clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

9 Places in Philly to Eat Meat on a Stick

View as Map

In honor of The Five Days of Meat, we're taking a moment to celebrate all things meat-on-a-stick. Here are 9 of Eater's favorite spots to eat kebabs, corn dogs, and other skewered delicacies.


Read More
Eater maps are curated by editors and aim to reflect a diversity of neighborhoods, cuisines, and prices. Learn more about our editorial process.

Moe's Hot Dog House

Copy Link
There are no guarantees in life, and there is definitely no guarantee that Moe's will be open when you roll up. (They open early for breakfast and close after lunch, and the hours have been known to shift throughout the year.) But this is the best place around to eat a corn dog. It's not that the corn dog itself will blow your mind (it's good! it's corn dog canon!), it's just that eating this corn dog in this place is ideal. (And try a few other dogs while you're there.)

Nam Phuong

Copy Link
Does ground shrimp formed onto sugarcane 'skewers' count as meat on a stick? If you say no, you should probably look into getting your own damn blog. Nam Phuong is hardly the only place in town to find sugarcane shrimp, but it is one of our favorite places you'll find it. You can order it over vermicelli on its own, but it also comes on a platter big enough to share alongside grilled meatballs and beef in grape leaves.(Guess which option Eater endorses.)

Le Virtù

Copy Link
If you spend much time hanging around the campo (that's the outdoor patio area at Le Virtu), you may have run into their arrosticini — little lamb skewers seasoned simply and cooked over coals on a special grill called a fornacella. They're not a permanent fixture, but chef Joe Cicala reports they'll be on the menu full-time starting next week. Which means we will all be parked in the campo full-time starting next week.

Terakawa Ramen

Copy Link
Sure, get some ramen too, but there are takoyaki here, and they come threaded on a skewer, which is lucky for our purposes here. The little balls of octopus are coated and cooked in a batter incorporating Japanese yam, then drizzled with sweet takoyaki sauce and kewpie mayo, and scattered with bonito flakes.

Border Springs Farm @ Reading Terminal Market

Copy Link
Is lamb on a stick the best meat on a stick? Arguable, but there are an awful lot of skewered lambs out there to love. Keep thee in mind next time you're eating your way through Reading Terminal.
Early on at this new U City izakaya, some things have been a little hit-or-miss-y, but there's no shortage of skewered goodies to choose from. You can have them serve up a full chicken's worth of yakitori - and there are some very nice bites that stray from the common meat-on-a-stick scene, like little bacon-wrapped tomatoes.

Solo Skewer Bar

Copy Link
The name kind of presents it as an obvious choice, but this rec comes courtesy of an Eater reader, who specifically cites some faves: "Chicken, Mini Hot Dogs, Lamb (sometimes), Fish Tofu, and Fish Balls. We like to sprinkle extra cumin and hot pepper!" It's all skewered, there's no shortage of variety you can get it to go, and it's cheap.

Kabobeesh

Copy Link
Take your pick from tons of skewered and grilled Pakistani and Middle Eastern standards. (There's another location now in Queen Village, too, if West Philly's not your thing.)

Khmer Kitchen

Copy Link
The skewers at this Cambodian place are awesome, and they come on a sampler platter so you don't have to make any difficult decisions: grilled meatballs, beef, and curried chicken sticks all snuggle together on the plate.

Loading comments...

Moe's Hot Dog House

There are no guarantees in life, and there is definitely no guarantee that Moe's will be open when you roll up. (They open early for breakfast and close after lunch, and the hours have been known to shift throughout the year.) But this is the best place around to eat a corn dog. It's not that the corn dog itself will blow your mind (it's good! it's corn dog canon!), it's just that eating this corn dog in this place is ideal. (And try a few other dogs while you're there.)

Nam Phuong

Does ground shrimp formed onto sugarcane 'skewers' count as meat on a stick? If you say no, you should probably look into getting your own damn blog. Nam Phuong is hardly the only place in town to find sugarcane shrimp, but it is one of our favorite places you'll find it. You can order it over vermicelli on its own, but it also comes on a platter big enough to share alongside grilled meatballs and beef in grape leaves.(Guess which option Eater endorses.)

Le Virtù

If you spend much time hanging around the campo (that's the outdoor patio area at Le Virtu), you may have run into their arrosticini — little lamb skewers seasoned simply and cooked over coals on a special grill called a fornacella. They're not a permanent fixture, but chef Joe Cicala reports they'll be on the menu full-time starting next week. Which means we will all be parked in the campo full-time starting next week.

Terakawa Ramen

Sure, get some ramen too, but there are takoyaki here, and they come threaded on a skewer, which is lucky for our purposes here. The little balls of octopus are coated and cooked in a batter incorporating Japanese yam, then drizzled with sweet takoyaki sauce and kewpie mayo, and scattered with bonito flakes.

Border Springs Farm @ Reading Terminal Market

Is lamb on a stick the best meat on a stick? Arguable, but there are an awful lot of skewered lambs out there to love. Keep thee in mind next time you're eating your way through Reading Terminal.

cozara

Early on at this new U City izakaya, some things have been a little hit-or-miss-y, but there's no shortage of skewered goodies to choose from. You can have them serve up a full chicken's worth of yakitori - and there are some very nice bites that stray from the common meat-on-a-stick scene, like little bacon-wrapped tomatoes.

Solo Skewer Bar

The name kind of presents it as an obvious choice, but this rec comes courtesy of an Eater reader, who specifically cites some faves: "Chicken, Mini Hot Dogs, Lamb (sometimes), Fish Tofu, and Fish Balls. We like to sprinkle extra cumin and hot pepper!" It's all skewered, there's no shortage of variety you can get it to go, and it's cheap.

Kabobeesh

Take your pick from tons of skewered and grilled Pakistani and Middle Eastern standards. (There's another location now in Queen Village, too, if West Philly's not your thing.)

Khmer Kitchen

The skewers at this Cambodian place are awesome, and they come on a sampler platter so you don't have to make any difficult decisions: grilled meatballs, beef, and curried chicken sticks all snuggle together on the plate.

Related Maps