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Clubber Up and P.Y.T.
Posted by Foobooz on July 22nd, 2009
As we mentioned in our Metro column, P.Y.T. has sure created a lot of buzz since its opening. The latest angle involves Tommy Up channeling Rocky foe, Clubber Lang and challenging Stephen Starr’s SquareBurger to a showdown. It was a one-sided smack talking fest last night on Twitter and it is continuing today.
But Up is not the only one going crazy over his P.Y.T.
Staying in the Twitter realm, Shola Olunloyo, Philadelphia’s most respected chef without a restaurant says “Tommy up’s PYT chicken burger rocks.”
The menu at P.Y.T. is of course right up Unbreaded’s sandwiched alley. It appears they tried everything on the menu and have the photos to prove it.
Fidel Gastro got the invite to try out P.Y.T. on Sunday and called the burger the best he’s tasted since his honeymoon (he remembers the burger from his Honeymoon) and placed the onion rings in his all-time top 3.
And with all this meat love it might be a surprise to learn there’s treats for the vegetarian too, in fact there’s a whle Bogus Burger section. Living on the Vedge is planning return trips for the ‘Shroom Burger and to find out just how many boozy shakes it takes to get toasted.
Just a reminder though, P.Y.T. is closed until this weekend so you have to hold off a couple days to try all these eats for yourself.
Pretty Yummy Thing: Tommy Up’s Burger Lounge at the Piazza [Unbreaded]
Sunday Vacation [Fidel Gastro]
First Times: PYTÂ [Living on the Vedge]
P.Y.T.
1050 N 2nd St, Philadelphia, PA
July 22nd, 2009 at 10:56 am
i wonder if i’m the only one who has grown tired of seeing those 3 initials…ugh
July 22nd, 2009 at 11:45 am
I suggest Tommy Up show up to the Shack with his boxing gloves, the SquareBurger crew will meet him with clubs from the mini-golf. They can fight it out on the Carousel.
July 22nd, 2009 at 12:10 pm
Pretty sad when you haveta call out a little shack in the middle of a park w/ mini-golf.
July 22nd, 2009 at 12:39 pm
Jagee: What 3 initials, SRO?
July 22nd, 2009 at 1:29 pm
Northern Liberties board is saying PYT ran out of food over the weekend and is closed for the week. That’s a blow to the self below even the junior flyweight class.
July 22nd, 2009 at 1:43 pm
Thats great he can make a good tasting burger but at least Starr dosent run out of food, nor close a whole week to figure out their mistakes. Perhaps Tommy Up should “shut up” and figure out how to run his restaurant
July 22nd, 2009 at 9:49 pm
this tommy “Up” guy is a classic douche. please go away.
July 22nd, 2009 at 10:02 pm
great another restaurant totally fueled by pr and owned by the king of pr douche bags tommy up. thanks for telling me what to eat, due to the media i forgot how to think for myself. i’m sticking with the royal and the south philly taproom for my burgers, they both make square burger and pyt look like mcdonalds
July 22nd, 2009 at 10:24 pm
It’s really horrible that the food scene in this city is no longer about the food being served. It’s all about publicity and how good your pr team is. It’s really became something jaded and hopefully we can recover from this before it’s gets to out of control. The food should be king, not some party promoter douchebag that has no reason to be in this business in the first place, go back to your hipster partys bro.
July 23rd, 2009 at 9:22 am
Good, let’s have the battle be on and call it Last Douche Standing. Douche to the Death. Then at least we’ll be rid of one of them.
July 23rd, 2009 at 10:18 am
I know a few of the staff at PYT. The reason they closed for the week is due to the fact that the response was WAY greater than they imagined. Keep in mind that this is a fledgling restaurant and like all “young things” it’s going to experience growing pains. Why open up and give inferior service and product when you can close for a few days and make sure that that all necessary adjustments are made to offer a great product. And as far as PR….all of you are on here talking about it
July 23rd, 2009 at 10:57 am
wow…a lot of madness in this post.
PYT ran out of food because it was giving tons away. So for all those getting high and mighty…jeez, lay off. So they underestimated the number of people who would show up for free food. I do hope they figure it out.
As for the burger–it was damn tasty. Not necessarily worthy of traveling from South Philly for, but a great sandwich and bar for when you’re in the neighborhood. The adult milkshake was quality as well. I worry about their staffing (they had three extra people doing next to nothing and it was packed when I was there), but when Shola says the chicken burger is good, then the food is probably worth a shot.
this is silly. the burger’s good. the owner’s having fun and promoting his spot and his spot is actually a legit food and drink location (whether or not you like it, it’s got Time’s chef behind the food. It isn’t frozen, it has some unique twists that no one else does). The more, the merrier…regardless of what the guy did before. What, only former chefs can own a restaurant?
July 23rd, 2009 at 11:43 am
Twitter is the vehicle for an “official” challenge to the city’s most successful restaurateur? Please.
This guy knows PR, that’s for sure. Not my bag but don’t hate the playa, hate the game.
July 23rd, 2009 at 12:45 pm
You’re right, the guy definitely knows PR. He’d also definitely win Last Douche Standing. Whether or not he truly knows food and the restaurant biz remains to be seen (I have my doubts). Let’s wait and see how things look 6 months-year down the road, when all the hype dies down and his latcher-on following finds something else “trendy” to excite them.
July 25th, 2009 at 8:13 pm
who the fuck is this guy, anyway? and please, shola, the best chef without a restaurant? didja ever think there’s a reason he doesn’t have a restaurant? believe me, he’s tried, and he sucks. it’s nauseating, as a hardworking chef in a restauarant, to hear someone who hasn’t cooked in a real life restaurant for like, 8 years, not a pretend 12 seat living room restaurant, spout profundity about food. shut your pie whole, you pretentious pussy.
July 26th, 2009 at 5:19 pm
Shola works when he wants to work, cooks what he wants to cook and obviously has a lot of fun doing it. If I was a chef, I’d sure as hell rather be Shola than Cleevus.
July 27th, 2009 at 12:39 pm
I agree with Mike. Why work 18 hour days when you can work more or less when you want and enjoy life. Every time i see him he is smiling and having fun relaxing with friends
That sounds like more fun than working with Cleevus
July 27th, 2009 at 7:26 pm
Mike, Daytime drinker.
That’s besides the point.
I do have a lot of fun doing what I do.
Most people like cleevus have no idea what I do and seem to think I just sit around cooking fancy meals for 8 people whenever I feel like it.
Studiokitchen as a social experience in West Philly is long in the past. Right now I work as a private chef and have to do it in 3 states with either substantial driving or air flights in between. It is not exactly easy and they are 18 hour days.While it isn’t cooking for 200 people a night in a restaurant, most of the people I cook for have far higher expectations than 95% of people who walk into any restaurant which is why they hire private chefs to cook in their homes.
Every now and then, the “new rules” section of my blog generates anger for which I am entirely unapologetic simply because they are meant to generate conversations.
Conversations can be contentious but adults who disagree can handle them.
Unfortunately some (hard working chefs)are too small minded and would rather respond with vulgarity while remaking the remakes of the umpteenth variations of their Tuna tartares and chipotle mayonaissed mussels with soy ginger broth.
Obvioulsy Tommy Up (whom I just met 2 weeks ago) has a lot of detractors but the chicken burger was good.
I tweeted about it to a friend.
Tommy is not paying me to say nice things.
The compliment from foobooz was nice,I did not ask for it.
I am not aspiring to be anything but who I am and I will maintain my opinions because the need to have anyone else accept them really does not interest me nor does it affect my mood or stability.
It’s not arrogance, It’s conviction.
Everyone should try it.
No Conviction= No Soul.
No Soul= Why should anyone care that you are alive ?
Using a pseudonym to post negative directed attack opinions on foobooz = No Soul.
If any other “hard working chef” does not like what they do and think my life is easy, quit your job and do what I do.
Insults don’t bother me, I have worked enough in this town to see it all and it ranges from those who are pissed because you get more press or are held in a higher regard than they are to those who are just outright pissed off that a black kid from West Africa can outcook them and THAT is keeping it real.
July 28th, 2009 at 11:50 am
Dunno, Shola, to tag a claim to not be bothered by the insults at the end of a manifesto-by-internet-standards, virtually thread dwarfing comment suggests you may not know you-know-what from shinola when it comes to knowledge of that feelings warehouse soul you got there. Tell us how you really feel.
July 28th, 2009 at 2:04 pm
Interventionist: Insults “not bothering” someone does not mean they won’t respond to or refute the insulting argument.
July 28th, 2009 at 2:06 pm
meta-discussion on a foodblog? probably not a good look…
July 28th, 2009 at 4:58 pm
Danya.
Agreed.
I guess at the end of the day people may disagree on issues but anyone who can not stand by what they have to say instead of resorting to anonymous internet postings should not be taken seriously.
It’s just jealousy.
Leave the man alone, if you have issues with your life or work schedule, fix them instead of attacking other people, all this for a chicken burger.
WOW !
Some people are just sad.
Now the “interventionist” psychiatrist chimes in too.
Hilarious.
July 28th, 2009 at 10:32 pm
So, where do you prefer to see your meta-discussions, Rory?
;P
August 4th, 2009 at 10:13 am
This is a moot point – I was at Swift Half last night and their burger was better than either PYT, Franklin Sq, or Butcher & Singer. Suck on that Tommy & Starr!