Give Me Broccoli Rabe, or Give Me Death: 48 Hours in Philly

City Center Philadelphia around lunch time, with plenty of bustle
and one of the numerous Pakistani-owned Halal food carts in the area

Granted, I have not visited all the big metro cities on the East Coast yet. But in terms of feel and bustling energy that only a big city has, Philadelphia feels the most like San Francisco to me, with a little more age and space added in, not to mention a couple dozen or three Halal-style food carts scattered throughout the City Center area.

A mere two days really isn’t enough to absorb a city the size of Philly, but it is enough to lend impressions like these, and enough to make you anticipate when you might be able to squeeze in another trip in the future.

Java Broad-side: Bottoms Up and Third Way Cafe

Columbus's vigorous coffee scene has headed west in recent months
down Broad Street, one of the city's historically main thoroughfares

For those in the know, the Columbus coffee scene continues to steam as vigorously as milk for a latte drink, prior to and ever since the well-respected Sprudge Media Group's listing Ohio's capital city as one of its Five Underrated Coffee Cities. Just in the past several months alone, a bevy of local favorites, from Fox In The Snow, Roaming Goat Roasters, and Stauf's either opening new locations or on the verge of expansion.

Of course, the places to grab a lovely cup of java around here tend to be concentrated in select neighborhoods, with the Short North, German Village, and Downtown being prime hot spots. But I personally like to the opportunity for a good cup of joe filter out to lesser served parts of the metro, as I found out headed toward parts west on Broad Street during recent travels.

Food Truck Dossier: Nothin But Nadas

Food Truck: Nothin But Nadas

My First Thought: With "nada" meaning "nothing" in Spanish, we have Billy Preston here, right? (Nothin' but nadas leaves nothin'...okay, it's a big stretch, but that's how my mind works.)

Reality: The food truck's name really doesn't lie: this trailer serves nothing but freshly fried up empanadas with various fillings. Despite a noticeable warning sign about the empanadas being super hot, I've found they generally are sufficiently cooled off enough after a couple of minutes to be handled safely by both hand and mouth.

Sandwiches Around The Statehouse: Si Señor

One of the San Francisco Bay Area's slightly under the radar culinary treasures lies in its Peruvian restaurants. From the more upscale (Limon, Piqueos and Fresca) to the street level (Sanguchon and Cholo Soy,) you'll most likely be treated to something almost familiar but ultimately tasty in the end. Columbus does not have much in the Peruvian category at either end (alas) but it's most prominent representative is a good one: the sandwich-oriented Si Señor.

Like most downtown places, Si Señor can get busy around the lunchtime hour, but its popularity exceeds that of many of its surrounding restaurants. This has not stopped the sometimes overflow crowds as their sandwiches, where even standard-sounding offerings like Grilled Cheese and a Meatloaf Sandwich are given a Peruvian or Latin twist, rate high on the flavor scale.

Nowadays, the restaurant crew handles high volume of customers with plenty of aplomb. After their initial move, a couple of my orders ended up lost in the shuffle, but I have not noticed this issue in recent visits. Despite this, Si Señor would not be the place to go if you wanted a quick grab-and-go meal unless you arrived before the lunch rush.  If you are not inclined to fight the crowds and are able to grab a later lunch (or even early dinner), the restaurant has unusually long hours (11 AM to 6 PM) that probably signifies how popular this sandwich place has become.

Chicharrón Peruano sandwich, plus pics of the interior

For a space wedged in a downtown alley, the restaurant's interior is fairly spacious all things considered, with nice artistic touches such as wood-paneled floors and various pieces of artwork, including a display of simply inscribed ceramic dishes.

I've found that you really can't go wrong with their pork sandwiches, enjoying both the Pork and Pork (pork loin topped with chorizo) and the Chicharrón Peruano (pictured here; Peruvian style fried pork shoulder with salsa criolla (pickled red onions)) sandwiches during my visits. Ostensibly healthier options on the sandwich side include a Roasted Portabella with Chimichurri and a Peruvian Style Chicken Salad and Tuna Melt, as well as a collection of salads and their meat empanadas.

Their prices (basically between $5 to $7) makes these tasty sandwiches a solid value; I'd personally add on the combo deal where you can add a beverage and their nicely crunchy homemade potato chips or a side salad for a couple extra bucks. Tres Leches cake slices, flan, and lime pie slices are also available if you need your sweet tooth satisfied, as well as an intriguing box of homemade "Tejas" candies at the front register that I have yet to try, to my chagrin.

Si Señor continues to do a great job in producing uniquely tasty sandwiches and is definitely worth a spot on any downtown-goer's sandwich spot rotation.

2017 Update: Si Señor has been so successful, they have expanded into Grandview Heights with a second location. For more information, please click on the previous link or consult the updated social media links for the downtown location below.

Si Señor
72 E Lynn St (Downtown - Google Maps)
Columbus, Ohio 43215
(614) 227-0070
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