Fette Sau
| Address: | 1208 Frankford Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19125, USA |
| Phone: | +1 215-391-4888 |
| Site: | fettesauphilly.com |
| Rating: | 4.5 |
| Working: | 5–10PM 5–11PM 5–11PM 5–11PM 5PM–12AM 12PM–12AM 12–10PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 6
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Ricky Mason
This is a tough one to rate. Before you head there, realize that you are not waited on like a normal restaurant. Its cafe-style, where you stand in line, order, they give you a tray with your food, and you find a place to sit. Its an interesting change of pace, and I wouldnt down vote it for trying something new. It would work well for a lunch spot, or if you live in NoLibs/Fishtown and wanted to grab some good food rather quickly. However, my girlfriend and I went there for dinner, and stood in line for a good 30 minutes before getting our food. Id much rather have waited at a table. On the plus side, they do have a bar next to the line so you can drink while standing. Onto the food. Its good BBQ. Though El Camino is better. We got some brisket, ribs, pulled pork, and a side or two. Again, It was pretty good, but lacked flavor, so I was loading on the BBQ sauce. They provide 2-3 types depending on what table you get. The Decor...Its well done. Clean, and creative. The only problem I had with it is how hard they tried to make it hipster. I mean, youre a steven starr restaurant, you cant provide comfortable chairs? I was sitting in a wooden chair, and my girlfriend sat in one of those ceramic blue chairs you would sit on in highschool. Again, they did a really good job of imitating hipster, but that alone is an oxymoron. It just felt too artificial to me. Service - Well, there is none, so I rated it Good: Mainly because they clean the tables and grab your finished trays pretty quickly. Someone is walking around as well to make sure everything is okay, we were approached once. The bar was easy to get drinks, and they had a decent selection of crafts. There is a water cooler in the back that you can help yourself to, where they provide plates, utensils, and plastic cups. All in all, it was a good experience. Id recommend it as long as you understand that the experience isnt going to be typical.
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Schuyler L.
Really good meat!! We especially enjoyed the ribs! The dry rub was just right in terms of burnt crust, just enough, not too much. We were really really confused about the restaurant works because there was nobody else in line at the time! Its quick service like Panera. Walk up, tell them what you want, the meat carver behind the counter will suggest a quarter pound or half pound of meat. We were recommended 4 ribs, 1/2 lb of brisket and we chose a side of cornbread and a small baked beans. This was plenty of food for the two of us! We also got a bottled sweet tea, but next time I might bring my own. The atmosphere is so casual and the 16 oz container was underwhelming for the amount of salt restaurants typically have. Overall I was happy with almost everything. The cornbread was a huge disappointment because it had tons and tons of lemon in it. It was like a british lemon cake, not BBQ style cornbread. If I had known we would have opted for the potato roll instead. The water and silverware are self service. We say and wondered if the distressed tables and the random chairs were truly random. Afterward we were told this is a Stephen Starr restaurant. Id find it interesting to know how much he paid for a cafeteria chair from a high school, probably hundreds.
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Andrew Anderson
The ambiance and atmosphere of the space is incredible--its a mix of industrial and something Id find in the New South of barbeque restaurants. The tables, lighting, and bar are all gorgeously situated in this sprawling restaurant. My dissatisfaction comes from the method of ordering food--it is all BY THE POUND. I have no intuitive feel for ordering ribs by the pound, and it made it a very uncomfortable experience with the line behind us clammoring for us to hurry. $21 a pound for ribs? Okay, Ill take 1/4 pound I guess. "Oh, thats only 1 rib". What? Long story short: I like places that serve you the portion the chef / owner decides should be served--theres a point where customer choice is an overload, and certainly when the unit is per pound! Once we got our food (which was too much because I mis-ordered), all of the meats were cold. While they were certainly tender, they didnt really have much flavor, either. The sauces were great, but the meat did not stand alone. Id MAYBE come back for their awesome-looking half-price growler happy hours, and try the food again, perhaps when its hot, but it wasnt the most pleasant experience.
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Robert Stone
The decor is industrial with exposed brick, exposed wood beam ceilings and good quality everywhere and clean. Its self serve including the paper plates(get two paper plates at a time and stack them), paper towels, silverware, water, etc. Despite being self serve, the employees were eager to help and the manager even came over to me and asked if everything was all right. The beans have chunks of beef and are delicious- the brisket is also a good deal as you get several large slices for half a pound. The chicken is $10.00 per half and is pretty big. The one item I had an issue with are the Angus beef ribs which are $22.00 per lb. ONE rib was $16.00! They should lower the per lb. price on these as the weight of the rib is mostly the bone! My friend and I spent close to $70.00 on a half chicken, half a lb of brisket, the one $16.00 rib, two large side orders consisting of the baked beans(awesome) and potato salad(didnt care for it too much), two rolls and four beers- a nice touch is you can get half pints for $3.00. Despite the cost, I would return and order less, the food is filling and excellent quality!
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Joshua Moskowitz
I came here at around 6:00pm on a Saturday. Upon walking in, the place smelled great and I was really excited to try their food. There were 6 people in line ahead of me and it took about 15 minutes to have my order taken. If the sluggish service was the only issue I think I still could have liked this place. But, I ordered a half pound of brisket, 2 beef ribs, and a side of baked beans. The bill came to $47...$47! Looking down at the tray I couldnt believe it was $47 worth of food. On top of that, the food was mediocre at best. It wasnt the worst meal Ive had but it was far from the best and miles away from the price I paid. I left there feeling like I had wasted my money. The bottom line is this restaurant is in a city where theres little competition for good BBQ and its trendy. If it was opened in another part of the country where BBQ is more common, this place would be laughed out of business. If youre hard up to overpay for mediocre BBQ in a dimly lit "hip" place then go for it. Otherwise, Id recommend saving your money.
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XYZ 123
Excellent, better than I expected. Yes, the atmosphere is comfortable and creative while looking like it was designed around the buildings original atmosphere. There are tables and people cleaning up, but the food and liquor are ordered at the counter. The wait in line was entertaining, but, I may give myself extra time or go somewhere else if I had plans for a movie or something afterwards. The BBQ was delicious. They have quite a selection of Whiskeys, Bourbons and Scotches. This is definitely a place that someone has to check out with a group of friends, a date, family or solo. Although one booth was marked reserved, I was able to easily find comfortable seating for the others I ate with. The atmosphere is spaced nicely so if there are any drunk, hungry and loud groups of people nearby, its not distracting whatsoever. If youre not familiar with this part of the city, it has a lot to offer compared to 15 years ago and I felt adequately safe walking through town after parking.
