Saturday, May 14, 2011

Ordering Out

Ordering out, ordering in or ordering delivery, no matter what you call it, it's a very popular option in our house. We often (too often, probably) don't want to be bothered cooking because we've waited until we're hungry to decide we want something to eat. Because we don't feel like going anywhere either, we start going through our collection of menus to see which delivery place calls out to us the loudest. When my daughter's home, it'll never be Caribbean or Indian (unfortunately).


We live in the shadow of Philadelphia where there are a variety of different food cultures. Some of that overflows to our area and we are fortunate. We have the choice of Italian, Caribbean, Indian or Chinese in our area. Of course, most food delivery isn't up to the same caliber as being seated at a top notch restaurant. The Indian delivery, however, is from an actual full-service restaurant that has won awards, whose chef worked for award winning restaurants before opening one of his own. He believes in giving everyone access to good food, so he also offers the delivery service. Of course, his prices are the same for delivery as they are for the meal in the restaurant, but that was still nice when it was snowing and no one wanted to be on the road (they were brave souls, I  must say).




I haven't yet had delivery from the Caribbean restaurant, but I have eaten there more than once. It is excellent! The menu leans heavily towards the Dominican Republic, but they also have Cuban, Puerto Rican and some Mexican thrown in for a more pan-Hispanic flavor. I do wish, though, that we have a Mexican restaurant that delivered. I'd be one of their regulars!


hoagie
Our Italian places are more accurately called steak and hoagie shops, but don't ever think that's all they have to offer. Some have fried chicken, fried seafood, crab cakes, seafood bisque (granted, some are better than others), hamburgers, pasta platters, traditional pub grub appetizers and, a pleasant surprise for some, hand-dipped ice cream and milk shakes. 



pizza turnover
I personally like pizza turnovers, which are similar to calzones, but not the same thing. Think of having a pizza with sauce and cheese and folding it in half, sealing the edges and either deep-frying them or baking. Although frying them is not the healthiest way to have them, that's my favorite way to have them. 


Cheese steak extra cheese
I also like chicken cheese steaks with fried onions. So so so good!!! And, if I can get it in a wrap, even better. Now, you may have heard of Philly Cheese Steaks, but don't overlook the cheese steak's little cousin. When done right, they're just as flavorful and tender as the original; thinly sliced chicken cooked and seasoned on the flat-top grill with cheese and/or peppers, onions, mushrooms, etc.on rolls only bakeries in the Philly area can supply. Talk about comfort food!


Sicilian Pizza
Pizzas come in all styles (except Chicago), from New York thin crust to Sicilian thick crust. Some have excellent sauces, but questionable cheeses; others hit the mark on both things, but the bread used to make the crust is lacking. Yet, each place has something to offer that the others don't. That's why we keep the menus on hand because we never who we'll be in the mood for. 


General Tso Chicken
The Chinese deliveries are fairly basic and have almost identical menus with different prices. They differ only in the taste of their items. The one I like the best uses garlic more heavily than the rest (which is surprising given my dislike for garlic). They are also the cheapest. There is one that just began delivery service that I haven't tried yet, so the jury is still out on them for me. 


Everyone has to go or take out service (or take away, as it may be called where you are), so if we desire, that is also an option we can take. But, when we're not in the mood to go out, it's not likely we'll be in the mood to pick up. 


And, now a few images from CATURDAY!!


Really, Mom? Another picture?

Fishtail Kitty

Sleepy time baby

6 comments:

  1. Sounds like you have a nice variety for delivery there. I cannot say the same for where I live, actually I can't say the same in general when it comes to restaurant options. You can guarantee that I'll be trying that Lebanese place you sent me the menu for next time I'm down around Wheeling. They had several options on that menu that I haven't had for a while...kibbi and tabouli! Not sure at this point if it would be worth an extra trip for, so I'll play it safe and wait until I have to go there for another reason.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love my country home but one of the drawbacks is...no delivery! We live about 15 mins from a small town, but their restaurant choices are lacking. We have to drive 45 mins to Charlotte, NC to get really good resaurant food. Good thing I like to cook!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I miss take out :( No one here, not even Pizza Hut, offers delivery.

    ReplyDelete
  4. We have only 2 places we order from, but we go and pick it up. Both are less than 1 mile from the house; but it's not often we do that. We like to eat in, we both cook, and find sometimes it's faster cooking at home then going out.
    Sandy

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wow! You have a great mix of take out where you live. I'm new here and looking forward to following you to see what's next. Great cats!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Where I live, we can have pretty much any type of cuisine delivered. There's a great Thai place nearby, and of course, in my area, great Chicago pizza is everywhere.

    I’m more than half way done blogging my way back from Z to A. :O) Middle of Everything

    ReplyDelete