Thursday, March 01, 2012

Scallopine? Fugetdaboutit. Meatballs? Yeah!

Over the past few weeks meatball sandwiches have occasionally appeared on the menu at Dinic's at the Reading Terminal Market. Starting after the flower show the new sandwich will gain a permanent place among the offerings.

To make room, Dinic's will forgo the scallopine sandwiches, made from thin cuts of pork. Joe Nicolosi, who runs the stall with his father Tom, said they sell fewer than half a dozen scallopines daily.

Although a handful of other market lunch vendors sell meatballs, Dinic's is the only one made on premises -- all the others come from commercial suppliers, according to Joe.

For their meatballs the Nicolosis start out with a lean beef chuck, for about 70 percent of the weight. They make it succulent by using trimmings from their pork before it gets roasted for the roast pork and pulled pork sandwiches for the remaining 30 percent. They grind the meat at the store and also make their own sauce.

The meat balls were available today for lunch, but don't expect them once the flower show starts Saturday for a nine-day run: the thick crowds and demand for the pork sandwiches will take up all their available time.

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