korean tacos

Korean tacos have been all the craze lately - I love Mexican food and I love Korean food, so I knew I would love them. They have been really popular on the West Coast for a while now, but have recently made their way eastward and you can now find them in three restaurants in the city. And what better way to give them a try than to do a little taste test of all three places!

The first place I tried was Ladder 15. Unfortunately, I didn't take photos of the tacos, but for $11, I got one braised short rib taco and one pork belly taco. Pretty good deal considering they were pretty filling. However, they were only good - not great. I'm not sure if I would order them again.

Then there was Meritage - home of the Korean fried chicken...MMMMMM. I expected a lot from them considering how much I love their chicken - which by the way is still available though at least the end of the year! Yippee!! Well, let me tell you, I was definitley not disappointed by their version of the Korean taco. You get one taco for $5 and it's pork belly, special Korean bbq sauce, kimchi and other yummy ingredients that I can't remember. I orderded one, and it was so good that I had to order another. BIG thumbs up.

The third place I tried was Giwa. Giwa is almost like a Korean fast food place - but WAY better than any American fast food restaurant you've ever been to. Their kalbi is really good and so is their soon du bu. Their tacos, however, not so good. I knew I was in trouble when I saw that they were topped with cheese. I was tempted to ask for them without the cheese, but I thought, hey - maybe they know something I don't. But I was right:( Most times I love being right, but I was really hoping that these would be good! For $5, I got a chicken taco and a pork taco. So cheap! But I won't be getting these again...I don't think they would be that much better without the cheese...

Do you guys know of any other places with Korean tacos? Have you tried making them at home?

night market - east passyunk version

I was really excited for last night's "Night Market" - what's better than eating and drinking outside in your neighborhood on a perfect fall night? Reminds me how much I love living in the city!

Good thing I got there early because it got crowded fast and the food lines were ridiculous. By 8, vendors started running out of food! The market wrapped around the "singing fountain" on Passyunk and extended to Passyunk and Dickinson. Here's a photo of the market before it got too packed:



I didn't eat much for lunch in preparation for the market! I tried a bunch of things including shrimp ceviche from the Cantina...



sweet potato tacos from Honest Tom's (I think my favorite of the night!)...



arancini (super cheesey Italian rice balls) from Paradiso and pork gyoza from Izumi. And of course a little red wine...





And of course a meal isn't complete without something sweet at the end! I had a delicious sugar cookie ice cream sandwich thanks to the Jimmies Cupcake truck!



I really wish this event was a weekly thing! We'll have to wait until spring of 2011 for the next one:(

honest tom's

If you haven't already tried the tacos from Honest Tom's food truck - you should get on it! They're fast, cheap and delicous. I recently tried their breakfast taco (see below) but have also had their fish and sweet potato tacos. YUM. You can find them at Clark Park on Saturday mornings and on Drexel's campus (33rd and Arch) during the week. They also stop at other locations - you can stay updated with thru twitter or facebook.

farmer's markets + lunch

This past weekend I decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and take a couple of nice long walks through the city. On Saturday we ended up at Fitler Square and checked out the farmer's market there and on Sunday we went to the market at Headhouse Square.

My boyfriend (Eric) and I are part of a CSA this year, so we're already loaded with veggies at home (although those tomatoes looked REALLY tempting!). We didn't get much produce but we did have an awesome lunch at Headhouse Square. Los Taquitos de Puebla is a Mexican restaurant on 9th Street and every Sunday they have a stand at the market selling tacos and quesadillas. I've been to their restaurant quite a few times and always get food at their stand when I'm at the farmer's market - and I get the same thing again and again: tacos al pastor. Its pork (roasted on an open spit), chunks of fresh pineapple, cilantro and fresh salsa. SOOO DELICIOUS.



There's also a lemonade stand called "Twisted Lemonade". No, they're not alcoholic, but they do offer different flavors (berry lemonade, basil lemonade, etc). I stick to the classic because its so tasty. I've also read that there's a new food truck called Renaissance Sausage that serves locally made sausages from 9:30am-2pm every Sunday, but we couldn't find them:( I guess I'll just have to make another trip back soon!