Déjà vu. We’ve visited this particular address, 918 S. 22nd St., a number of times over the last few years, each time a different restaurant. All of them had their charms and the spot’s latest inhabitant, The Strip Joint Steakhouse, is keeping up with that tradition.
The Strip Joint might be the most fun restaurant to occupy that corner space, as its menus run with a theme of classic, old-time strip-club vibe, especially on the drink menu, which has cheeky drink names like Lady Marmalade, Sweet Tease and Pin Up Girl.
The food for the most part was equally fun. The steak game is as solid as it gets: a nice house salad, frites and a perfectly cooked piece of either New York strip, filet mignon or steak maison (each $19). The array of sauces adds a touch of decadent flair to the steaks, especially the signature sauce, which is abundantly rich compared to other choices like blue cheese and horseradish. The burger game is no slouch either as the Joint Burger ($16) is a mouthful, piled high with bacon, onions and mushrooms.
As good as the steaks are, some of the Strip Joint’s comfort-food dishes were at times the real superstars of the place. The stuffed balls ($8) will give any Italian restaurant in the city stiff competition for the best meatball, as they were juicy, flavorful and had a treasure trove of melted smoked gouda simmering in the center. The cheesy macaroni gratin ($6) was godlike. The crab cakes ($9) were perfectly crisp on the outside and tender on the inside, with the added kick of spicy sriracha mayo. The spicy fried pickles ($6) looked good and would have been perfect except for the small issue of the pickles, which weren’t pickled enough and were too close to being cucumbers in texture and flavor. Otherwise, the crust of the pickles and the spicy sauce were tasty.
Desserts at The Strip Joint hit all the right spots. The huge portions were satisfying without being overly sweet, especially with the key lime cheesecake ($8), which had the perfect balance of sour and sweet and smooth and crunchy. The bananas foster bread pudding ($8) could have easily overdid the sweetness with creamy richness but reigned it in perfectly.
That South Philly locale may be a revolving door for restaurants, but The Strip Joint Steakhouse’s solid menu and upbeat atmosphere might keep it from being just another piece of meat.