Philadelphia Baltimore Dollar Stroll

In West Philadelphia, there is an event called Baltimore (Dollar) Stroll, in which during two days in a year, businesses, primarily restaurants on Baltimore Ave from 42^nd to 50^th sell samples of their food for a $1. Usually one day is in summer while the other day is in Fall.  This new event started a few years ago to promote the growing businesses in West Philly.  There were a number of selections you can buy for $1 eg. a samosa, a slice of pizza, an ice sandwich, half of cheesesteak, chicken wings, egg roll, beer etc. Being the cheapstake and fatty I am, the Baltimore Stroll is highly an anticipated occurrence for me.  Unfortunately, that chosen day, it rained and some of the lines were extremely long and not worth the wait. Luckily, we came a little early so we were able to bypass the long lines for some of the restaurants and get some things to eat instead starving to death in the lines. Below are pictures and reviews of the foods I got. Of course, there were more things I wanted to try but I could not justify the long lines( eg, I still wanted to try the seitan cheesesteak from Lee’s Deli and the banana whips from Mariposa Food Co-op).

Green Line Mexican Chocolate and Coconut Sugar Cookies

Coconut sugar and Mexican chocolate cookie (vegan) from Green Line Café.  I didn’t think either of the cookies were that delicious. The coconut sugar was alittle dry and tasted like a mild sweet sugar cookie with a hint of coconut from the shredded coconut. The Mexican chocolate cookie had a rich chocolate taste and also a kick to it. There was definitely some hot spice in it (cayenne, paprika, chilli) and I think a little too much because my throat started to burn. I think the chocolate cookie would have tasted better if they the spice level down a notch.

Desi Village Samaso, Veggie Pakora, and Mango Lassi

Samosa, veggie pakora, and mango lassi from Desi Village. The samosa was good. Although I think I had better elsewhere before. It was a good size, rich in spices and in potato filling. It had a spicy kick to it. The pakora were very flavorful and the texture reminded me of fishcake. I like the pakora more than the samosa. The mango lassi was delicious. It was smooth, mild creamy, sweet, and rich in fresh mango flavor.

Gojjo Ethiopian Lentil Sambosa

Gojjo Ethiopian Veggie Injeri 
The lentil samosa and veggie injeri from Gojji Ethiopian Restaurant.  Both the lentil samosa and veggie injeri were okay. The lentils sambuso was packed full of lentils. It tasted kind of plain. The veggie injeri was a little more flavorful. The lentils complemented the injeri. I thought this lentil injeri tasted better than the lentil injeri that we got later on.

Dahlak Lentil Injeri, Spinach Injeri, and Housse Salad

The lentil injeri, spinach injeri, and sample house salad from Dahlak. I thought the lentils injeri was too salty. The spinach injeri was a little salty too but tasty better than the lentil injeri. It also had a hint of garlic to it. The house  salad was too small of a sample for me to make anything out of it. It just tasted like plain lettuce and tomato. I am not sure of the dressing.

Lucky's Chinese Restaurant Veggie Spring Roll

A veggie spring roll from Lucky’s Chinese Restaurant.  This was delicious. It was hot from the fryer. The filling was clear noodles, shredded carrots, and shredded cabbage. It reminded me of spring rolls I use to get from the corner store when I was child. It was very tasty.

Pound Cake Heaven Red Velvet Cake

Pound Cake Heaven Sample Sweet Potato Cake

Pound Cake Heaven Strawberry Shortcake Sample

Pound Cake Heaven Carrot Cake Sample

Red velvet cake and samples of sweet potato, carrot, and strawberry shortcake cakes from Pound Cake Heaven. The red velvet cake was moist and delicious. It wasn’t too sweet and the butter cream frosting completed the cake well. The sweet potato cake sample was good. The sweet potato taste was subtle and the frosting was delicious…again the butter cream frosting. The strawberry shortcake tasted like a lighter version of pound cake. It had a whipped frosting and a tiny fresh slice of strawberry. It was quite good. Lastly, the carrot cake sample tasted the best. It was sweet, moisy, had a mixture of flavors, and raisins in it.