This place seems to have really put a lot of thought into their concept and image. It feels super high tech between the flat screen menus to the clean modern architecture to the workers in black tracksuits carrying iPads. There’s a huge display showing 4Square check-ins and tweets sent to @4foodnyc. Visually, this is a beautiful place. Everything is beautiful down to the packaging the food is served in.

After taking a moment to take in my surroundings and look over the menu on the TVs overhead, I stepped up to the super friendly cashier who took my order while helping with some recommendations. There are a million different combinations of ingredients that I could choose, but I knew which type of burger I wanted to order since I needed to put thought into that to enter the MidtownLunch contest. Brioche, Pork Patty, Organic Egg inside, Pancetta slice, Tickler Cheddar, with the Sweet Chili condiment. My cashier recommended I order the Coconut Rice as a my side. Then onto the many, many choices for a drink. Smoothies, teas, sodas, etc etc. I decided to go with the Mango Chai Tea with Bubbles. After taking my name, the cashier showed me the monitor where my name would appear when my order was ready.

After stepping back for a moment, my name was called to pick up my drink. It had huge chucks of mango in it as well as a bounty of tapioca bubbles. It tasted incredibly good. The Chai spices worked extremely well with the sweetness of the mango. I had to consciously stop my self from immediately drinking the whole thing so that I’d have something to drink when my meal was ready. Two of the tracksuit wearing workers chatted with us and told us how we could submit our burger creations on the site and name them. If people order my named creation, I get $.25 for each order. I’m definitely submitting The Winston!

After a short wait, I saw my name on the board and my food was ready. I picked up my meal in its very clever packaging. Like I said, they really did put a lot of thought into this.

We decided to take a seat in the upper area near windows. Upon walking over there, I saw the really cool ‘park bleachers’ setup next to the stairwell up. That’s really clever!

And finally the food! Both the burger and the side came in its own cleverly designed box.

At first, the burger appeared to be on the small side, but after eating it, I realized that with its fillings you will get full. In my first bite, I did not get any of the fillings, so I was inclined to think it was boring; but by my second bite when I hit the middle stuff, I got super excited. The flavor just exploded. I’ll take credit for my awesomely picked ingredients. The fillings are the reason to eat this burger! Just packed with flavor if you do it right and boy did I do it right. The combination of flavors was perfect. I think the real standout was the Sweet Chili condiment.

The Coconut rice was less inspiring. I felt like it could use a little something else to boost it. Maybe spicy curry? Who knows… It was good, but a bit boring.

All in all, I was very happy with the food I ate. Really interesting, unique food and definitely worthy of another visit.

Since this is pre-opening, I don’t think it would be out of line to make a few (minor) suggestions. The trash cans are divided into recycling and waste via a front divider, but they both go down into the same trash bag. Doesn’t seem too logical to me. Also, the packing trays do not fit through the divider to get into the trash. Also, a strange oversight we noticed for a place that is so connected to mobile media and social networking is that there is no mobile-ready version of the 4Food website. Finally, when sitting on the top floor at the window seat, the table doesn’t touch the glass in front of you and neither does the floor near your feet. I accidentally dropped my drink lid over the glass-edge of the table, through the floor and onto where people were seated eating a floor below. Some sort of divider or catcher should probably be put in there.

Good luck 4Food! I hope you succeed like I think you will!

It’s been a while since I’ve had anything really worth writing about, but last night I had an amazing experience at a little South Philly Mexican place called El Jarocho. Yesterday morning, I was reading the usual blogroll and came across a post on Foodbooz about a dish called the Super Torta [http://foobooz.com/2010/04/street-team-goes-in-search-of-super-torta/]. The picture they posted just looked like a ridiculous gutbomb of a sandwich. Considering I had no plans set for the evening yet, I decided this was it. I gathered 5 of my friends and planned to go there at around 8 PM.

We took the subway down (which took over 45 minutes!!) and eventually to the Ellsworth Street stop at around 8:30. We ended up in a quiet and rather shady neighborhood (There was a lot of really weird stuff just lying around in the South Philly streets).  We walked a block further toward the brightly glowing aura that is the neon lit El Jarocho. We enter this tiny neightborhood shop to the wonderful scent of fresh, authentic Mexican food. I’m looking around the room and am already salivating looking at the other people’s dishes.

I look over the menu, despite the fact that I already know I NEED to order the Super Torta. It is an off-menu item written on a sign in the room. It is carnitas, fried egg with chorizo, ham, pork al pastor, head cheese, breaded flat steak (milanesa), quesillo (flat fried cheese), pineapple, avocado, refried beans, jalapenos, lettuce, tomatoes and mayo on Mexican bread. How could I not order this???

Did I mention this place is BYO friendly? We brought a bunch of rum and tequila which went quite well with the Mexican soda’s and juices they had. I ordered Mango juice to mix with my rum, which turned out to be a really good choice.

Before we ordered, they brought out really good Mexican tortilla chips with 3 sauces. Before we had ordered anything, I knew this was going to be awesome from the salsas alone! They brought an orange colored one that had a creamy cheesy consistency with very mild spice, a red semi-chunky salsa that had a bit of a kick, and a creamy green sauce that truly packed a punch.

We placed 2 orders of Guacamole (which was delicious!) and I ordered the Super Torta. The waitress smiled and said “You’re gonna be surprised.” So I told her how excited I was to try this thing. The guacamole came out really fast! And soon after our main courses were ready soon after.

I cannot not even exaggerate how big this Super Torta was. I mean, I knew it was going to be big from the picture on Foodbooz, but oh my god, I literally squealed with joy when I saw them bringing the dish out. Just amazing to look at. I thankfully told myself before the meal that I was not going to finish it all and had the self-restraint to only eat half! Each bite of this sandwich was messy, oozy, and absolutely amazing. I’ll be fair, it’s not the most balanced dish flavor-wise since there are so many deliciously strong individual flavors, I can’t blame it for that.

They were extremely friendly to us, never rushed us while we hung out chatting and drinking more after our meal was done. The prices were really reasonable particularly because we were ordering their most expensive items… I think the Super Torta (which is big enough for two people) was only $12.50. I love this place. Everything about it.

And to close, a pretty gross picture of me digging into the torta (I’m only holding half)!

Run, don’t walk. I am so glad the ‘hipster truck’ trend that has been happening in NYC has made its way to Philly. Every day I find myself with the same couple of options for lunch: Cheesesteak, Egg Sandwich, Meatball, etc. Sure I could get Chinese food or something, but now I have a much more awesome alternative. I LOVE mash-ups of food styles, and Coup de Taco’s mash-up of the Mexican taco format with ingredients from other ethnicities of food lead to an amazing cross-over.

I walked up to the brand new, clean, tan truck with one kid in front of me. I quickly get to place my order. I chat with the guy to help decide what I should order. They offer tacos, rice bowls, and salads and he explained to me how they each are served. I was leaning towards the salad but decided to go with the 2-taco combo so that I could try two flavor varieties instead of the one I would have on the salad.

I was faced with 3 flavor options with 2 ‘meat’ options on each. (I put meat in quotes because the alternative to the chicken or pork is seitan, a vegetarian meat alternative.) I decided to order one Sweet Thai Chicken taco and one Southern BBQ Pulled Pork taco. I waited for a few moments as my tacos were being assembled to order. I think there were about 4 guys in the truck working on the tacos. I handed the guy taking the order my 6 bucks and received my tacos.

I had to use complete restraint on myself to get back to my house to eat instead of just devouring them on the spot in the middle of the street. The smells coming from these tacos filled my nose full of the wonderful scents of both Thai Coconut Curries and Spicy Souther Barbecue.

I get back to my house, sit down and choose the Sweet Thai Chicken taco first. This taco is described as “marinated chicken breast in a coconut basil sauce topped with savory peanut paste and citrus marinated apples.” I’d say this is a very fair description. The chicken was tender and the the coconut basil sauce was light, yet flavorful. The contrasting crunchy texture from the citrus marinated apples was a surprising and interesting addition that fit the taco way better than I would have expected. Delicious.

Next, I ate the BBQ Pulled Pork taco which is described as “pulled pork slow cooked in homemade bar-b-que sauce served with Mexican jicama cole slaw”. I cannot believe how moist and tender this pulled pork is, it’s just oozing with juices and smothered in a slightly spicy BBQ sauce. I found the jicama slaw to have the same role as the apples in the Thai taco, that is giving a nice contrasting, crunchy texture to oppose the tender meats. I think I like this BBQ Pulled Pork taco even more than I like the Thai one.

All I have to say is: Thank god. New, unique, delicious food around campus. I highly encourage everyone to get over there and try it out for yourself. You won’t be disappointed. I’ll have to get around to trying their Chicken Tikka Masala taco soon. This truck is a winner.

Cost: $6

http://www.coupdetaco.com/

On my way over to the new HubBub Coffee Truck, I noticed something… could it be? Yes, another new food cart! I can’t deny myself this opportunity. After my trip to HubBub, I went back to the corner of 38th and Spruce on the East side of Spruce to check it out.

There are two young guys at this cart. I’m not sure if this cart actually has a name, but I think I saw the words “A.L.L. Food” on it, so that’s what I’ll call it. They are serving Cheesesteaks, meatballs, Egg Sandwiches etc. so I ask the two guys what I should get. They are telling me that they serve Nathan’s hot dogs and their chili is homemade, but then I notice it. They have something on their menu called the “Junkyard Dog”. I decide to ask about it. One of the guys face’s lights up and he tells me its eggs and cheese with Ham, Bacon, Sausage, and Scrapple on a roll. Oh my, I can’t deny my self this!

I’d say the best part of this cart is how much fun these guys seem to be having. They love having off-color banter with each other. (“This is the anti-Hillel sandwich!” to which I respond “I know I’m a terrible jew, I love my pork products.”) And when he finished making my sandwich he was so excited because I was the first one to ever order it. He said he’d been making it for himself forever. (I say “I can’t deny myself a sandwich with so much junk” to which one of the guys responds “That’s how you get hooked on heroine!”) These guys seem to be having a hell of a fun time doing this, and I’m into it.

While they are making my sandwich I ask if they just opened. They said this was their second day in this location. They used to be on Broad and Girard (“That’s where we popped our cherry.”)

Going to this cart is fun, and the sandwich was delicious. Each and every bite is a meat-splosion. They also used lots of cheese, a definite plus. If I have some suggestions for the cart, have some salt, pepper, ketchup, and hot sauce around since Penn students love that on their sandwiches. Also, you might want to get some long rolls. We Penn kids are spoiled with our sandwiches being served on long rolls at the cart as opposed to in Center City, where short rolls seem more common.

After my sandwich was ready, they told me to grab a soda. On them. Nice, I don’t know if it was just because they are new to their location or not, but a nice touch.

Bottom Line: Two young guys, having a lot of fun doing business while serving some tasty, tasty food. Off-color banter included.

Cost: $4.50 (Sandwich [I ordered practically the most expensive item] + Soda)

It’s been quite a while since I’ve made a Foodventure post. I know, no excuses… but I’ll make one anyways. I’ve had crazy amounts of schoolwork and thus have not been getting much sleep, let alone time  for writing Foodventure posts. What better way to get back into the swing of things than with a brand new truck and one that is serving my key to survival (caffeine!). HubBub Coffee Truck is the perfect excuse for me to write a new post.

I wander over at around noon. No one else is in line so I step right up to this shiny, new, and clean truck. I ask him if he has any recommendations for me. He starts asking what I like so I can feel that I’m probably not going to get a recommendation. So I order the standard brew, large, with milk. I hand him my $2 and leave with my coffee.

This coffee is quite delicious (I think they have fancy machine in there. Stumptown special machines or something like that). But, $2 for a cup of it when Wawa is right there? I’m not sure. I suppose I should give a framework for my coffee opinion. I enjoy Dunkin Donuts coffee; enjoy Wawa coffee (all varieties); and I’m anti-Starbucks. I do recommend people try this coffee as it is quite good and maybe people who are more snobby than I about their coffee could attest to its superiority. I think for me though, Wawa will do quite fine.

Bottom Line: Very good, but I’m quite happy with Wawa coffee which is cheaper.

Cost: $2

I cannot resist myself when there is an opportunity to try new food. I was walking up Spruce Street deciding what I should eat for lunch when I came across A NEW CART! I had read somewhere about a new Indian cart coming to campus (to compete with Curry on Wheels) and it finally opened…. today. I couldn’t resist so I stepped up and looked over the menu. My understanding is that this cart is owned and run by Lucky’s Mexican Spot (the Mexican cart right next to it on Spruce), so there were two people in the cart. One was the Mexican Lady from Lucky’s who was in fact wearing a Lucky’s t-shirt and the other was an Indian man wearing a Lovash t-shirt which I assume is a full-fledged restaurant downtown somewhere.

I decided to give the Beef Curry Bowl a go. When the opened up the containers with the different varieties of meat, they looked visually awesome, swirling with many hues of orange and brown and filled with large chunks of meat. They loaded some basmati rice into half the bowl and the Beef Curry in the other half. He asked if I wanted some onion on top and I accepted. He thanked me for coming telling me that I was the first customer and I left with my meal to give it a try.

I brought it back and my first thought was that the portion looked a tad small. For $5, I would ordinarily expect a bigger portion since this is in fact a food cart and not an Indian Restaurant. Their direct competition, Curry On Wheels, serves monstrous portions for about a $1 more. Anyways, I stirred up the Beef Curry and basmati until it was completely mixed and took a bite.

The flavor is dead on. Really nice, rounded Indian flavors. At first I was surprised by how little spice was in it, but then by the end of the dish it had crept up on me leaving a slight, yet satisfying burn. The beef was tender and soaked in the curry and spices. Each bite was flavorful and delicious.

Looking back on this, I am surprised they have no way to manipulate the spice level per customer. It would be nice to have a choice of ‘spicy’, ‘medium’, or ‘mild’ like it is offered at Curry On Wheels. In order to compete at a price point that is $1-$2 more than most of the surrounding carts Lovash will likely need to increase their portion size. If the portions get bigger, I’m all about this.

Bottom Line: This new cart has a bit to learn and change before their business can take off. Portions are a little small and the price point is slightly higher than other carts, but the flavor was absolutely delicious.

Cost: $5

I’m not kidding when I say I’m excited about this. I read about this opening over the summer and have been anxiously awaiting its arrival. In fact, today’s the day it opened so I wandered over there to take a peak.

First thing I noticed was that they were advertising a $10 express lunch special. Intriguing, but I’ve already had lunch, so I’m not gonna try it today. But I checked out the menu and the items don’t necessarily sound cheap, but they do sound delicious. I snapped a shot of the menu in the window, but I think the glare made some of the items unreadable. Oops. I’ll post the image anyways (You can view it larger):

It also looks like they are gonna try to get some nightlife going to compete with the other campus bars. I picked up a sheet listing their nightly special which I will retype here:

—–

Monday: “Wings and Things” $10 All You Can Eat; $5 Bud Light Pitchers

Tuesdays: “Study Hall” $2 drafts with “Hall Pass” starting at 8pm; 2 for 1 Burger for $10 (All Day: No Hall Pass Needed)

Wednesday: $2 Lionshead Bottles, $3 Bud Light Draft, $4 Wild Turkey American Honey Shots, $5 Three Olives Drinks (All Day Everyday)

Thursday: “O-Face Thursdays” 9-11 PM: $5 Bud Light Pitchers & $1 Well Drinks; Chances to win free open bar and $100

Friday: 50% Off Everything 5-7 PM (Food and Drinks)

Saturday: $10 All You Can Eat for College Football; $25 Open Bar (Contact jen@theblockley.com to book); 9-11 PM $2 Bud Lights, $4 Vodka & Red Bull, $6 Three Olives Bombs

Sunday: $10 BBQ Tailgate Package All Day. $1 Bud Light, Budweiser, Bud Light Lime Bottles All Day

—–

Sounds pretty interesting to me and I look forward to giving it a try soon. They have a snazzy website too.

http://www.theblockley.com/

Now. This. Is. A. Burrito.

On campus, there are a lot of burrito options. Between Lucky’s, Mexiphilly, Rosa’s, Qdoba, Chipotle and others there is a bunch to choose between. But how to know which one to go to? Well, in fact I’ve solved that problem for you (since I have tried most of them). Hands down, Don Memo’s burrito’s are my absolute favorite on campus.

I will caution you all that because everything is made fresh, it can take a while for your food to be prepared, especially during the peak lunch hours (12-1). I always call ahead and place my order. I have waited over 45 minutes for my order before, but that is something you need to understand before committing to a Don Memo’s lunch. Today, I got out of my class at 11 and called my order in. I was told it would be ready in 20 minutes so I went over there after killing 20 minutes in my room and it was ready within 5 minutes of my arrival. With that being said, if you plan properly it is WELL worth your time.

This burrito is massive. Really. You will be stuffed. The ingredients are really fresh, more than I can say about the other Mexican food carts on campus. I ordered a “Pastor” burrito which is a spicy pork mixture. The burrito is filled with your choice of meat, yellow rice, black beans, shredded lettuce, cotija cheese, sour cream, green and red hot sauce, avocado, and fresh cilantro. I bet there’s more ingredients that I’m forgetting about… but my point is there are tons of fresh, delicious ingredients.

I know the biggest gripe that some of you may have is that this burrito costs $6 which in normal standards is not expensive, but in comparison to other food carts where you may be able to get one for around $4 may seem expensive. This I leave up to you. The other carts’ burritos are much smaller and not nearly as fresh or flavorful, but the decision is yours.

I’ve had the steak burrito, carnitas burrito, and most often the al pastor burrito. Whenever I get the Don Memo’s craving I can’t pull myself away from those even though their other offerings such as the Mexican Torta Milanesa are very tempting. I’m sure I’ll get around to trying the other items soon. Oh yeah, almost forgot that they have authentic Mexican Jarrito’s sodas sold at the cart too. It’s a great companion to authentic Mexican food.

One last side note is that this cart is associated with a full Don Memo’s Restaurant which I have been to a couple of times. It’s a little off the beaten path (69th and Market which is just a subway or bus ride away), but it’s a BYO and is very affordable on the BYO scale. All I’m gonna say about that is the Margarita’s and Handmade Guacamole at the restaurant are ridiculously good.

Bottom Line: Best Mexican food on campus. Long waits, so call ahead.

Cost: $6

What makes the perfect hangover food? I’d say a big portion, a little bit of spice, a lot’a bit of grease. I suppose that’s why I find myself going to Bui’s so much on weekend mornings. But no, I do not get the famed “Hangover Special”. Instead I order something that can only be gotten at Bui’s. “Pepperoni, Egg, and Cheese with Onions, Salt, Pepper, and Bui’s Sauce (Sriracha Mayo) on a Long Roll”. I literally dream about this sandwich… it is so filling and delicious. Did I mention it’s $3!

I wandered over to Bui’s on this sleepy Sunday morning at just after noon. As usual there is a crowd of generally hungover looking guys in groups of 2 or 3 or 4 waiting for their salvation. Bui’s is a Sunday morning hub where you are bound to see someone you know who is there for the same reason as you, I know I did. After a bit more than 5 minutes my order was ready (somehow before my friend’s order even though he had ordered before me).

I brought my sandwich back to my house so I could dig in. It was fresh off the grill and I could feel the heat of the freshly cooked eggs in my hand. I open it up to be greeted by a flood of fantastic smells… from the eggs to the onions to BUI’S SAUCE! Putting onions on the sandwich is a new addition for me. On my walk over the the truck I ran into a friend returning from Bui’s who’s order inspired me to add onions to my old-time favorite. This turned out to be a very wise decision. The onions were hot from being grilled and added a sweet onion-y crunch to the sandwich.

I think most people would be a little hesitant to order pepperoni on their breakfast sandwich, but honestly widen your horizons and give it a try… grilled pepperoni slices combined with melty cheese and the sweet and spicy Bui’s sauce makes for an unbelievable combination. Take my word for it.

The breakfast sandwiches are only the tip of the iceberg at Bui’s. Don’t forget to try their cheesesteak, or chicken cheesesteak, or meatballs hoagie, or bacon-egg salad hoagie, or any of the other offerings. See you there Sunday morning.

Bottom Line: Fast service, delicious food, good prices.

Cost: $3

I’d say that this is a little known location of cheap, ENORMOUS, tasty food. For $6.99 you get what I think is a 10″ roll, loaded with your choice of meat, cheese, toppings, etc. They load a pound, yeah… A POUND of meat on every sandwich. I have a big appetite but I can never finish this on my own. In fact, one half of this sandwich stuffs me.

On this visit I went with a friend so we could split the sub as a dinner. I decided  to try to replicate a sub I get at home called a “Club Supreme” so I ordered it with: Mayo, Turkey, Roast Beef, BACON, Lettuce, Tomato, Onion, Salt, Pepper, Swiss Cheese. This thing is unbelievable to see… mountainous piles of meat and cheese.

I don’t recommend going if you are extremely hungry or impatient because they tend to move and make your sandwich really slowly [I'm not kidding]. But it is totally worth the time if you’ve got it. Tasty sandwich with more food than anybody should be able to eat in one sitting (plus they give you pickles on the side!).

Eating the sandwich is a bit of a messy chore, since the bread only wraps around about a third of the contents. It is overflowing with all of the components so it tends to falls apart onto your plate but that’s not an issue (just pick it up and eat it with your hands!). It is basically too big to bite into… but I’m sure you’ll figure out a way.

Bottom Line: Huge sandwich big enough for 2 people, loaded with good ingredients for very little money.

Cost: $6.99 (essentially $3.50 per person [or per meal])