South Philly’s Italian Market is filled with secret nooks and crannies where fish heads and blocks of cheese pop out. But a few stars shine brightest in the bustling marketplace. For more Italian market favorites check out 34st.com/fooddrink
Isgro’s Pasticceria
1009 Christian St.
Isgro’s Pasticceria is a pastry shop with delicate sweets stored in industrial–sized displays. Isgro’s has been around for over 100 years, in the same family and the same location. This history lends it the status of insitution and the feeling that this is the place to get your sweet on. And it is, especially if you’re looking for straight–from–Italy pastries prepared from recipes that are guarded family secrets. Isgro’s pride is its hand–stuffed cannolis. They come in a few flavors, but the less sweet, more complex ricotta is what they’re famous for. If you head down there during holiday time, (and we’re told we should) expect long lines, mass amounts of sugar and exuberant, giant cakes.
Cannuli’s Meats
937 S. 9th St.
Located just down the street from Giordano’s, this meat market specializes in poultry. Cannuli’s Meats is a small indoor shop. There was a sense of excitement inside, where the workers knew what they were doing and wanted to be there. While in FroGro you’ll be served your chicken breasts with a side of anger sautéed in sadness, the only side you’ll get with your meat at Cannuli’s is knowledge broiled in pride. Next time it’s date night, head down to Cannuli’s to cook that special one a beautiful chicken dinner.
The Spice Corner
904 S. 9th St.
Past the smiling fish heads and bickering grocers, The Spice Corner is a shop for a serious person with serious cooking plans. Even the air smells appetizing and aspirational. It’s the shop you want to be your neighborhood grocery, a precursor to any home–cooked meal. Though the specificity of the spices is daunting, many of the powdery concoctions are labeled with the dishes they belong to, like apple pie or masala curry. Curly leaves and dead flowers sit in jars along the tea wall. Unfortunately, brewing this tea requires complex tea gear, way beyond that of a disposable tea bag.
Anthony’s Italian Coffee House
903 S. 9th St.
You won’t find a single Starbucks logo at Anthony’s Italian Coffee House. Here, the Italian pride is evident, with old–country posters on the walls and a homey, family–owned ambiance that is crafty and appealing. Make the trip on a rainy day: this is the sort of cozy coffee shop made cozier by horrible weather outdoors. Amid the vigorous whirr of the espresso machine, we sipped coffee from sturdy porcelain mugs. A sign boasts that the paninis are “authentic Italian,” a difficult claim to make when even campus cafeterias offer a sandwich press. Their pastries, featuring anything sweet bundled up in dough, are delicious.
P&F Giordano
1043 S. 9th St.
Located on the corner of 9th and Washington, the southern entrance to the Italian Market, Giordano’s welcomes you with a huge array of meats and vegetables. The front of Giordano’s is pleasant, with butchered meats sitting in ice next to beautiful red peppers. But the excitement is all in the back. There you can find full cuts of beef and perfect cold cuts. And while ordering, you may be shocked by the pounding of a knife on the counter wielded by a young woman chopping the legs of feathered poultry. I wouldn’t have known, but my Italian traveling partner made me aware of the lack of Italian meats in this market. Gabagool, for example, was sadly lacking from this welcoming store.
Bebe’s BBQ
1017 S. 9th St.
If you’re in the Italian Market, you’d better “be” here. This barbeque joint is filled with big sandwiches that you can find nowhere else for the same price. One of the few places in the Italian market that is a true restaurant and not purely a food market selling eyeballs and kidneys for $5 a pound, Bebe’s finds a niche in the Italian Market where you can get some immediate satisfaction from the meat you’re buying. After shopping for all your special Italian meat for date night, head over to Bebe’s for a brilliant BBQ bite.
