Dessert is a major event here, as you have (1) Bassett’s by the door, which is a must for ice cream enthusiasts, and (2) Fisher’s Pretzels, where you stand in line and get your fresh soft pretzel (another local culinary staple) from the friendly Amish staff. You can have both; the pretzels are big enough to split. It is worth walking to RTM for a pretzel that you eat on the way back.
Where to eat in Chinatown:
Vegetarian
The first vegetarian place you come to is Kingdom of Vegetarians on 11th Street between Race and Arch next to the Chinatown bus stop. It has its fans but I just got takeout from there and I’m not really one of them; perhaps I don’t like vegan Hot and Sour and/or the Ma Po wasn’t Szechuan enough.
On Race Street a block down from the Convention Center is Singapore Vegetarian which I like better. There’s also Harmony on 135 N. 9th Street, which is on the East Side of Chinatown so it’s a few blocks from the CC, a solid choice, and the generally empty Cherry Street Vegetarian, which has a good ‘pick your own Veggies in a brown sauce’ choice.
Pretty much every good place has good vegetarian choices so you can really go anywhere.
Lunch specials
Vietnamese places tend not to have lunch specials, which makes them a better value for dinner in general though this isn’t such a big deal. Places that have good lunch specials (last I checked, I work in South Jersey so I usually am in Chinatown at night):
I think Imperial Inn (10th between Race and Arch) has a lunch menu. This is the classic atmospheric choice for mainland Chinese dishes and the dinner prices are around the same as your average take-out, so this is always a tremendous value.
Rangoon.. On 112 9th Street a few blocks away, but a great place to stop for a Burmese lunch. Also here prices are reasonable for dinner, especially the veggie rice dishes which reward hardcore palettes.
Non-Vegetarian
My favorite place to eat in Chinatown is Pho Xe Lua Viet Thai at 907 Race which I call the Xe Express because it has a train on its menu with the word ‘Express’ on it. The place is always packed with Vietnamese, Thai, and Mandarin conversations coming at you from all directions. Filling meals here go for $5, and $12 will get you a flaming seafood pot. The Thai food here is amazing. The menu is endless, but there is no lunch menu. There is often a wait but it is usually not too bad.
Ming River is a place with zero atmosphere right next to the Chinatown Arch. They have a paper menu for Caucasians but the fun is to grab the full menu which is full of surprising and off-putting offal and roadkill. The main appetizer is called “pig’s viscera.” This is not the place to leave your pet on a leash outside. But though no one goes here but a few loyal Chinese guests, the food is exceptional, and the seafood hot and sour is arguably the best bowl of soup to get around here on a cold night. Open late night, which is the only time I go other than the Chinese New Year celebrations if you can get a spot next to the window.
The noodle soup place right on the SE corner of Race and 11th is a good bet – they have a Satay pork ho fun for those (like me) who like the thick noodles. Also has good warm soups for a cold night.
Panang on 117 N. 10th between Race and Arch is a popular Malaysian place.
Joy Tsin Lau, Race Street between 10th and 11th. The classic Philly venue for dim sum
Joe’s Peking Duck is for if you have to have Peking Duck, next to Xe Express.
Ray’s Café and Teahouse, next to Harmony (141 9th) is good for Taiwanese. It is also a good place to go for coffee; if you want to pay $5 for a cup of coffee, the coffee is very, very good.
If you have to park on the street in Chinatown, your best bet is on Arch Street.
The Supermarket on Race between 10th and 11th has been good staple for many years, which proffers cans of roasted eel for a little over a dollar (breakfast is the most important meal of the day!). The tea selection here favors the more self-explanatory, such as the Foojoy line.
However, the place on 11th Street down the stairs has a larger floor space and more authentic selection of just about everything. Teas I like there include: 1) Vietnamese bitter gourd tea which is the best thing for the stomach, (2) a user-friendly Japanese green tea w/ rice in bags with no caffeine (the one with the landscape on the box) which is not as strong and flavorful as the loose versions but always tasty, (3) a recent discovery called 'Healthy Date,' which I was hoping was an aphrodisiac, but closer inspection indicated it was seasoned with dates, and as such is a quite flavorful caffeine shot, (4) the can of loose lychee black.
Italian market
An afternoon is well-spent in the Italian Market getting a vegetarian hoagie at Sarcone’s (eggplant, broccoli rabe, cheese, and roasted peppers), then a torrone (nougat and pistachio) at Isgro’s around the corner on Christian Street near 9th, which can be eaten on the way to or inside Molly’s Books a few steps further South, run by the poet Molly Russakoff who is writing a memoir of Naropa during the tumultuous 80s. A Mexican sit down place is Taquiera la Veracruzana at the corner of 9th and Washington which makes a chile rellano taco for $3 that would be popular in Veracruz. Washington Street is the one of the best Little Saigons in the country, with two large Vietnamese supermarkets wherein you can stock up on $1 noodle cups with the delicious Viet-Cambodian seasoning packets.
Old City
The best place to get a Philly cheesesteak in Center City is Campo’s Market on 214 Market. From there you can walk North on 2nd and encounter two good used book stores and the Nexus Gallery.
Old City has a lot of popular places which are moderate and up: Steven Starr has become a local legend creating well-decorated knock-offs of various styles of ethnic cuisines. Generally it’s not a great place for a good eating value. For a good cheap to moderately priced place with atmosphere, there’s Ariana on 134 Chestnut, an Afghan place where carnivores can get their mutton fix and vegetarians can enjoy dishes similar to Indian staples.
NOTE: Urartu is closed. A lot of my favorite places close.
Cheesesteaks
If you have a car and you want to taste the best Philly cheesesteak, hit Steve’s Prince of Steaks. Get on 95 North from Center City, then exit on Cottman Ave. Drive about ten minutes and right after the intersection with Roosevelt Blvd. (Rt. 1), you’ll see the Roosevelt Mall coming up on your right. Look to the left for Bustleton Road. Take a left onto Bustleton, and the keep an eye to your right for St. Vincent, two blocks after the turn. A sign for Steves is there but it is hard to see.
When you get in there, there are two ordering windows, one for drinks and one for your sandwich (which you go to first). What I get is a cheesesteak with American cheese and fried onions, with or without mushrooms. Their mushrooms add a nice touch, but may get in the way based on your tastes. They have mozzarella (for a buck more) and the local staple Cheese Whiz (why would you want that voluntarily?), but though I generally like mozzarella better, the American melts best with the other ingredients.
What sets this place apart is the thick, fresh meat cuts and the freshness of the rolls. The staff has a bit of an attitude, but this is in a good natured way and they can be quite friendly with the right approach to things. You eat the food on a counter facing the window in an Art Deco style rail car - type construction with local regulars.
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