Rain, rain go away

Well, all of this rain has ruined plans for a trek to South Philly to check out Paesano's, which supposedly has some of the best hoagies in town.

So, we stuck to the 'hood and ventured to Fiesta III in Chestnut Hill for cheesesteaks. However, the Workgirl's boyfriend, we'll call him "Jim" (long story), wanted a hoagie. A steak, no cheese, hoagie to be exact - with lettuce, tomato, onion and mayo.

For just $5.95, he got his wish. On a very nice, warm, non-seeded roll. Small, though; but decent enough, 'sez Jim. He was pleased with the chopped lettuce (unlike us gals, he doesn't like Lenny's use of actual lettuce leaves) and the overall taste.

Now, Fiesta III [not I, not II, but III] has a cheesesteak my dad drools over: with cheese and steak and pepperoni and mayo and fried onions and oil and spices and whatever else you might want on it [I call it "a heart attack waiting to happen"], but Jimbo had to have his hoagie.

For a quick pick-up, decent price and good hoagie, Fiesta delivered.

Primo in Italian Means "First"

So, Thursday brought us another snow storm; thus, another hoagie run - this time to Primo's in Roxborough seeing as 1. it was close (and it was already snowing) and 2. we thought we'd compare apples to apples, as they also use sesame seed rolls, like Lenny's.

However, the rolls, we discovered, are not from Sarcone's - Primo's bakes their own - but they were still pretty good. And large. Quite large.

Our hoagies from Primo's lasted through the weekend! [I told you they were large!] But costly at about $16 - $18 a pop!

Mariavee continued with her Italian run (mild) and Anne got a spicy Italian [there were many combinations of various Italian meats and spices to choose from]. Marcy Parm got a veggie and an eggplant to share with the young'un and was glad to see many vegetarian choices. Good food all around, but worth the price? Hmmm...

Anne did not care for the sleek, corporate look of the shop, but there were many choices of sides, leading Anne to down not 1 but 2 huge pickles. The hoagies, themselves, were good; Anne liked them better than Lenny's. Maria did not like the shredded lettuce, which doesn't hold up when mixed with oil and mayo over 3 days.

While large and good, it IS a chain after all and neither Marcy nor Maria thought they were any better than Lenny's; thus, overall, on a scale of 1-5 lip smacks, we give them a 3.75.

Lenny's, not Squiggy's

Our quest for The Best Hoagie in Philly began during the last snowstorm . . . in anticipation of being Snowed In, we made a quick run to Lenny's "Home Plate" on Ridge Ave in Roxborough.

How'd we discover Lenny's? The Workgirl googled Primo Hoagies Roxborough [we were thinking of going to Primo's] and a Yelp.com comment appeared noting that, "if you like Primo's, you'll love Lenny's . . ."

What the heck? we thought. We're game for something new. Mariavee especially liked the sports reference in it's name, harking back to her Barnie's "Instant Replay" Restaurant days.

Anne Workgirl enjoyed the ambiance of Lenny's, with it's "local flair." She even met a guy who had a sandwich named after him: The Albert. Mariavee could not get over the size of the large, "Major League" hoagie . . . wowie-zowie! And just $12.99!

Marcy Parm was glad to see leaves of Romaine lettuce on her hoagie, not the usual shredded Iceberg pieces! And the eggplant on her veggie hoagie, while breaded, was only lightly breaded. Mariavee and Anne both had Italian hoagies, on large sesame seeded rolls from Sarcone's. Yum! Lots of meat, cheese and many choices for adding spices.

Plus, they were so big there were Leftovers; and they were just as awesome the next day. We were glad we tried something new. On a scale of 1-5 lip smacks, we'd give it a solid 4.

This is Not Your Mother's Johnny Quest

Hey all. Maria Vee, Marcy Parm and Anne Workgirl here. This is our blog, this is our quest. To find the best. Of whatever. Hoagies, for instance. Who makes the Best Hoagie in Philly?

We wanna know. So we're gonna find out. Our own way. No reading those Philly mag "best of" issues. We vow to eat our way through Hoagieland. Or whatever we decide. Bowling alleys? Hardware stores? Water ice? Playground swings?

Stay tuned!