Food Country Restaurant Reviews serving the Delaware Valley

Jeff's Take: “Come on guys, finish this off.” The employee behind the counter didn’t have to ask me twice to clean the plate of honey smoked turkey he was offering as a free sample. And before I even got my order, it was no mystery to me why Koch’s Deli in West Philadelphia is almost a landmark around here. This place has got charm. With a little sleight of hand (read: free food), Koch’s turned a ridiculously long, crowded wait for a sandwich into a memorable experience. During my wait, I sampled two kinds of turkey, some Swiss cheese, and a few pickle spears. Koch’s is not only known for its free samples, but also its creative specialty hoagies and sandwiches and its generous portions of meat. If you like pastrami, the Reuben here is a can’t miss. My mouth watered as I watched my chopped pastrami crisped in the toaster oven, and then was topped with Swiss cheese and cooked again until it bubbled. With the meat piled high and topped with sauerkraut and thousand island dressing an...

Jeff's Take: One of the great advantages of city living is the concept of the food cart. A good food cart can offer a quick, convenient, cheap, and delicious meal, and the best food carts can even be deserving of a special trip. In Philadelphia , the best place to go searching for good food cart cuisine is West Philly’s University City neighborhood. Dozens of food cart vendors congregate there every day, offering a variety of options to the thousands of students in the area. How successful are the University City food carts? Just look at Greek Lady , which started out as a cart and now has a permanent storefront nearby. Thanks to a recommendation from my brother Erick, who lives in the area, I recently discovered a cart that could end up being just as successful—Tacos Don Memo, located at 38 th and Sansom. A trip to any food cart carries with it a range of possibilities in terms of quality. Some carts clearly haven’t been visited by the health inspector in quite awhile (if ev...

Jeff's Take: When ordering a gyro, it’s always a good sign if there’s seasoned lamb roasting on the counter. There’s a clear difference between lamb cooked on a gyro roaster and frozen lamb strips that have been warmed up on a griddle. The former wins by a mile in the taste and texture categories—with a crispy crust and a tender interior. The latter is what you’ll get at most places that offer gyros on their menus, and it just can’t compare. Greek Lady is known for its gyros and souvlaki, and it’s a place where you can always expect to see gyro roasters in constant use. This popular eatery started out in one of the many food carts around University City , and became so successful that it moved into a much more spacious storefront on 40 th Street , between Walnut and Locust. At this point, the eatery could even expand next door—it’s usually buzzing during lunch and dinner, and it’s a madhouse late on weekend nights, when it’s open until 2 a.m. An interesting twist that Greek Lady a...