Unfamiliar with the Reading Terminal Market (RTM) in Philadelphia? RTM is a public market that takes up an entire city block under an old elevated train station by the Reading Railroad Company (hello, Monopoly) back in 1893. Over the years its gone through various upgrades and remodels, but remains a popular hot spot for both locals and tourists for their various shopping and eating needs.
As it stands, the vendors currently occupying the space include bakeries, eateries, florists, butcheries, seafood purveyors, produce stands, art galleries and a whole bunch more.
This leads us to the question, “If I’m visiting Reading Terminal Market, where should I eat?”. Thankfully I’m here to tell you where you must go (and some places to avoid) if you are in town or want to show some tourists the best the market can offer.
Honorable Mention:
The Bakeries and Sweets Spots
I’m going to lump them all together here and note particularly: Famous 4th Street Cookies, Beiler’s Donuts, Bassett’s Ice Cream, and Termini Brothers. All are fantastic and you’d be hard-pressed to find equivalents of any these places around the city. Recommendations for each of these: the Oatmeal Raisin from Famous 4th, the Apple Fritter from Beiler’s, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough from Bassett’s or the classic cannoli from Termini.
The New Kids on the Block
Both Tambayan and Kismet Bialys are relative newbies to the market, but are already showing an impact. Tambayan is a Filipino restaurant with a wide array of homemade recipes. My favorite dish to get is the pancit with pork, but other great offerings include stew, hand-pies, lumpia and Filipino spaghetti (I’ve made the latter at home I liked it so much). They also have a ton of seating, which is a huge plus. Kismet Bialy is the sister restaurant to their Kismet Bagel shop in Fishtown, but here they sell…bialys! A Bialy is a polish bread roll that isn’t boiled like a bagel, but just baked with a small indent in the middle. Why the indent? To fill it with delicious things like caramelized onions, eggs, cheese or meats. My favorite is the traditional with caramelized onions and poppy seeds.
The Old Standbys
These next few have been around for a bit and while not as flashy as the rest on this list, are delicious and get the job done. First is Kamal’s Middle Eastern where you can get the classic lamb, beef or chicken shawarma pitas or rice platters. They also have really good spinach pies and fresh smoothies. Next we have Little Thai Market which is a little Thai food stall in the middle of RTM with your basil chicken and rice and coconut curry soups. This place is a comfort meal hot spot. Last, is Fox and Sons where they are pumping out all sorts of corndog variations, cheese curds and some of the very best french fries in the market.
Now on to…
The Best Places to Eat in Reading Terminal Market
(in no particular order)
DiNic’s Roast Pork
You can’t talk about RTM without its most famous vendor, DiNic’s. It famously won Food Network’s “Best Sandwich in America” and also #1 on my list of Best Roast Pork Sandwiches in Philly. The roast pork is the definitive sandwich of Philadelphia (sorry, cheesesteaks) and you can’t get a better one than here. There might be a line, but it moves rather quickly. I’d suggest ordering the roast pork with broccoli rabe and sharp provolone. They also have roast beef here, but I have never tried it. There is no reason to when you can get that award-winning pork every time.
Beck’s Cajun Cafe
Craving Cajun, but can’t make it down to New Orleans? Beck’s really does have it all from po’boys, muffuletta, jambalaya, gumbo, and even etouffee. As someone who is obsessed with New Orleans cuisine, this is right up there. I’m usually a sucker for their shrimp po’boy, but they have fried oysters and catfish as well. They even sell the best cheesesteak in the market with their “Trainwreck,” which is steak, salami, andouille sausage, cheese and onions on a long roll. They have full counter service so you can sit and relax as you stuff your face.
El Merkury
This one is relatively new, but it is already one of my favorites. This Guatemalan joint is slinging out the freshest and tastiest pupusas and taquitos I’ve ever had. What is a pupusa? A cheese, bean and/or meat filled masa pocket that is topped with salsa and other veg. My favorite is the cheese and pork chicharron pupusa topped with salsa and pickled red onions. Need something sweet afterwards? El Merkury has you with giant churros (flavored all sorts of ways) in ice cream.
Hershel’s East Side Deli
Hot take: this is about as good of a Jewish hot pastrami sandwich anywhere in the city. I’d even put it up against some of the best in New York City. The pastrami is flavorful, juicy and fatty all at the same time. You can also get matzo ball soup, latkes, kugel, hot dogs, potato knishes, and bagels with lox. This is a full-service deli and also has counter service. This place has been around since 2000 and was named after the owner’s uncle, who worked as a chef at the famous Katz’s Deli in NYC for over 40 years. They know what they are doing.
Olympia Gyro
Next to DiNic’s, this might be my most frequented establishment. Never a line, but that has nothing to do with the gyro’s their churning out. They are Greek-owned, have been in the market since 1984 and are super friendly. They also have stuffed grape leaves, salads, and souvlakia. However, I get the gyro, fries and a drink special whenever I go. The gyro is fresh shaved to order and the veggies are always fresh. I always make sure to get some hot sauce to counter balance the flavorful tzatziki.
Ma Lessie’s Chicken and Waffles
They’ve been around for a couple years now and I’ve only gotten to try them recently. My lord, are their offerings tremendous. Choose between baked or fried chicken and white or dark meat. I went with their fried wings and thighs, which were incredible. Ma Lessie’s additionally will provide you the options for, what I’m declaring, the best mac and cheese and collard greens I’ve ever had from takeout. Not hyperbole, it’s just true. The line is always long, but it’s worth the wait.
Dutch Eating Place
One of many Dutch owned/operated eateries in RTM it has many of the diner classics, but with that extra Dutch charm. Besides the typical diner breakfast items, the lunch menu is where it shines. You will fall in love with their turkey melt, but Dutch Eating Place outdoes itself with the best french fries in the market. They are shoestring while being both crispy and soft on the inside. They are insanely addicting and you can enjoy it at a full-service counter.
Hatville Deli
Another Dutch eatery! A true deli where you can get fresh cut cold cuts/lunch meat to take home, but also a full counter service establishment. You get a very hearty sandwich (turkey, ham, chicken, corned beef, pastrami, bologna, roast beef, chicken salad, etc.) on a variety of bread/cheese. Their lunch special is phenomenal in this day and age in that you can get a big sandwich, chips, coleslaw and a drink for under $12 bucks. I’d recommend the fresh brewed unsweetened tea (they are so nice they will give you free refills to boot).
Hunger Burger
This is a place you’ll just feel good patronizing. For every burger sold, they donate a portion of that to local charities (those include Philabundance, No Kid Hungry and King’s Castle Feeding Center at Lake Coatepeque, El Salvador). But Jay, what about the burgers? They’re really good! This is one of the few places where you can get a burger in RTM and it also happens to be the best. They have breakfast burgers, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, GREAT mac and cheese and an assortment of french fry options.
Nanee’s Kitchen
Another old reliable because it always consistently very good. This is an Indian-Pakistani eatery serving up all the classics like masala, tandoori, curries and samosas. The latter is always a great grab and go if you don’t feel like sitting down somewhere (the potato curry is my fav). They also make pizza naan for an added twist.
Miller’s Twist
Yes, you can make pretzels into a full meal. You can not change my mind. Miller’s pretzels are amazing and leagues above the likes of places like Auntie Anne’s or Philly Pretzel Factory. They are making them right in front of you and offer a wide variety despite being pretzel-focused. They have pretzel dogs, pretzel roll-ups with cheesesteak, breakfast roll-ups with eggs, and cinnamon pretzels just to name a few. It’s fairly inexpensive and fills you up easily. I’ve been guilty of stopping here on my way out recently (after a meal elsewhere) to grab a pretzel on my walk back to the office.
The Original Turkey
The Original Turkey restaurant has been banking on folks loving turkey outside of Thanksgiving that it has been working since 1983. Rather simple, you can order either a sandwich or a platter. With a platter, they have the Turkey Day sides to match with mashed potatoes, corn, stuffing, green beans, cranberry sauce, and cornbread to name a few. My favorite is their original turkey sandwich with lettuce and tomato, but also good is their turkey club and turkey special.
Saami Somi
Before this opened I didn’t know Georgian food (the country, not the state) was a thing, but let me introduce you to their cheese boats. Yes, I said cheese boat (khachapuri). The “boat” is Georgian bread (shaped like a boat) baked with cheese and then a freshly cracked egg on top. From there, you mixed the raw egg and molten cheese to turn it into this creamy mixture that you slowly scoop out with the bread. It’s both delectable and filling. They have other varieties of khachapuri, but also have dumplings, salads, Georgian pastries and soup. My favorite is the traditional.
Pearl’s Oyster Bar
Slinging seafood since 1981, you can get fresh seafood in a variety of ways. Without sounding like Bubba from Forrest Gump, think fried, seared or raw. Now, I’m not a huge fan of raw oysters (literally every doctor begs you to stop eating them raw, so I don’t), but besides their namesake everything is delicious. I’d recommend their famous clam chowder (New England-style FYI) and the fried shrimp basket that comes with french fries and coleslaw. Pearl’s is at the “front” of the market, features full counter service and is great for people-watching.
Dienner’s BBQ
The sign says BBQ, but the only meat you will find here is chicken and boy-howdy do they have good chicken. You can get the chicken BBQ roasted or smoked, which comes with their famous BBQ sauce which only enhances the juicy and tender chicken. This line is LONG and there is no seating. I’d suggest grabbing a pound of roasted wings with their hot BBQ sauce and finding a table so you can tear apart the chicken because it will get messy.
Dishonorable Mention:
Reading Terminal Market is the most iconic and most visited market in the city of Philadelphia. The city will always be associated with cheesesteaks and you would think RTM would house a respectable dedicated cheesesteak establishment. It does not and even worse, they are just plain awful. Carmen’s Cheesesteaks is using frozen steak of what I can only imagine what quality. For as nice as the man at the register is, the cheesesteak is just so lacking in flavor and quality. Spataro’s Cheesesteaks might as well be named Sbarro because like Sbarro with poor pizza, Spataro’s is its cheesesteak equivalent. Not only does it take too long for a sandwich, but it is also a terrible roll and not seasoned properly. RTM management if you are reading this, bring in a cheesesteak place that cares.
