MIX - Brick Oven Pizzeria @ 2101 Chestnut St.

I have tough time describing this place. It is not a restaurant nor is it a fast food. It has both American(sandwiches and wraps) and Italian food mainly Pizza. It also has a bar to the far left side. But the tables(for two mostly) are really small like that of a Pizza by slice vendor places. The restaurant calls itself Brick Oven Pizzeria & Bar.

MIX is located at the intersection of 21st and Chestnut and the entrance is located at the Northwest corner of the intersection. I have been there twice so far, once with some business colleagues and another time with an acquaintance. Both times I had Pizza, as the allure of the Brick Oven behind the counter was to alluring to pass off Pizza and buy something else. 

My first visit was for lunch and I had a slice of Pizza with Buffalo Chicken topping and another slice of Pizza with vegetables like Tomatoes, Spinach and Mozzarella. They probably call it MidTown on their Menu. It has been a while since my first visit and I can hardly remember the taste of the MidTown Pizza. But I still remember the Buffalo Chicken Pizza and it was awesome. I came out very satisfied, so I am thinking the slice of MidTown Pizza was very good as well. The two business colleagues had nothing but good words to say about the food they had.

Having satisfied myself the first time, I went out to meet a friend at MIX over dinner. This time we ordered a large pie of Pineapple and Jalapeno Pizza. Those two together are my favourite toppings on a Pizza. I was very happy with the call. The crust was thin but soft enough(not crusty) to eat. The cheese was good quality cheese and the toppings fresh. They have a large menu that includes appetizers, pastas, salads, hot and cold sandwiches etc.

The Pizza by slice was around $3.50 - $4.00 each and the whole large Pizza pie with Pineapple and Jalapeno toppings was around $24 with tax and tips. For lunch I must have spent about $12 for 2 large slices of Pizza with a drink and the same amount for Dinner. I would say that this a little on expensive side (I like to keep my Lunch under $10, preferably in the $6-$8 range). The young eastern European lady behind the counter was very courteous and easy to talk to with her cute accent. The service was great both times. 

Overall I am a highly satisfied customer and would definitely go back with adult members of the family and friends. Families with infants and kids might have trouble as there are very few large tables.

El Fuego @ 2104 Chestnut St.

El Fuego is a mexican fast food ala Qdoba. The menu is simple with Burritos, Rice Bowls, Quesadillas and Tacos. It opened recently (few months) is located at 2104 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA.

I am big fan of the Mexican Gumbo at QDoba. They call them naked burrito at El Fuego. The ambiance and set up is very much similar to that of QDoba or that of Chipotle. I got introduced to Chipotle during my short one year stint in Dallas and really liked the simplicity of the set up. Basically you choose the type of food - Burrito, Salad or Quesadilla at the beginning of the line. Burritos are biggest sellers at these kind of places. If you select Burrito you move in the line and tell what you like in your burrito. Rice comes with the burrito by default. But you can choose black beans or pinto beans, salad lettuce, mild, medium or hot salsa, cheese and in some places sour cream and/or guacamole. The burrito is wrapped around the contents and is typically enclosed in an aluminium foil or paper. You pay for your food at the end of the counter. It is very similar to that of Subway.

Mexican Gumabo aka Naked burrito is all the contents that go inside a burrito but in a bowl without the tortilla wrap. I ordered naked burrito with spicy chicken and mild salsa sauce with black beans and sour cream.

The food was alright in taste.But it pales in comparison to the Mexican Gumbo at QDoba. The quantity was also quite less. I am sure the quantity would fall short for a lunch or dinner. Since I went there during my evening walk out, it was fine.

The naked burrito was $6.75 and I paid about $8.50 including a drink and tax. The cost was not bad but I could get a better tasting bigger burritos(both regular and naked) at QDoba which is just a block and half to the east at 1900 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103. I will probably give them one more try to taste their Quesadillas. As for my favorite gumbo, you know my preference by now.

Indian Delite @ 9th & Market St.-Food Court of Gallery Mall

Indian Delite - a fast food place located in the Food court II of the gallery mall close to the Market east station. I have to admit that I was blown away by the prices. Indian food is typically expensive and is known mostly in a restaurant setting. I had my apprehensions about the taste of the food though.

The typical lunch combo was about $7. I did not enough time to buy a lunch combo on on both of my visits to this place. I had Samosa on my first visit. I really liked it. The outer deep fried shell was crispy as it is supposed to be. The contents of the samosa was cooked potatoes and green peas mixed in spices and I think it was only two bucks and change. An order of samosa comes with 2 samosas. So a samosa is about a buck which is not bad at all.

On my second visit, I had Chicken Kabob which is skewer with chunks of grilled spicy marinated chicken. The experience this time was completely opposite to what I had on my first visit - not so happy. I wanted to try something different than the samosa. I felt that the chicken chunks were not really grilled. Instead, I felt, they were cooked chicken with spicy sauce brushed on them in a rush. It was little salty and nothing close to a Kabob I was expecting. You get what you pay for I guess. I think this kabob was about $2 or 3. I apologize for the not so good picture of the kabob. I should have taken a picture with all the chicken chunks together.

Overall, I have a mixed feeling about this place. I will give it one more try, but this time with the lunch combo. The cost is a big plus if you are in a mood for Indian food.