Hummusology

1112 Locust Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
(215) 592-6505
Website

Middle Eastern food is one of my weaknesses. I could live on any countries cuisine that includes warm breads, dips, and spice. In particular, Israeli food is favorite. I was looking for something healthy to eat before a baseball game that I knew would not be healthy. Hummusology was an obvious choice.

They have a small kitchen, that is bright and clean. The staff was incredibly polite and put their heart into it. And it showed.

The dishes are all humuus centric, obviously, but the execution is so varied you would never grow tired of the standard spread.

The hummus itself is just heavenly, silky smooth, warm, and perfect balance of tahini and blended bean. The toppings are unreal. For example, below is the hamshuka hummus platter. The literally have a shakshuka topped hummus. I can die happy. Creamy hummus topped with Shakshuka and warm chickpeas, sprinkled with paprika and a pinch of cumin, olive oil, green sauce, and tahini. Hot damn.

The shakshuka was sweet, spicy, and succulent. The balance was about as good as I have ever had. A warm pita to scoop up the goodness made this irresistible. Easily one of the best dishes of the year for me in the price range ($12).

The contrasts in flavor, texture, and taste were amazing. A healthy drizzle of olive oil and generous spice did not hurt.

The pickles and pickled vegetables added a tart contrast to the rich main course.

The sabich, a stuffed pita sandwich, was memorable, though outshadowed by the perfection that preceded it. Pita stuffed with hummus, roasted eggplant, hard-boiled egg, Israeli salad, and tahini. This benefited from the addition of the table side salt and spice mix, and some pickled hot sauce. The egg was perfectly cooked, and the smokey eggplant was substantial enough to make you forget you were eating no meat.

This is a rather substantial sandwich, and I still ate every bite.

See below with the spice shake and hot pepper relish addition. Delicious.

Sweetgreen

1821 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 665-9710
Website


I recently was asked to attend the grand opening of Sweetgreen on Chestnut. I had never heard of it, but figured I would mosey over and see what it was all about.

They are like a cross between Chiptole and Wholefoods. An impressive collection of fresh veggies stored behind the counter let you know that whatever you are eating is going to be healthy.

They handed out a "beets don't kale my vibe" bag to stay hip to the current slang.

The veggie tray was full of . . . veggies. There was also falafel. Hands down my favorite thing was the spicy cashew dressing. I was filling endives with it like it was cream cheese in a jalapeno popper. I can even make vegetables unhealthy!

The roasted butternut squash toast was pretty tasty as well. The parm on top really helped give it some fatty flavor.

The butternut squash "shooters" were unlike any shot I have done. Mostly because instead of cheap whiskey they were filled with organic vegetable puree.

"Falafel" shown below.

The Executive chef came all the way up from DC to welcome everyone and explain the meal. In the picture below he looks to be saying "who let you in"? I assure you, he was merely thinking that while explaining the ethos behind the company.

They serve beer here, which is great if you just want to pop in for a quick lunch salad and beer. I am sure people do that, right?

Here is a pear salad. It tasted fresh, but was missing lard.

This quinoa salad was also very fresh and healthy. I would have prefered some chicken cracklings or lardons, but this would probably NOT take a year off of my life like the things I typically eat.

The below pescatore delight might look like salmon. But it is actually Steelhead. Which is like salmon, but a sort of trout.

It tasted like a cross between salmon and trout.

The charred brussel sprouts with cranberry glaze were one of the crowd pleasers. The tart sauce helped the bitter greens down the gullet. I bet healthy eaters LOVE these things. They were pretty good in hindsight.

This place is perfect for office folks looking for a healthy alternative for lunch, and to be honest, I don't think there are a lot of places in Philly that specialize in local ingredient salads in a fast-casual environment. If you are on a diet or looking to make up for that late night cheesesteak, you should definitely give them a try.  

Dizengoff

1625 Sansom Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 867-8181
Website

If you like hummus, you will LOVE Dizengoff. Holy hell, they make some amazing pita bread as well. Stuck on the north side of Sansom (NOT SAMSON) street, they are a hole in the wall a couple of blocks from Rittenhouse Park.

The interior is small, sleek, and modern.

The menu itself is small, no frills, and completely delicious. The toppings change daily, but the hummus stays amazing. They generally have one meat option (obviously try it), but the veggie offerings are no slouch.

A baseball card may be your table marker.

Look at this spread. A hot baked pita, hummus topped with za'atar, olive oil, and whatever topping you choose, a side cucumber salad, and some pickles and onion. Simple perfection.

Below is the ground beef, finished with parsley and drenched in olive oil. Look at the perfect swirl of hummus. While the beef was tender, well cooked, and delicious, the hummus itself is the star here – light, airy, creamy and not overbearingly tahini-rich.

Another delicious option is the beets. Now, I don't usually like beets very much. Beets generally taste like dirt and stain everything (what's not to love?). But these beets we more than palatable. These were downright irresistible. The dill was a nice touch as well.

I've been here more than once in an effort to make healthier lunch choices. SIKE. I have been here a handful because it's really that good. Who knew a hummus lunch would be Philly Phoodie's weakness?

The pea and cashew is another really delicious vegetarian option. The creamy cashews together with the sweet English peas made for a great late summer, cool-you-off-and-not-over-stuff-you meal.

Another visit featured beef brisket on the menu, and as the rest of the previous dishes, this one did not disappoint. There was no gristle, very little fat and the meat was so well rendered that the shredded bits nearly melted on my tongue.

There was a nice swirl of tzatziki to finish the presentation, which lent a refreshing zing to the salty umami flavor of the beef.

Yet another vegetarian winner, and one that I think may be a daily staple (or close to it), is the carrot platter.

Another flavor combination that matches so well with the creamy hummus.

There literally isn't one bad thing I can say about all of my collected visits to this place.

You will be able to find me there for lunches and dinners for many years to come, sometimes more than one time per week.

Hai Street Kitchen

32 South 18th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 964.9465
Website

After many recommendations from a handful of my Center City cube-monkey friends, it was about time I gave this place a try. Known for their enormous sushi-style burritos, it was the perfect healthy meal to grab before getting on a flight to Chicago where I saw far too many hot dogs in my near future.

Simple fresh flavors: items definitely not available in terminal C at PHL.

Everything is prepared to order and there's a selection of house recommendations, but you can also build your own from the expansive selection of Japanese-inspired burrito fillings. I felt like I was at a fancier Chipotle fusion eatery.

The oversize rolls carried pretty well, considering they went from 18th & Market via Septa to the airport, through security, etc. Let's say it was just shy of an hour in transit before the unveiling...

I was short on time and full of hunger, so I couldn't waste any time selecting my own combination of ingredients, so I went with two of the house specialties. First up was the Hai Satay with grilled chicken, spicy peanut sauce, romaine, cucumber, carrot and pickled jicama. It was supposed to come with grilled zucchini, but I totally squashed that. Get it?

AND asked for extra peanut sauce. It was exceedingly fresh, full of flavor and easy to eat without making a mess, which is a recurring problem for me. Especially when I request extra sauce for nearly everything on the planet.

Second up was the Chili Citrus Pork with salsa verde, romaine, carrot, red cabbage and pickled red onion. I was thrown by the salsa verde, so I asked them to skip it and add the gochujang and spicy mayo instead. They were much obliged and catered to my every substitution. They even threw in the extra sides of ginger miso dressing and the spicy mayo at no extra cost. I'm pretty sure the salsa verde would be unwelcome in this combo, so if you do try it that way, let me know how it goes.

The pork was perfectly tender with not one chewy bit. The ingredients melded together so well and maybe it was the time they had to set, but no matter, when I'm craving a big fat burrito I won't mind subbing in the healthier version of a mega seaweed roll every once in a while. Maybe every 4th.