Pink Rose Pastry - Almost Quaint

I'm going to have two blogs featuring places I ate at on a recent South Street trip. Yes, I do eat on South Street fairly often. Shopping at Passional makes me hungry, and they always require you to eat before making a visit at Infinite or Body Graphics. Since these are the top three reasons I go to South Street, it leads to a lot of noshing in Philly.

Today I'm going to feature The Pink Rose Cafe. Sir Forksalot, CreampuffGrrl, and SpoonsMacgee went there one evening after a day of shopping. I've been there twice in the past. Once I was ignored by the two people working behind the counter for so long I skipped out and went across the street to Famous 4th Street Deli for cookies instead. The second time, I had a very nice time and the service was friendly. However on the third time out of the gate, I think I have to give up. Our waitress acted very put out by our presence. My original selection wasn't available, so I asked for a few minutes longer to decide. I went to the counter to tell her my order (as she was the only one there and currently getting our drinks) and she ignored me, walking by me twice.

The decor is done in a shabby-chic french countryside look, heavy on the pink. This look would be better accomplished if you couldn't see into the very industrial, cramped, dark, almost dirty looking kitchen area. This would be a fine time to invest in better lighting or block off that area from view. They also have a large snapple refridgerator that throws off the look as well, not to mention causing the place to lose several notches in my book for serving snapple tea rather than the real deal.

Their bathroom is a tiny closet tucked away in the corner. The sink leaks, and the this literal water closet (it's as small as one) reeks of my Grandmother's house - like stale cigarettes. Using the bathroom is a challenge for anyone who weighs more than 150lbs, as you will have to twist yourself inside out to get into the facilities.

If you take the time to walk through the bakery and read all of the plaques on the wall, you'll realize the bakery has actually won many awards for it's baked goods. Look a little closer, and you'll notice the dates which tell you this place used to be a really awesome place to eat....In the late 90's.

Here's the lowdown:

-Iced coffee is so bitter you'll wonder what tar pit it was scraped out of. I like strong coffee, but this stuff could have powered my SUV for at least five miles.

SpoonsMacGee had an Ultimate Brownie:


Price: $4

He deemed it "delectable". Obviously too large for a person to eat in one sitting, unless said person had recently had a bad breakup or was suffering from an especially heinous case of PMS, this brownie is meant to be shared. He said it felt like once it hit his stomach, it expanded like a ballon being inflated. Despite this statement, we have no reason to believe he is a drug mule, simple that this is one heavy piece of chocolate goodness.


Next up, Sir Forksalot's Millinais:


Price: $2

What the hell is a Millinais? It's a french hazelnut flavored sponge cake. That's how the menu described it, although Sir Forksalot said it ate more like a pound cake. Very dense, crispy on the outside and moist in the center, covered with powdered sugar. This was the smallest of the desserts we ordered, and could be easily enjoyed in a single sitting. I had a bite, and although I wasn't blown away it was an enjoyable bit of sweetness that would go well with a good cup of coffee and morning paper. Obviously, not coffee that you got at the Pink Rose.


CreampuffGrrl ordered the Raspberry and Creme Napoleon.


Price: Err... I forgot.

According to her, it was dynamite. Right mixture of Raspberry Preserves and Creme, it had a light taste and a touch of tart from the raspberries. However, due to the toughness of the pasty, you needed a steak knife to eat it. Her attempts at using a fork and butter knife left her looking like she'd been involved in a cocaine bust. I did get to enjoy a bite of hers, and I will say I was envious of her pastry choice.

And finally, my Signature Eclair


Price: $7

The picture doesn't quite capture how incredibly massive this thing is. It's literally the size of a softball, and then some. I only ate a quarter of it, and forced CreampuffGrrl to take a quarter of it home with her. The cream is isn't overpoweringly sweet and the chocolate is semi-sweet, however I wish they'd top it with more strawberries to give it a better balance of sweetness. My main axe to grind was the puff pastry. Any part not covered in chocolate was stale as a crouton. Not enjoyable at all. It seems that although enjoyed by my companions, the Pink Rose Cafe and I are doomed to dislike each other. Especially after I read that the Signature Eclair is mentioned in the book "Good In Bed" that I particularly hated.


Though my dining companions might not agree, my final vote is to skip this wanna-be tearoom and head across the street to Famous 4th Street Deli where they give you a smile with your cookies.

Jim's Steaks: Better than Pat's or Geno's, for real.

In Philadelphia, the battleground for cheesesteak fame has always been at the intersection of 9th and Passyunk. This is where the legendary Pat's Steaks and Geno's Steaks are located at, catty-corner from each other. Each of these establishments claim to have invented cheesesteak, and inturn have the better cheesesteak. Pat's tries to booster it's claim to cheesesteak superiority by having the rudest little shits in all of South Philly running the counter. Geno's, meanwhile, tries to booster itself by drowning out the light of the moon with more neon lights than a Las Vegas go-go bar with half the taste. I've eaten at both, and each left me with the same feeling: that I needed to floss vigorously to get the half a cow out that was still stuck in my teeth.

My cheesesteak heart has come to belong at the corner of South&4th St, at Jim's Steaks. I have never been there anytime of day when there wasn't a line, usually out the door and around the corner. The guys at the counter are in a hurry and you'd best be ready to order when you get to the counter, but they won't cop an attitude if you don't use the "proper" ordering lingo. When my good friend Soda-Frybread was in town from Phoenix, I took her to Jim's South Street location to satisfy her cheesesteak tooth.


The counter at Jim's, smell the cheesesteaky goodness.


Jim's has a distinct Art Deco style. You can see the black and white sign like a beacon in a sea of neon. The tile and signs are all set in black and white, fitted against the chrome counters, fixtures, and stove. You've heard of the velvet rope? At Jim's they have a chrome rope, helping to keep people from jumping the ever present line.

While waiting in line at Jim's, and you will be, you can spend your time reading the walls which are decorated with reviews, articles, and pictures of famous patrons. This is especially helpful if the D-bag in the pink Abercrombie t-shirt behind you in line starts running his mouth about how you'll never be able to get a seat upstairs. Behind the counter Jim's has several glass refrigerator cases full of drinking options including Yoo-Hoo, Dr. Brown's sodas, and beer. The smell of the meat and onions cooking on the grill will make your mouth salivate like teenage boy opening his first girly magazine. In true Philly fashion, the steaks are served on Amoroso rolls. You can get your order to go, or to eat in the up stair's dining area. Soda-Frybread and I each got "Whiz,wit" or roughly translated from Philadelphianese: Cheesesteaks with fried onions and Cheez Whiz. Soda-Frybread also got a package of Tastykakes to complete the quintessential Philly meal.

Soda-Frybread's Cheesesteak:




The cheesesteaks at Jim's are juicy and flavorful. I'll allow that Jim's steaks are kind of greasy, but this is a cheesesteak, not a soy burger. The onions are cooked till they are tender and sweet, and the salt of the Cheez Whiz compliments them. I've had the cheesesteaks with provolone cheese, which are good but have a heavier cheese flavor. I washed down the salty, greasy, cheesy goodness with a Dr. Brown's Cream Soda. If it's available, get the Pennsylvania Dutch Birch Beer.

The Cheesesteak aftermath:



I always suggest eating in the upstairs dining area, which gives you a panoramic view of South Street. Seating is limited so you may need to make new friends in order to get a seat. If you snag a spot by the window you can enjoy your meal while watching the on going scene on the street below.


View from Jim's:




Jim's is well worth the trip into center city, the fight for parking, and the long wait. According to Soda-Frybread, it's even worth a cross continental flight!

Lickity Split: Home of the best lunch bargain on South Street.

Three things I love: Good food, booze, and a bargian. When all three of these things combine, it makes my inner foodie/alcoholic/cheapskate sing. After a hard day of shopping and body modification on the world famous South Street my traveling companion of the day, ChopStixx and I went in search of lunch. For those of you unfamiliar with South Street, allow me to enlighten you: South Street is a cornucopia of eateries and shops. You can choose from middle eastern, vegan, French, bar fare, Thai, kosher, sushi, etc all within a few block's span. Lunch is easy to find. Picking one place...that's where it gets tough. We strolled for a few blocks, not finding anything that really called out to us. Then we spied a sign hanging outside of Lickity Split that would live in infamy:





16oz of Pabst Blue Ribbon, shot of Power's whiskey, and a slice of pizza for $5? Oh, talk dirty to me.

In the upstairs bar our friendly bartender took our orders and set out our drinks for us as our pizza warmed in the kitchen. The second floor bar affords you a nice view of South Street, and across the street into Jim's Steaks. This is prime people watching, if you're into it. ChopStixx and I overfed the digital jukebox before getting down to the very serious business of getting drunk during the mid afternoon. With a happy little dance, we found that the jukebox contained Dropkick Murphy's, Flogging Molly, and Queens of the Stone age. Rock out with your PBR out!



I admit, I was hesitant. I figured if nothing else, the pizza slice would be puny and tasteless. After all, once you're half loaded on cheap whiskey and beer your taste buds have usually ceased proper function anyway. Au contraire, my sweet. Imagine my shock and delight as our bartender rolled out of the kitchen toting this:



Quite possibly the biggest slice of pizza I've ever seen. Tastey too! Despite being half in the bag at this point, I will make two complaints about the pizza: The sauce needed a little more oomph and the cheese was lackluster. However the crust was solid, and the sauce carried enough flavor that an extra sprinkling of garlic salt and hot peppers brought the flavor out nicely. But the portions were gigantic, and it satisfied a mean hunger.


For less than the cost of a value meal at Mc.D's, we satisfied our hunger, got drunk, and had a bar side sing along. Sweet!

To Lickity Split, we dub thee the finest lunch deal in all of South Street!

ChopStixx tested, Fox approved!