Tucked away between 11th and 12th on Locust is Iron Chef Jose Garces’ latest Philadelphia endeavor, the Garces Trading Company. We’re truly amazed that in just four short years the man has been able to open up six restaurants in our lovely city, with a seventh already on the way in the Cira Centre. Unlike his previous projects which follow more of a traditional restaurant theme, GTC is a one of a kind, pioneer establishment in this city.

Featuring a long list of their own lines of coffee, cheese, house-made charcuterie and meats (the Village Whiskey burger blend is available to-go), oil and vinegar and house-baked breads, GTC is part gourmet market/deli and dine-in cafe with the addition with a very unique, State Store inside the building. Despite the clumsiness of Pennsylvania’s restrictions on wine and liquor, GTC’s special arrangement allows patrons have the ability to buy a bottle of wine and consume it on premises as if it were brought in like a BYO.

Dine-in options feature a nice selection of European-inspired, plates from antipasti, soups and salads, sandwiches, pasta, pizza. The notable exception to the European theme would be the deep dish pizza pies, more than likely a result of Garces being a native of Chicago. Though, we found that their presence on the menu is exceptionally complementary. The plats du jour are complete meals available for dine-in or for take out. Those who opt to take the entrees to-go will find that all parts of the meal are separated and flash frozen to preserve their individual flavors.

We had the opportunity to stop in and try each of the six sandwiches available on the menu. The Spaniard features two respected key players in the modern sandwich world: grilled chicken and bacon combined with crisp romaine, a glorious amount of finely shredded manchego cheese and almond romesco aioli. The Moroccan, from what we can gather, lives up to the name with an authentic taste of Moroccan cuisine. It features roasted lamb loin, roasted pepper, eggplant, bacon and comté cheese.

Tartine Aux Fromage, as the name would indicate to the French-savvy, is an open-faced cheese sandwich using melted tomes crayeuse on fresh brioche and topped with a slice of marinated tomato. The Italian combines bresaola and hot coppa with melted taleggio, it’s then topped with arugula and a lemon confit spread. El Cubano Clåsico is GTC’s delicious interpretation of a classic Cuban pressed sandwich that includes roast pork, ham, gruyere mustard and pickles.

With a great variety of experiences under one roof, the Garces Trading Company is already gaining some notoriety for being a wonderful addition to not only the neighborhood but to the city as a whole. We definitely anticipate some repeat visits to dine on the other wonderful selections on the menu, or pick up a plat du jour to go.

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Garces Trading Company
1111 Locust Street – Philadelphia, PA 19107 (Google Map)
(215) 574-1099

Capogiro is widely acclaimed as the premier gelateria in Philadelphia.  The city has welcomed Stephanie and John Reitano’s Italian artisanal know-how like a breath of sweet, creamy air.  Capogiro uses the freshest seasonal ingredients, sourced primarily from farms around Pennsylvania, including Kensington’s Greensgrow farm.  An authentic Italian café, where the “bar” refers to the espresso, Capogiro’s food is artigianale, meaning made by hand on site.

Just next to the rainbow of frozen bliss, Capogiro has a lengthy Italian sandwich menu that incorporates some American influences along with the European.  Sandwiches are balanced; meaning, no one flavor overwhelms and fillings do not spill out of the bread.  Panini, like the Carne with Lancaster roast beef, gorgonzola and caramelized red onions, and the Formaggio con Jambon (swiss cheese with ham) are served on focaccia and pressed hard until the bread crisps, the cheese melts and the fillings are warmed through.

Toast sandwiches are gently heated so that the outer bread (from New York’s Hudson Bakery) crisps golden brown and the cheese melts but the ingredients do not get overly hot.  The Vegetable toast sandwich offers robust pomodoraccio sundried tomatoes, marinated artichokes, creamy fontina cheese and verdant pesto.

Tramezzini are sandwiches with three breads and two layers of filling.  They are meant to be mild, simple, delicate bites during cocktail hour.  Made with a combination of breads – country white and country wheat, tramezzini are minimalist sandwiches by design, but they are a flavorful and light accompaniment to a cocktail.  Capogiro’s tramezzini menu includes the Tonno, Italian tuna with sliced hard-boiled egg; the Speck, with salty ham and creamy stracchino cheese; and the Goat Cheese, where cool cucumbers and robust roasted tomatoes compliment the tangy, creamy goat cheese.

One of the tramezzini we absolutely had to try was the PBJ sandwich, an example of the American influence on the menu.  The peanut butter is different than the home-made product that goes into the PB gelato; it is actually Cream-Nut by Michigan’s Koeze Company, made with nothing more than peanuts and salt since 1925.  The strawberry jam, which is made fresh, is sweet and bright.  We must admit, we wished the PBJ was a little heavier on the PB and the J, but then it wouldn’t quite fit the tramezzini mold.

And of course, we had to try out the gelato con brioche, which is more of a sandwich than traditional ice cream sandwiches.  Two scoops of the divine gelato are served in a lightly sweetened brioche from Au Fournil bakery (which also provides the croissants) and is meant to be picked up and eaten like a proper sandwich.  Avocado and Coconut gelato gave us a lighter, fruitier flavor and Pistachio with Dolce De Leche offered a traditional, hearty fix for our sweet tooth.

Stephanie Reitano is an admitted cheeseburger fanatic, and names the Good Dog right at the top of her list.  She also frequents the sandwiches at Sansom Street’s Kabob House, a banh mi from any of the city’s great purveyors, the pizza sandwich at Ishkabibbles, and the braised shortrib bocadilla at Tinto.

Capogiro now has four locations (University City offers the most sandwiches) and is developing a large production facility and planned café in East Falls.  The production kitchen will allow the Reitanos to grow their business even further and expand their craft with the space and resources to try new flavors and new techniques.  And if patrons of the East Falls café take their gelato to go for a walk down by the river, they will be embracing another Italian tradition: gelato is the only food that Italians eat while walking.

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Capogiro
3925 Walnut St, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (Google Map)

We don’t like to discriminate here at Unbreaded, so when a sandwich chain is good, we’ll say so. Chicago-founded (and since expanded) Potbelly Sandwich Works makes the cut. Pictured above is the “veggie on wheat,” a delightfully understated sandwich with mushrooms, and three cheeses: American, Provolone and Swiss, all toasted together in a gooey mélange.

On first glance the sandwiches look uninteresting- barebones at best- but the “wall of choices” offers countless combos of condiments galore. For this trip, I loaded up on everything sans mayo and oil and doubled up on the Italian Giardenera- a mix of hot peppers and vegetables in oil – a Chicago sandwich staple.

Additionally, the humor of the throw-back themed establishment is not lost on locals and tourists alike, who can opt to “throw a dart” at the decision wheel if they’re feeling indecisive about which ‘wich to order. There is no bad choice, FYI, though according to our sandwich prep, the most popular order is “The Wreck” with “the works”- a conglomerate of Black Angus roast beef, old world salami, oven roasted turkey and melted Swiss…and that’s all before the you even get to the “wall of choices.”

A word about the photo: these aren’t exactly the most photogenic sandwiches. In fact, they’re down right sloppy, drippy, oily, and slippery and certainly don’t make for good date food. But they’re good; damn good, and that’s why Chicagoans have proudly returned to their Potbelly’s ever since the first establishment opened in Lincoln Park in 1977.

And should you fear developing your very OWN potbelly- do not fret. One of the perks of visiting a chain- with an extensive website, and therefore an assumed responsibility to provide nutritional content to patrons- is a nifty sandwich-builder-calorie-counter-thingy so you can know before you go.

So rub that belly, and enjoy.

Potbelly Sandwich Works
2264 N Lincoln Ave Chicago, IL 60614

Head about 30 miles North of Philadelphia and you’ll find Yardley, a sleepy town and home of The Original Landolfi’s Deli. The menu reads like a top 10 list of the best sandwiches you’ll find in South Philly, including Italian hoagies, roast pork, roast beef and even paninis. These guys even serve all of their sandwiches on seeded rolls from Sarcone’s Bakery. Owner Steve Landolfi works the front counter and makes the sandwiches every single day of the week.

One must make sure to order from the specialty sandwiches list on the menu, where you’ll find Landolfi’s greatest creations. The Fluffy Special is a veritable tour de force of meats: prosciutto, hot capicola and salami with sharp provolone and thinly sliced tomatoes. The portion of thick cut meat is generous and perfectly layered, with complimenting salty and spicy flavors that are soothed by the crisp tomato.

The Philly is a sandwich that debuted when the Phillies made the World Series in 2008. Landolfi’s roasts pork for hours then simmers it in jus, setting it into a roll with sharp provolone and perfectly cooked broccoli rabe. Although it might not top some of the original South Philly renditions, we are confident it is one of the best you’ll find outside the city.

The Original Landolfi’s Deli
35 Main Street Yardley, PA 19067 (Google Map)

One of our favorite Italian-Americans and an expert on Italian meats, Giulia Umile, educates us on the nuances of Italian cured pork.

Domestic Prosciutto
Curing ham is an art involving only a few different elements: salting, temperature and time. For twelve months, artisans move the hams from room to room in the curing facility so that different temperatures and humidities can play their part in the curing process. A truly versatile food, Prosciutto can be used virtually anywhere; from cooked dishes to antipasto to an elegant snack. It pairs well with crusty bread, peppers, olives and sharp cheeses.

Prosciutto Di Parma
From the regions of Parma and Langhirano of Emilia-Romagna and one of Italy’s finest foods.  Aged for over twelve months, Prosciutto di Parma contains only 2 ingredients; pork and sea salt. The special curing process is what gives this meat its outstanding flavors and texture.  Passed down for generations and made under strict quality conditions, the tradition and skill of curing this ham consists of hand rubbing each leg of pork with a precise amount of sea salt to make sure the cure is ideal. The prosciutto then moves from curing room to curing room, each with different temperatures and humidity settings to moderate the curing process.

Genoa Salami-Artificial Casing and Natural Casing
Named after Genoa, the city in which it was born. A fine textured pork sausage full of garlic and spices that is arguably the most popular variety of Italian dried sausage in the US.  It is typically aged for over 3 months, during which time a cord is wrapped lengthwise around the sausage at regular intervals to form its shape.

Hot Capicola
Capicola is a traditional sausage produced in a number of regions of Italy. It’s made exclusively from the pork butt, which is aged for a minimum of thirty days in brine before being packed into a casing, where it is cooked and further aged to allow the flavor to develop. Hot Capicola is typically seasoned with crushed red hot peppers, salt and garlic to complement the rich flavor of the pork with a spicy hot accent. Hot Capicola can be paired with Italian bread and provolone to make an authentic Italian sandwich.

Sweet & Hot Sopressata
This typical Salami, characterized by a distinctive flavor, was traditionally produced for centuries in the Southern Italian old-country farmhouses and villages (originated in Calabria). It is made of coarse-ground pork, so it has a different texture and flavor than the more widely known, finer-ground salamis. Sweet Sopressata is seasoned with garlic, salt and black pepper, and cured up to nine months in a natural casing. Hot sopressata is made in the same method, however spicy hot peppers are added before the curing process for that extra kick and red color throughout the sausage.

Mortadella
Originating in Bologna (nickname “la grassa”, which means fat), Mortadella is made of finely ground pork mixed together with cubes of high quality pork fat (from the throat) and sometimes pistachios or pine nuts. It gets its name from the Roman word for “mortar”; in ancient times, a mortar and pestle were often used to grind meats, fruits, and grains.  These ingredients are combined in casing and hung to slowly cook in brick ovens for up to 24 hours.  Mortadella is best enjoyed with an excellent piece of Italian bread, and not much else.

Pancetta
Often called Italian bacon-however unlike American bacon- pancetta is not smoked, but rather is cured with a variety of spices, herbs, and garlic. Pancetta is usually rolled and tied in a cylindrical shape, then hung to dry. Pancetta that is made in Florence, however, is left flat.

Bresaola
The leanest of the Italian cured meats, bresaola is salted and air-dried beef from the tenderloin or fillet. It is dried for up to three months, and when finished is a deep ruby-red color. Unlike other Italian meats, there is very little visible fat.

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What makes me an expert?
1. First generation American; both parents were born in Abruzzi and moved to the US during their teen years.
2. Raised in a family rich in Italian culture; I’ve spoken both languages since I was 3.
3. My father owned a salumeria in West Philadelphia the majority of my life, and specialized in Italian meats and cheeses. He also owned an authentic Italian café across the street, where he served amazing Italian coffees and gelato.
4. We cured our own salami in the basement of our West Philadelphia row home.
5. My name is Giulia Umile. Enough said. If I was a boy, my name would have been Umberto.