Café Carmela

Sometimes Italian restaurants feel like clones of each other. There’s white tablecloths, candlelight, and chandeliers shipped over from Venice. And while the more upscale places can be great, there’s something special about the cozy and casual places that give you the warm feeling of a family dinner. That’s just what Café Carmela offers—along with great Italian food and one of the best cheesesteaks in town.

photo credit: NICOLE GUGLIELMO

photo credit: NICOLE GUGLIELMO

photo credit: NICOLE GUGLIELMO

photo credit: NICOLE GUGLIELMO

photo credit: NICOLE GUGLIELMO

Located in a strip mall in Northeast Philly, the walk-in only spot attracts larger crowds than Spirit Halloween in October (and it can get just as frantic). But once inside, they pull off that classic Italian ambiance: a chatty neighborhood crowd that treats it like their second home, kids stretching out long strands of cheese, and grandfathers complaining that Stallone’s Rocky accent was more New York than South Philly. You’ll feel like you can linger and take your time here—and you should, since the flavorful family-style dishes are so large. Dive into a rich bowl of rigatoni while you watch pizza dough get tossed, and consider joining the staff pictured on the walls so you can eat like this for the rest of your life. 

photo credit: NICOLE GUGLIELMO

Come here to crack open a chianti, have a cheesesteak or pizza good enough to invade your dreams, and indulge in a restaurant meal that feels more like Thanksgiving at your aunt’s (and is just as welcoming).

Food Rundown

photo credit: NICOLE GUGLIELMO

Fried Mozzarella

These crispy nuggets are delightfully creamy. The San Marzano sauce is so good that you’ll want to pour it on anything. But since that can get messy, just dunk these plump and crispy squares of mozzarella in them.

photo credit: NICOLE GUGLIELMO

Mamma Leuzzi Pie

The Mama Leuzzi has more accessories than an Italian wedding party—it’s topped with fresh hand-pulled fior di latte, whole milk mozzarella, baby arugula, prosciutto, balsamic, and an EVOO drizzle. But it hasn’t gone overboard—it makes for a bite that is creamy, earthy, and has a sweet- saltiness from the prosciutto. Order it for the table.

photo credit: NICOLE GUGLIELMO

American Boy Pizza

This isn’t just your regular cheese pizza. For starters, like all pizza here, the crust has the ideal bubbly-to-airy-to—crispy ratio. Also, it’s an upside down pie. After the pizza dough gets layered with creamy mozzarella, it gets a saucy bath of sweet red sauce.

photo credit: NICOLE GUGLIELMO

Drunken Rigatoni

Cafe Carmela knows pasta. Especially the classics, like this rigatoni in vodka sauce. The sauce is made with San Marzano tomatoes, cream, and Stateside Vodka. The sauce is rich, it’s all topped with mozzarella and basil, and we’d consider leaving our significant other for the chef if it meant we could eat it daily.

photo credit: NICOLE GUGLIELMO

Cheesesteak

One thing we (and the city) can’t get enough of is the Don Cheech’s Steak—it’s the perfect combination of thick-sliced ribeye, melty Cooper Sharp, and fried onions on a seeded roll. We’re considering writing it a love letter (or at least texting it a bunch of heart emojis).