Al’s Famous Delicatessen

I’ve been going to Al’s for years now for simple breakfast sandwiches, the kind you used to find in every bluecollar working class neighborhood in town. They do the standard fried fish and chicken wings that a lot of carryouts downtown do and some of it can be hit or miss. Then one day I decided to give the bulgogi cheesesteak a try. I figured the place is run by a nice Korean lady, how bad could it be? It’s not often that one uses the word «umami» to describe a carryout sandwich, but this had it in spades. Sweet and salty ribeye tossed with onions and peppers, piled on a sub roll with provo, lettuce, and tomato. Ask for some kimchi on the side and you get a spicy cool pickel-​ey layor of flavor that perfectly complements the richness of the meat and cheese. If you’ve had kimchi tacos, you know what I’m talking about. All these flavors fit together like some perfectly mutated fusion sandwich that emigrated from Korea by way of the Southside of Philly. If you’re looking for a change from the usual food truck and chain sandwich rut, give this sandwich a try. And tell them to hold the mayo if you know what’s good for you.

$ 8.99 for a huge to go container full of bulgogi, green peppers, onions and rice. a tad pricy but along the same lines price-​wise as the food trucks near the metro station. The food was pretty darn tasty, but a tad salty. I actually needed more rice to balance out the salt. I don’t know whether it was part of the meal or not, but I also got a small container of beef and veggie soup with rice. oddly enough, the soup tastes remotely what my mom/​dad makes at home. there was enough food for me to keep in the office fridge for lunch tomorrow. however, from waiting on the bench inside the shop (it’s so weird there’s a park bench parked about 6 inches higher on the edge of the shop), i notice that the ticket item was fried chicken wings with mumbo sauce. will i come here again… yes, i am tempted by the fried fish and chicken wings and this so called mumbo sauce…

My consumers introduced me to this place… they would come in with these breakfast sandwiches that smelled soooooo good… and one day I gave in and had to try one!!! And this has been my favorite breakfast place ever since! Turkey Bacon egg on white toast… French toast breakfast potatoes… waffles…all GREAT!!! & It’s all reasonably priced :-)

I’ll be honest, I love blue collar local eateries. There’s not ll too many options in this category along M or 8^th, so I was a bit thrown back when I ordered fish and chips with a $ 11 total. But I was ok with it. It had a lot of fish.
Three huge strips to be exact. However, whiting is a very bonny fish, and I’m not all too sue to having to eat or pick bones out of a fish and chip platter. Overall, had I gone with a different fish, this may have been a different story, but for the cost, I’d prefer not to have to eat any fish bones.
Regardless, the next time down in SE (which is pretty damn seldom) I might try them again. It’s hard to say as there are a ton of non-​blue collar joints in the area.

If you like «bulgogi», how about a bulgogi cheese-​steak!!! The selection here, at the Korean owned establishment, is great for lunch.
So far my office has tried the bulgogi sandwich, the fried shrimp, and the Tilapia platter (Great!!)
They serve breakfast as well (Strawberry Waffles, French Toast)
Great fast Deli.