A Man with a Sandwich

Bill looked relaxed, right ankle on his blue-jeaned knee leaning back on a shaded bench in Rittenhouse square, holding a half-eaten half of his lunch. Walking by a cart on 19^th and Walnut, “I was just in the mood for an egg sandwich,” he said.

The graying mustached man works from home in IT and frequently enjoys his lunch solo in the park or at a nearby restaurant. Though he was satisfied with the thin layers of scrambled-then-fried eggs and ham between golden grilled whole wheat bread, “The best egg sandwich in the neighborhood is actually at The Bakery on 20^th,” he offered. (I believe he meant The Bakeshop on 20^th - also known for their expansive menu of from scratch pastries.)

Bill grew up in Lancaster County and has truly gotten around since. He moved to Philly from Oregon five years ago. “Before that I was in New York, before that I was in Ithaca, New York, before that I was in Zurich, before that I was in Berlin, before that I was back in Zurich,” he went on, pulling out a cigarette and adjusting his lattice leather clog.

“My favorite city is Istanbul, I leave on Saturday,” he said, “Talk about good food; lots of fish, out of this world grilled sardines, the fruit markets and spice markets are so fresh.” He’s taken a Culinary Backstreet tour of the city and signed up for another during his upcoming trip.

What about food in Philadelphia? “I’m not too enamored with the food scene here,” he said. He’s sick of seeing the same menu items (like the Lancaster chicken he grew up with), or top-notch food with a high price and scant portion. He thinks the city’s missing the authentic French bistros with provocative menu items he used to find here. He’s seeing tastes converging to a limited set of popular combinations. “The more people pretend to be foodies, the less adventurous eaters they actually are,” he said.

He does enjoy a tongue sandwich at Schlesinger’s and fried rice at a Chinese place on Locust – comfort food, he says.

Though Bill’s tastes are adventurous, today he seemed perfectly pleased with a foiled wrapped food-cart lunch for $3.50.