A few weeks ago my sister and I took a road trip to Philadelphia. I was primarily interested in vegan food, she in history. The trip was a success for both of us. On our last night there, we went to Chef Mark McKinney's "Primary" for dinner and unknowingly had picked the perfect spot for a terrific, memorable dinner. Primary is a small restaurant that serves amazing vegan dishes. We started with an order of the potato croquettes. They were scrumptious - tender and flavorful with a lightly battered crispy exterior on a bed of creamy celery root and a light touch of sauce ravigote. All delivered with a smile (see the picture). For our main course, though the entrees looked delicious, we ordered sandwiches. My sister had the "Sorta Nostalgic" whose main ingredient was tempeh. She shared a bit of the tempeh with me and it was the best I've ever tasted. Almost made me regret that I had not ordered it (but then I hadn't tasted my sandwich yet!). I ordered the "Mushroom Parmesan" sandwich. The mushrooms were flavorful and plentiful. They were covered in a tomato/parmesan sauce and placed on a tasty bed of rabe all layered in a garlic bread roll. It was delicious! Both sandwiches were served with a side of potato salad which tasted like my mother made it! Yum!! For dessert, my sister had the Raspberry Chocolate Chip ice cream which she shared with me. We had been to one of the top ice cream stores in the city earlier that day and this got our votes as the better ice cream! Chef Mark came over during our dinner to chat a bit which gave us the chance to rave about those croquettes and to ask about the tempeh. It's nothing like the tempeh that I get occasionally in the grocery store. His is tender, has lots of texture, flavor and moistness. And of course, he makes it himself! Chef Mark clearly has a passion for healthy plant-based food. He uses all locally sourced fresh ingredients and crafts his own wonderful recipes. Nicole who served us was interactive and attentive from the moment we walked in. The timing of the food service was perfect and the overall ambiance was cozy, very casual, comfortable and cheerful. The kitchen is in an open space at the back where you can see the care and skill that's put into each dish. I would highly recommend Primary if you're in the Philadelphia area! You won't be disappointed.

Terrific food and service. We began with the beet salad and it was dressed with a very tasty vinegar based dressing. Small greens with fresh and beautiful beets, filled with couscous and a puréed eggplant base. They were sweet which worked very well with the salads vinaigrette. I ordered the seitan cheese steak and substituted the mozzarella with barn cat cheese by bandit. What a beautiful pairing! The cheese is like a like a soft Gorgonzola and it paired so well with the slightly sweet seitan which was very tender. The roll was light so that you get a little seeded bead with the seitan and cheese. It was delicious and light. My friend ordered the gnocchi. It had a lovely gravy with cut asparagus and blistered tomatoes. He said he wouldn't finish it but he barely left any remnant in his bowl. We shared the chocolate mousse with blueberries and coconut whipped cream. It was very light with a decadent chocolate and we almost licked out the glass. Please go. The chef is very talented and so was our friendly and attentive wait staff. I can't wait to go again. .

WOW. Everything was so spot on. My partner and I were visiting from New York and were looking forward to trying this place. We almost didn't come because we noticed the prices have jumped since some of the yelp menu photos were taken. I'm so happy we decided to come in! We got the masa ball soup, the Caesar salad, yeuben sandwich, and the roasted Brussels. The menu is extremely creative, good sized portions, and the chef(s) hit flavors in ways you don't find just anywhere. Come here! Tell your friends!

Stop reading this review and make your reservation! This place was amazing! I was there this evening for a friends birthday and none of us are actually vegan or vegetarian we just liked the idea of BYOB and wanted to try something new. The portions were huge and everything was so tasty and each dish was so well thought out. We shared the cauliflower which I will definitely be back for and the Brussels and Dan Dan noodle salad (the only one I got a picture of before the plates started passing and we tasted everything before pictures happened). For dinner we got the Ruben, burger, gnocchi, and jackfruit (some of us got the same thing) and it was all really awesome! The gnocchi was sweet and had a strong (but fitting) cinnamon taste and the jack fruit had the best flavor! Just a tip if it says spicy it is so if you don't like spicy select another option, for those of us that liked it, it was perfect, but if it's not your thing select another one of the great options!

It took way too long for me to get here but it was worth the wait! The food here is excellent and totally inventive. We tried the seitan flappers, masa ball soup, kungpao Brussel sprouts and La Meechs Cemita Thang (sandwich). Everything we had was delicious. They are always updating their menu for new options. This is a small quaint and casual location, good for dining with a friend, date or small groups. I'm a vegetarian and very vegan friendly but had a meat eater with me and we both were satisfied.

What a gem! I came to meet up with an old friend for brunch. We were asked to sit wherever we wanted and was greeted immediately. There's plenty of sweet and savory dishes on the brunch menu. I ordered the roasted garlic sopes and oh my heaven. The flavors were not lacking. The mushroom chorizo was perfectly seasoned as were the beans. Admittedly, I do not follow a vegan diet, but am strictly dairy-free. Enjoying a meal here that has "cheese" without the worry of feeling ill afterwards was a bonus. My friend ordered the french toast and enjoyed her meal as well. Our server was also very attentive and personable. We cannot wait to return for a dinner soon!

This was the most wonderful, comforting plant-based meal I've had in a long time. Unpretentious and so well-executed, each bite was bursting with flavor that was neither too "meaty" (as some fake meats tend to be...I'm looking at you, Impossible and Beyond) nor chewy nor anything other than awesome. Even the simple potato salad was lovely and well-balanced. Loved every bite. And the service was great. Everyone was friendly and efficient. Please do yourself a favor and get the super unique Yeuben sandwich! It was so good!

Made a reservation for a Saturday night dinner date with my husband. This spot was perfect for a little date night. The waitress was able to seat us quickly as 6pm the restaurant wasn't full. As we got settled more and more people filled the restaurant. I am glad this place is doing well. We were excited to because we saw on instagram that they just changed up the menu. We ordered the dan dan salad, the flappers char sui style, and the rich boy sandwich. The dan dan salad came out first. It was not my favorite because the noodles I thought were a little under done but it was hard to get all the flavors at once. I really liked the addition on apple in this though! I would try a dinner salad if I came back. Next came out the flappers and OMG they were so delicious. They also came with a side of green veggie (choy sum?) and they were delicious too. Very garlicy and just perfectly cooked. I wish I could order a bowl of those veggies alone! The flappers themselves were the perfect texture for a wing. I can never replicate this type of thing at home so I will definitely be back to get them again. The char sui sauce was like barbequey which is my preferred wing flavoring, perfection!! Finally came out our sandwich, the rich boy. The bread was soft and able to hold the sandwich. I really enjoyed this even though it was messy. It was a comforting sandwich with tons of sauce and veggies. It came with a side if fingerling potatoes and a pickle. I really liked the sandwich but if I came back I would want to try something else on the menu. Overall, great atmosphere, outstanding food, and vegan! Perfect for me and I can't wait to come back.