Nick's Roast Beef Bar & Grille

16 S. 2nd Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106
(215) 928-9411
Website

Nope, not THAT Nick's Roast Beef. In a confusing twist, this Old City haunt is not associated with its similarly named South Philadelphia brethren.

Located on south Second Street, most people would not even notice the dated facade amongst the doushery that is Old City.

I knew that I needed to try the roast beef, but I could not stop there. I also took a stab at the roast pork.

AND some fries, with both gravy and cheese dipping sauces.

The fries were fantastic. Fresh cut, salty, crispy, and with a clean flavor, likely due to good frying oil. The cheese sauce was fine, but the "gravy" was pretty much terrible. Grey, bland, and unremarkable. It tasted like some beef bouillon mixed with Wondra.

The roast pork and roast beef were up next.

The pork came with provolone and a side of au jus. It also had a side of pickles, hot peppers, and horseradish. This was a mighty nice roast pork sandwich. The meat was tender, moist, and just salty enough. The dip worked in its favor by preventing the bread from getting too soggy. I would definitely get this one again if I ever found myself in this area (and for some unthinkable reason wasn't at Khyber), and looking for some cheap meat eats.

The beef didn't fare quite as well. It wasn't bad, it was just less flavorful than the pork, and a bit too dry. I was longing for the rich velvety gravy of the REAL Nick's, and so maybe my comparison of a decent sandwich to the holy grail of non-cheesesteak beef sandwiches was a bit unfair.

All in all, it's not a bad spot by any means. It beats the hell out of the typical food/bars/crowd you find in this neighborhood. Just get the pork and some fries.