Cacia's Bakery & Primo Hoagies

Ritner & Mole Streets
(between 15th & 16th)
South Philadelphia

Any time I take a trip down south of Snyder, I find it hard not to hit the amazing couple of blocks on Ritner just west of Broad. Here's where you can get a slice of pizzaz, a top-notch Italian hoagie, a ham pie and a dozen cannoli's - just to name a few, all at 4-6 neighboring old-school establishments. Two of my absolute faves: Cacia's and Primo's.

I'm no stranger to Cacia's, it's like visiting your grandmother, if your grandmother lived in a bakery. They're beyond friendly and never turn down a special request - like baking a 6 foot long roll for your 6 foot hoagie party, or making a big frisbee loaf for muffaletta because the Saints are in the Super Bowl.

But I digress. There's no special order this time, just getting down and dirty with some pizzaz.

Cacia's is the authority on pizzaz pie, with its creamy American cheese bubbled and browned to perfection every time. You can buy a slice for $1.30 or cater your next party with a whole pie for $11.50 - just make sure to invite me.

The pickled banana peppers add a warming tang that lends a sort of (out-of-a-jar) brightness to each bite. The fresh tomatoes give it a smack of juiciness to make up for the omission of sauce. Look at this buttery crust. Incredible.

Something about the green on the broccoli pie called to me. It was probably the fact that I hadn't eaten vegetables in nearly 3 days.

The chopped bits of blanched broccoli definitely filled my need for vitamins & minerals. Another slice of crispy, chewy, buttery crust was the perfect vessel to deliver the firm bits of green. Who knew eating healthy could be so delicious?

As if the visit to Cacia's wasn't enough, an order from Primo Hoagies seemed like it would fulfill (almost) all of my Saturday morning, pre-Flyer's game needs.

Primo is an eastern PA-NJ franchise that just recently broke out in the FL market (thank you spring training), but this one here on Ritner, it's the O.G.

They use rolls baked specially by my favorite regional bakery, Liscio's in South Jersey, and their quality is unmatched. I read that each seeded roll is baked "using a technique that is optimal for transport... It gets baked seven-eighths of the way, and then we flash-freeze it. Each franchise has a small convection oven and when it comes out, it's like it's fresh right out of a bakery oven."

And I'm okay with that, because I can attest to that truth.

The crusty roll is by far the best part of these hoagies, but the fresh-slicing of Thumann's deli meats doesn't hurt either. This is the Sicilian with dry cured capacola, sharp prov & natural casing genoa salami. A sure bet to satisfy any hoagie-driven hunger.

So, in conclusion, head to 15th & Ritner with an open mind, an empty stomach, and about $20. You'll leave wishing you lived right around the corner and that eating like a king didn't require so much exercise.

Pizzeria Pesto

1925 South Broad Street
Philadelphia, PA 19148
(215) 271-6840
Website

When I heard there was another potato pie on Broad Street, I new I had to make it a point to get there to check it out. After the snow started this week, I figured it was as good a time as any to grab a couple of pizzas and wait out the "thundersnow."

I called ahead and it took only 15 minutes to prepare my pies because there was no one out, due to the aforementioned storm. I decided to go for the potato pie, and the "Quattro Stagioni." The potato pie featured thin sliced potatoes, ricotta, rosemary, roasted garlic, and mozzarella. This is a bit of a change up from the potato pie by which all others are measured, but I was willing to give it a go. Well, it wasn't too bad. It was actually pretty okay, but no match for the current champ. Not enough garlic, or rosemary for my taste, and the cheese was good, but made it really quite rich. La Rosa wins on simplicity in my book.

The Quattro was also good, a four section pie with prosciutto, (canned) mushrooms, (canned) artichokes, and (canned) black olives. This was also a decent pie, but it wasn't as good as my usual go-to, the Italian, from Franco Luigi's. The Italian is basically the same deal, but not in quarters, holding prosciutto, olives, and roasted peppers. Except it is also better. I guess the Quattro would be good if you had a picky group of eaters and each person wanted one of those four options exclusively. However, at that point, I would probably question my choice of friends and then order whatever I felt like.

It's nice having another pizza option in South Philly, but there are two places within a couple of blocks that do some of the same things better.

Mack's Pizza

10th and Oregon Ave
Philadelphia, PA 19148
(215) 755-7553

On a rainy Saturday in Philly this summer, I was thinking about the shore. Not necessarily the beach, but rather the food. The pizza, actually. Mack and Manco's to be exact. I am the first to admit that they don't have the best pizza ever. They do have great pizza though, and the memory of eating it growing up is what really makes me love it. I knew there was a Mack's in South Philly, and that they claim to be of the same boardwalk pizza family, but I have been putting-off going for some time now. Well, on this cloudy July weekend, I decided it was finally time to pay a visit.


I called ahead and ordered a large half cheese, half pepperoni. Mack happened to be working, which was a great bonus.


He makes the pizzas according to the original recipe, with a thin layer of sauce and cheese, in a swirl.


I loved how thin it was, and it certainly reminded me of the boardwalk pizza. However, it was definitely (both visually and physically) a bit greasy. The pepperoni was especially so. The pizza was good though. It was a nice change of pace. A large was $10 even, which is always a good thing. Cash only, as can be expected. You can see the rings of sauce and cheese, just like at the shore. The pizza was overall pretty good, and a nice deal. If you need a taste of the shore, don't put sand in your sandwich, just head to South Philly for a slice (which is a $1 for walks-ins, by the way).


The pizza didn't even fit in the box!



Have to love the homemade boxes.

La Rosa Pizza

2106 South Broad Street,
Philadelphia, PA‎
(215) 271-5246‎

La Rosa was on my radar for a while, I forget where I heard about it - actually, upon further introspection, I think I may have eaten it once a long time ago. Whether that happened or not is hardly relevant to the matter at hand; which is that fact that I tried it last night, after I was reminded of my desire to get some potato pizza by these guys. I have to say, despite the fact that I would normally not expect much of anything that came off of Broad and Snyder, this pizza was incredible. (Disclaimer: I say was, which is a stretch, because I am currently eating a portion of the massive amounts of leftovers, and I am thoroughly enjoying every bite)


I was hungry and in my never-ending quest for impartial food journalism, I decided it was only right to order two pies, and try three topping combinations therein. (I am becoming ever so clever at masking my gluttony under the guise of journalistic integrity) So I tried to find a menu online, to no avail. Apparently, and I mean this in all sincerity, they do not have one. So I called to verify this, and it appears to be true. You literally just call and tell them what you want. If they have it, they will make it, if not, they won't. You have to love South Philly. I called and asked for a pepperoni, black olive and onion pizza, but they didn't have black olives so I subbed mushrooms. I knew I had to try the potato pizza, so I ordered an additional pie, half white with potato and half sausage and green pepper. I also ordered them well done. This was a wise move. I guess for every ten poor moves in life (such as writing this while "studying" for finals), something has to come up roses. So they said it would be delivered within the hour. And the waiting game began. After an hour and fifteen (mostly spent staring out the window and jumping up every time I thought I heard a car), I was about to start eating my hand, and there was a knock on the door. I would have eaten an Ellio's with glee at this point. It was $24 for two pies, which is a really good deal. I was also relieved because they did not offer the price during the ordering phase and they only accept cash. The gruff yet polite delivery man was an additional treat. So I bring the pizza inside and as I am getting ready to binge like I am in Animal House, my phone rings. I can't be bothered with unknown numbers at this point, so I let it go to voice mail. It turned out to be La Rosa calling to let me know my pizza didn't have enough peppers to meet their standards and I wasn't charged for it. A+ for effort, and honesty.


The pizzas are square and HUGE. Like a Sicilian, but considered "Roman style" which means thinner and better I am assuming. (I don't care much for deep dish, subject to certain exceptions) The pepperoni was fantastic. I loved that the pizza was actually well done, and the onions were cooked on top, and slightly burnt. Perfect. The mushrooms were canned (whatever) but they were acceptable in this application, I suppose. Again, the pepperoni itself was great, not overly greasy, and packed a wallop of flavor. The crust is thick and rich, yet airy and crispy. I was/am a huge fan. This was definitely some of the best pizza I have had in Philly. It fills a niche I didn't even realize I was in search of.


The potato pizza was on another level. The potatoes were soft and tasty, slightly browned and sprinkled with a healthy dose of rosemary and pepper. Perfect. I LOVED IT. The sausage (which apparently is procured in South Philly somewhere) was also great. It had the perfect amount of grease and really added so much flavor to the pie. I have to think that this is what Pizza Hut originally started as, and we won't get into what a mess it has become. This is tavern style square pie at it's finest. Might be my new go-to for delivery. You also can't beat the fact that it was $28 with a nice tip for two pies delivered that could feed 6 easily.

Note the grease glistening below. Delicious.

The lack of peppers was hardly noticeable.



Next day reheat, turned out perfect after 5 minutes on the pizza stone in a preheated oven. Crispy perfection. Look at all of that rosemary.