Over the weekend, the Michael W Travels family headed to Philadelphia for a one night stay at the DoubleTree located in Center City. (We booked the stay to use our Spend A Night On Us Certificate from our recent Hilton Grand Vacations Timeshare Offer.)
We had no set plans besides visiting the close-by Legoland Discovery Center the following day.
One of the reasons we love Philadelphia is because its such a great food city.
During this trip, there was a food experience that we had to conquer. I wanted to give the famed Philly Taco a try!
Some of you are probably wondering, what’s a Philly taco? Well, a Philly taco isn’t like any taco you’ve seen before. It isn’t really a taco. What it is, is two awesome local foods combined to make a massive, local delicacy.
The Philly Taco can be had by visiting South Street. It consists of a cheesesteak from Jim’s Steaks (one of my favs) wrapped in a ginormous slice from Lorenzo And Sons Pizza.
When we showed up on South Street, we immediately ran into a problem. There was a line half way around the block at Jim’s Steaks. I had to think fast. We were really hungry so rather than wait on the long line, I got a cheesesteak from another shop.
Across the street from Jim’s and just down the block from Lorenzo And Sons is what I had heard was another excellent cheesesteak shop. I figured it was worth giving Ishkabibbles a try.
I ordered a cheesesteak with wiz and then headed down the block to grab a slice (or two).
When we got to Lorenzo And Sons Pizza, the shop was busy. It’s standing room only- you can stand at a narrow L- shaped counter as you enjoy your pizza.
Before trying a slice, I figured that Lorenzo And Sons would be a really good slice. It’s made many lists and ranks #83 and this year’s 101 Best Pizzas in America list from Thrillist.
The slice is so big that it’s got to be served on two plates!
I needed two hands just to hold the slice up.
The one negative with getting a cheesesteak to go is that way too much cheese gets lots in the foil and paper. Regardless, it looked really tasty.
Here are the two components of the Philly Taco. ( I just wonder, is it still a Philly Taco- even if I didn’t get a cheesesteak from Jim’s?)
As you can see, the slice is so huge that the cheesesteak fits with a little room to spare. I saw online that another way to merge to two foods is to roll the cheesesteak in the pizza. I found the method I chose to work well enough.
Lucas couldn’t believe what I was doing- look at his face! I had to figure out how to attack this Philly Taco. It was pretty heavy and not so easy to handle.
I lifted it with two hands and went in for a bite.
I found the best method was to bend down, closer to the counter. This would allow any overflow to fall onto the plates.
I was beyond surprised at how good the Philly Taco was. Cheesesteak meat on a really good slice of pizza tastes delicious!
I ate a good amount of this massive meal before Lucas and Kim gave it a try. Lucas loved it and wanted more! Kim was reluctant to give it a try. After doing so, she was also surprised by how tasty the Philly Taco was.
Final Thoughts:
Overall, I really loved the Philly Taco. It clearly isn’t a healthy meal or something that should be consumed frequently but I do plan on having it again (with a Jim’s Steaks cheesesteak) next time we visit Philadelphia!
Would you give the Philly Taco a try or do you think it sounds like a gross food combination?
Lorenzo And Sons Pizza is located at 305 South Street, Ishkabibbles is located at 337 South Street and Jim’s Steaks is located at 400 South Street.
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Pat- I heard about it within the past few years but its been around for a while. I’ve enjoyed Jim’s the times I’ve been there. Johns Roast Pork is very good. The one place I didn’t like was Tony Luke’s. Never gave it another try. I’ll write Mac’s down. Thanks for the tip, never heard of it.
The Philly Taco is a new thing. I’ve lived in the Philadelphia suburbs my whole life and just heard about it a year ago.
btw Jim’s is among my least favorite cheesesteaks in Philly. They apply the cheese to the bun instead of the beef, which is a travesty. I would recommend (in no order: John’s Roast Pork, Steve’s, or Mac’s Tavern.
I want to like South Street but never understood the appeal; the best parts of Philly for visitors are Rittenhouse Square (plus the nearby Museum district) and Old City.
Allen- That’s definitely possible.
This must be a tourist thing, I have lived in Philadelphia to 32 years and never once have i of the Philly Taco except for travel blogs and tv shows