Philadelphia Weekly

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Quesadilla los Gallos, Los Gallos
$8. 951 Wolf St.
“It’s like al pastor on LSD.” -Felicia D’Ambrosio, Philly community manager for Yelp.com

Salt-baked squid, Lee How Fook
$10.95. 219 N. 11th St.

Smoked coconut club, Memphis Taproom
$8. 2331 E. Cumberland St.
Grilled lemon-garlic tofu and smoked coconut sandwich.

Whiskey doughnuts, Johnny Brenda’s
$2. 1201 N. Frankford Ave.
House-made brunch special.

The Gustaio, Paesano’s
$9. 152 W. Girard Ave.
The Gustaio is a perfect and unexpected match of lamb sausage with dried cherry mustarda, gorgonzola spread, roasted fennel and arugula, I can’t explain it; it’s so good it makes me confused. -Daniel McLaughlin, thethirteenthdiet.com

Godzilla roll, Umai Umai
$16. 533 N. 22nd St.
“The Godzilla roll is crab tempura wrapped in sticky rice and topped with sliced strawberries, avocado, macadamia nuts, and honey drizzle. This monstrous roll is distinguished by visual stimulation—It’s pretty sexy, but also the textural contrasts at play. Umai is a cozy BYO—so bring a bottle of champers or a spritzy white ale like Hitachino to pair. -Suzanne Woods, beerlass.com

Tea leaf salad, Rangoon
$8.50. 112 N. Ninth St.
“This is the only spot I know of to get traditional Burmese green tea leaf salad in Philly. When done right, the bitter, uber-funky tea leaves plus the nuttiness and crunch of the peanuts and the freshness of the cilantro and lime creates an intense contrast of flavor and texture that is like nothing else in the world." -Jamie, midtownlunch.com/philadelphia

Flounder Hoagie, 16th Street Seafood
$5. 1542 Tasker St.

Authentic

Pierogies, Czerw’s Kielbasy (Polish)
$7 per dozen. 3370 Tilton St.
“As your prototypical Philadelphia lapsed-Catholic mutt, I can lay claim to three distinct ethnic foodways: Italian, Irish and Polish. Since tubular meats are not really my thing, pierogies became my fallback favorite for Eastern European eating. A package of the stuffed dumplings from Czerw’s is my yardstick for pierogie perfection. Pan-fried in plenty of butter with onions, the farmers cheese-and-potato combination is the most authentic Polish bite in town. The cheesesteak or buffalo chicken versions are less timeless but just as tasty.” -Felicia D’Ambrosio, Philly community manager for Yelp.com

Phnom Penh noodles, New Phnom Penh (Cambodian)
$5.75. 2301 S. Seventh St.

Beef randang, Hardena (Indonesian)
$7-$9. 1754 S. Hicks St.

Kebabs, Divan’s Turkish Kitchen
$10-$12. 918 S. 22nd St.
“My experiences at Divan’s have always been consistently fresh and delicious on account of their authenticity delivered through simplicity. Ilker, the owner, explained once that he was motivated to open a restaurant after discovering Philly’s deficiency in authentic Turkish cuisine. I’m always pleased with all the grilled meat there for that simplicity.” -Mike Geno, foodie-group.blogspot.com

Jja jang myun, Tae Hwa Kwan (Korean)
$5. 5201 N. Fifth St.

Tomato pie, Tacconelli’s Pizzeria (Philadelphian)
$15-$30. 2604 E. Somerset St.

 Canelés, Market Day Canelé (French)
$1. various locations.
America's demands for "bigger, faster, cheaper" usually negate authenticity, requiring cut corners that fit factory-sized orders. Market Day's caneles follow the rules of original recipes from Bordeaux. They are small, laborious and expensive to bake, making it worth the splurge to leave them in the hands of an expert. -Tara Desmond, crumbsonmykeyboard.com

Dan dan noodles, Han Dynasty (Szechuan)
$7.95. 108 Chestnut St.

Seitan Cheesesteak, Blackbird Pizzeria
$8. 507 S. Sixth St.
“What makes this faux version of Philly’s precious sandwich the best? The peppers, onions and mushrooms coated in Daiya vegan cheese help, but it’s the thinly sliced seitan that nails it—seitan became popular when local producer Ray’s introduced it to the East Coast.” -Kelly Phillips, livingonthevedge.net

Stuffed cabbage, Jovan’s Place (Yugoslavian/Serbian)
$7. 2327 E. York St.
Marinated cabbage, hand-rolled and stuffed with deliciousness.

Fried oysters with chicken salad, Oyster House (Philadelphian)
$13. 1516 Sansom St.
“Philadelphia’s gastronomical odd couple of chicken salad and fried oysters, according to Craig LaBan, dates back to a time when chicken was expensive and the Delaware River overflowed with oysters. Some thrifty restaurateur added fried oysters to the plate so he didn’t have to use as much chicken salad. A bit more history—it was a Philadelphia chef, L. F. Mazzetti, who perfected oyster frying.” -Holly Moore, HollyEats.com