A really good cheesesteak and some great donuts. There is only one place I go for my donuts Bielers Bakery in Reading Terminal Market and only one place I go for my meat in a roll and that is Tony Luke's.
This trip was a bit different as we were bringing some parenting stuff to our pregnant cousin who lives in South Philly. People usually equate south Philly to sports freaks and criminals. The Sports freaks are pretty much a spot on description but criminal? not so much. I mean it isn't the Beverly Hills of Philadelphia, but it is a suburb and it has some hidden gems within.
One gem I speak is Nam Phuong Vietnamese Restaurant in South Philly. If you have been reading my posts, you will know that I am partial to asian food. I have had some fantastic Pho in Virginia and Long Island City (post coming soon) as well as any meal I have had in Flushing Queens and Chinatown in NYC. We ordered family style eating for the 8 of us and let me say it didn't disappoint. We stayed away from the traditional Pho this time and went for other types of plates. We started off with a Lotus root salad that was a delight to the sense with a sweet scent, crunch of cracker it is served on and tang of the salad that gets you ready for everything next.
Lotus Root Salad
We ordered some plates for the table that consisted of fish, pork, meat and rice. The flavors were incredibly good, satisfying any carnivore, but combined with vegetables will also satisfy any vegetarian as well. To drink we had some typical soda for the boys as well as hot tea for the rest. For those wanting something extra a french coffee with condensed milk did the ticket (not too mention keeping you up of the night). One dish is a self made meal. You make your own spring rolls right there at the table. You add some lettuce, pork, noodle and roll it in your own translucent wrap. The dipping sauces are a plenty and you can make as many combinations as you can think of.
The meal was increasingly satisfying with a generous amount of take home to keep the feeling going. Afterwards was an exploration in donuts but we will leave that for another day. I'm full just going through this and my mouth is still watering for the Vietnamese cuisine I experienced not too long ago.
So Center City has more modern and fancy fancy places to go and eat, but explore the rest of Philly and you will experience what people do everyday simply because they love to do it!
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