I think that Philadelphia is one of those unsung cities. Overshadowed by NYC and DC, it isn't talked about or a vacation destination. I totally could have spent more time there.
We ended up booking a pretty nice hotel in a nice location for a nice price. Courtyard Philadelphia City Center. It certainly was in the CENTER. Center of everything. It was pretty harrowing to drive through the streets with my trusty Google Maps. The GPS didn't mess up. I did. I continued to turn to early and then had to loop several blocks to get back. I got it on the third try. -sigh-
The valet is robbery at this location, but after the trek to the hotel, I was more than happy to surrender my car to the valet guys. Cabs for us!
We immediately hopped a cab and beelined for the famous CHEESESTEAK area. This is the place that you see on the Travel Channel and Food Network. We wanted to try it on our own!
In Philly there are two serious contenders for cheesesteaks. Geno's and Pat's. They are on opposite corners and compete as the BEST in town. We got two cheesesteaks at Geno's, one with "wiz" and one with provolone. We then crossed the street and got two from Pat's. "Wiz" and provolone again. We cut each one up into four pieces and compared.
The winner is.................Geno's!!!! They have a better bread and moister meat product. Geno's was superior with "wiz" and provolone. This was a completely scientific experiment and I count it as "science" for Isabel for the day. Wonderful data collection!
While taking pictures, I looked down and thought this was cute...
Next, we headed back to the hotel and decided to check out the Reading Market. It was wonderful. A mix of different food vendors and deliciousness. I did have to buy some olive oil at The Tubby Olive. We also had to pick up some doughnuts and more beef jerky. YUM!
Huge pumpkin found!!! Guess the weight!
City view outside the market
We headed to the hotel to get the girls settled for the night. Mommy and Daddy dinner tonight!!!
For those of you who know, I am an exteme foodie. I love to cook, make new recipes, and try new restaurants. About a decade ago, when the first version of Iron Chef became popular, I was an avid watcher. I loved Sakai and his French-Asian fusion. Morimoto was the expert in sushi and seafood. Don't forget Kenichi with his Chinese fare!
When I heard about eight years ago that Chef Morimoto was opening a restaurant in Philadelphia, I was excited, but had no reason to go there... sad.
I wasn't giving up now! I was able to book a reservation to the restaurant and it was a couple blocks from the hotel!!
Chris and I dressed up and walked there for our 8:15 reservation. I was sooooo exited when we walked up to the place!
Poor Chris! He realized he was headed to a mainly sushi menu and doesn't like sushi. Actually, it wasn't that he didn't like sushi, it was that he was afraid to try it!
We chose to get the Chef's tasting menu. It was about 9-10 courses of small bites. We started off well with a tuna tatare that Chris loved!!! Most of the food was amazing and Chris only disliked the Sashimi course.
The Maitre'd talked with us and we discovered that he was from Tampa! A fellow central Floridian. He sent us out an additional plate of scallop because we were Morimoto fans.
Fancy!
Chris ordered an amazing tasting beer (Most of you know that I don't drink beer, but I would drink this! It tasted of hazelnut and was redolent of hoppiness.) that I had to keep the bottle. What a tourist I am!
This was one of the best culinary experiences of my life. I have been dreaming of going here and was so excited that I got to go!!! Thank you so much Chris!
The next day, we headed out on our history jaunt. First we headed to the Reading Market again and had brunch.
We took a cab to the liberty bell area and immediately hired a carriage driver for an hour tour of the city and it's historic sites. We apparently got a history teacher and he spent his time comparing how NYC, DC, and Charleston are VASTLY inferior in historic significance. It was hilarious and informative. Cici loved it. Isabel was... less than impressed.
Isabel was waiting for the BELL!!!
Last year, when in school, Isabel had a monuments project. She came home complaining that she had seen every monument "except the liberty bell." I promised her that she would see it soon. I was very happy to bring her there less than six months later.
Last thing we did in the city was wander around and take some pictures. Everyone agreed that Philadelphia was awesome and we want more time there, but alas!!! It is time for NYC!!!
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