PORCH

That smile is almost as beautiful as the cheese.

The Porch was a welcome surprise. I spent a great deal of my youth at Eat N Park - just enough time to know that I have literally no interest in consuming another super burger, hot turkey sandwich or breakfast smile. Eat N Park owns The Porch and Six Penn. The food is quite different, but something about Porch still has that industrial cafeteria vibe. I think it is probably the lack of towels in the super sterile and bright bathroom or the large booths. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I know a bastard stylized Eat N Park when I see one. The real selling point is the beautiful outdoor area. One warning though, don't frolic on the quad. We were asked to simmer down on the frisbee.

I tried the cheese plate, the seafood salad and the salumi, but the real winner was the pizza. A nice thin crispy crust with an appropriate sauce to cheese ratio. There were some grumbles that the pizza could use more seasoning, but I rather enjoyed my piggy pie (house cured meats and mozzarella.) The pizza was far superior to standard chain restaurants like Sbarro or Pizza Hut and you can get a pie for half price after 9 p.m. I would not make a special trip to Porch for their pizza, but I would go for their reasonably priced happy hour and scenic outdoor seating. Also, if I was there for those things I would probably jam some pizza in my face-hole. Overall I think the options at Porch are somewhat akin to the offerings at Piccolo-Forno in Lawrenceville and Piccolo-Forno is the winner in terms of quality - no contest.