Bomb Bomb Bar
Italian restaurant · Lower Moyamensing ·
Classic Italian seafood & old-school barbecue, now with prix fixe
Classic Italian seafood & old-school barbecue, now with prix fixe
"There’s a very specific nostalgia here for me, not just because the same spot has been serving dinner since 1951 in a building that rival taproom owners bombed twice in 1936, but because chef Joey Baldino’s resurrection of the infamous South Philly dive feels like the intimate, red-tablecloth seafood restaurant I’d bring family to when they’re in town. The menu is small but hits the favorites, and diners choose between one of six bar seats with a brief a la carte menu or table seating with a $62 prix fixe that requires two seafood entrees and one side. For the table format, the retro clams casino, covered in salty, crunchy breadcrumbs, takes me back, and Mom’s stuffed calamari tastes fresh even under a blanket of tangy tomato sauce and spices; sides can be pasta or veg, with options like black ink spaghetti, greens, or french fries with a house made spicy seasoning. At the bar, some former Bomb Bomb specialties return a la carte—original ribs ($16) and fried mozzarella ($12)—plus kitschy frozen drinks like a sgropinno with limoncello and prosecco ($15). The house cocktails riff on Italian American classics, including a Manhattan Italiano with rye, amaro, and vermouth ($16) and a Pepperoncini Vesper, and if you’re after the bar menu you walk through the same facade that’s existed since the 1930s. Insider tip: the accoutrements aren’t just decoration—order the lobster Francese and the staff will beg you to finish each buttered bay leaf before the plate is cleared." - Annemarie Dooling
"ASouth Phillyclassic bar has reopened its doors, this time with the chef/owner fromPalizziat the helm. Now with a seafood focus and a $65 per person prix fixe menu, you’ll see dishes like shrimp cocktail, clams casino, stuffed calamari, and crab cakes on the menu." - Candis R. McLean
"A longtime family-run restaurant that closed due to the retirement of its owners, Frank Barbato Junior and Deb Barbato. It was originally opened in 1951 by Frank’s parents." - Nadia Chaudhury
"Finding Bomb Bomb is easy: Just look for the bright neon sign in the middle of a residential neighborhood in South Philly. While the red gravy Italian food is as comforting as it gets, barbecue is also in the name for a reason. Saucy ribs (with a house-made bourbon-spiked barbecue sauce) are done "South Philly style," and ordering them with a side of mussels is as natural as matching peanut butter and jelly." - Eater Staff, Caroline Coral
"The Revere spot Da Bomb BBQ (744 Broadway), a spinoff of a food truck known for savory filled pastry rounds called “bombs,” has closed after opening in summer 2018." - Rachel Leah Blumenthal
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