Eat like an Insider: Chef Carolynn Angle of Good Dog

Chef Carolynn Angle has recently taken the reigns at Good Dog Bar, replacing Chef Jessica O’Donnell, who left the treasured Philly establishment to spend more time with family.

Angle is a Philly food veteran with 16 years of experience elevating bar cuisine in the city, working everywhere from Striped Bass to Fish Market to Standard Tap.

She got her start at age 15 and left college to pursue cooking full-time. Over the years, she became passionate about local sourcing and using fresh, seasonal ingredients.

For this edition of Eat like an Insider, Angle tells us where to get the best breakfast and lunch sandwiches, why babies aren’t welcome at Murph’s and a best restaurant for out-of-towners recommendation that’s actually out of town.

Best meal under $10?
Dollar Dog Night at Citizens Bank Park (1 Citizens Bank Way)  is the best meal under 10 bucks, and of course, that’s after you’ve paid 12 bucks for a beer, 20 bucks for a ticket and 18 bucks for parking. Oh, and the vegetarians and gluten haters should stay home. More fat and sodium for the rest of us!

Best hidden food gem?
Italian food at Murph’s (202 E. Girard Ave.). Who doesn’t like Italian food in an Irish Bar in Fishtown?  Not your spaghetti and meatball kind of Italian but the pear fiocchi drizzled with honey kind. Affordable hearty bowls of pasta with a great selection of Italian wines. Also, bo babies in the bar. The place is too small and rowdy for strollers and high chairs. Get a sitter.

Best place to dine alone?
Johnny’s Hots (1234 N. Delaware Ave.). On Delaware Avenue across from Penn Treaty park is a roadside sandwich shop that has the best affordable breakfast and lunch sandwiches (fish cake, egg sandwich, hot sausage, pork roll, cheese steak) when you are on the go. You can sit in your vehicle and eat, or take it with you. No tables. No frills no fluff — honest food from a hard working business.

Best place for out-of-towners?
The Pub in Pennsauken (7600 Kaighn Ave, Pennsauken).  It’s not just about the charcoal grilled steaks, it’s the dining room, the bar, the drinks and the salad bar.  You have to see it to believe it.

Go to date spot? 
Blue Corn on 9th Street (940 S. 9th St.) is Mexican food made with absolute love and devotion. Get the ofrenda de los dioses with a sangria and  the coctel campechano with homemade vinegar. Forget all of the over-priced poorly executed colonized Mexican food choices. Blue Corn is the real deal.

Best place to catch up with friends?
Lost Bar (2442 Frankford Ave.). One of the last few honest affordable corner neighborhood  bars left in Philly. This place is about community.

Most Instagrammable restaurant?
I don’t take pictures of my food!