Friday, September 21, 2007

Food Heaven on Earth: Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia

In Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love, heaven for foodies is placed inside the old Reading Railroad's Terminal (station), and it is now called Reading Terminal Market. Over 50 small shops and stands, many Amish, selling fresh produce (veggies and fruits), meat, fish, cheese, cooked food for lunch and dinner, and teas and spices.



Outside hangs a fish, so you will know what is going on inside.








Stores, this one with candles and spices.









An Amish woman having pizza for lunch and checking her voicemail on her cell phone.








Piggly wiggly for candy dandy.









Ears for boxers. (chocolate). They also had lungs for smokers.









Toothpaste and teeth for dentists. (More chocolate)









Mmmm, Bucks County Coffee Shop. Drinkable heaven! This market is also the home for Sang Kee Peking Duck, with its famous duck rolls. They just have to be tasted to be believed.










Filling up the ketchup bottles at the oyster bar.












Traffic jam! We bought some. ANd got some on the way home on the highway too.









Pickled eggs, some with jalapenos and some with beets. Yummy!









REAL pickles.









Shrimpies for all, forever.









And I brought home the bacon!
Guess what was next to the bacon? Hickory smoked pork chops (kind of like Swedish 'kassler', really good).







Mullet is not only a haircut, it is also a fish. THe mackerels looked kind of tiny.









How it really looks like. Reminds me of Oriental bazaars, flea markets, and saluhallar in Gothenburg and Uppsala. I love it! The prices are not bad, because there is big competition among the family-owned stores. Abborre (perch), $2.99/lbs, for example.

3 comments:

O.K. said...

Ketchup bottles at the oyster bar? Heresy! ;)
One better not mix up the two kinds of mullets, that could be surreal...

"How many surrealists does it take to change a lightbulb?"
"Fish!"

Food markets are interesting places even if you're not buying anything.

LS said...

I have it from a secure source (=PP), that the oyster bar also serves fish and chips and other more ketchup-friendly foods. Oh, on a separate note, we had oysters last night, and I was the queen of opening oysters. PP will blame it on me having a Japaneses knife though, I am sure! ;P

I love food markets, more for the thoughts they create and the opportunities to imagine, than for buying lots of food. I also like all the textures, forms and shapes, and smells, at least at places like this were food smells good and everything looks clean. No fishy smells here!

Funny mullet/fish joke :)!

EH said...

Fiiiskk!

Love your pictures and share your entusiams for food markets, but we don´t have one here in Södertälje, I´m sorry to say.