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Mon-Fri. 12:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Sat. 1:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Sun. 6:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
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If you're new to Philly, this is a definite stop for you.
SOFT PRETZELS!
They are doughy, they are yummy, they are soft, they are pretzel, they come off a conveyer belt for you and go right into your mouth.
The place opens after midnight b/c that's the time they start cranking out pretzels for the masses.
The guy who will serve you here after midnight is not happy, so don't give him any crap, or you're gonna get a pretzel where the sun don't shine.
Anytime to experience pretzel heaven when you're drunk and stumbling home from the bar is a perfect time for a piping hot soft pretzel.
Tuesday into Wednesday nights is what they call "Pretzel Bike Run". It's basically a bunch of hipsters of all kinds that trek from West Philly and anywhere else to get some pretzels. This is one of the craziest nights and should be avoided unless you really want a pretzel? If so, you'll have to deal with a bunch of savvy, mixed-matched dressed, talking about what they just read online, scene stealers. Don't worry they don't bite, just toss them a Vice Magazine to fight over and soon a mouth-watering pretzel is YOURS!
Every time you come here the pretzels are still awesome. There isn't a special day where they taste any better or less. Don't get crazy now, they're just pretzels.
You have choices of different mustards.
Pepsi is your only choice of beverage, get over it. There are vending machines in the premise. Back in my day, there were only pretzels, that's it!
If you're complaining about this recession, then buy a pretzel! It's cheap and if you're still bitching, cut down on your bar nights. I see some of you every night at the same bar complaining about money.
So let's get PRETZELS!!!
Obama may have the Peace Prize but I got the Pretzel Price!
Piping hot soft pretzels are the main reason I am reluctant to ever leave Philadelphia permanently. It's astonishing to me that there are other cities in America subsiding on only Super Pretzel soft pretzels and other freezer burnt varieties of "soft pretzels."
Center City Soft Pretzel Co is supreme. They make the best pretzels in the city. Philly Soft Pretzels are a joke compared to theirs. When I eat one, I'm settling. Plus, here you can buy like 24235 pretzels for a few dollars. And I feel so much better making the late night choice of soft pretzels over cheesesteaks. Gluttony without bellyache!
When you're hungry at 2AM and you happen to be in South Philly, or you have quick access to a car, bike, shoes, scooter...COME AND GET A WARM PRETZEL. They are delicious and you can pay for one with probably the amount of change you have in your pocket right now. I don't remember exactly how much they cost because well, I've never been here sober, which is so sad since I can practically spit on the factory from my house.
There's another location in SP too where my sister and I went to after a house party and the guy just gave us the pretzels for free. It made my night.
There is nothing bad to say about the Pretzel Co. And if you have something bad to say, you're just crazy.
When I moved to New York many years ago, the thing I missed most about Philly wasn't the cheesesteaks or the Tastykakes or even the hoagies (though that was close). Instead, it was the soft pretzels-- namely, the pretzels at Center City Pretzels (I'm still tempted to call them Federal Street pretzels)! Holy Jeez, I love these things so much. I try to consume a few whenever I'm home. The best way to get them is definitely at the storefront, though the strange hours make it a little challenging. Still, NOTHING beats a brown bag full of warm Center City pretzels!!! (Bonus points for being so cheap, too!)
this is the perfect place to get a snack in the early am on your walk of shame home. they are open all night and for less than a dollar you can have two piping hot pretzels that are AMAZING!!...last night i bought a small container of honey mustard to go with it HOLY CRAP!!! it was so good i brought it home with me on the bus all the way back to MT. Airy, it's sitting in my fridge right now...can't wait to use it on something else mmmmmmmmm
If I were to move far, far away from Philly, this place would be one of the top three things I'd miss.
You just cannot beat cheap, hot, tasty pretzels. With spicy mustard. Especially at 2AM, after an evening of Olympic gold-winning alcohol consumption.
It just turned 12:02am as I'm writing this, and that means I will be departing for some pretzels as soon as I'm done.
I love this place. It's super cheap, and has great choices for dips.
One night (i don't remember) my boyfriend and roommate took me here after some heavy drinking and I apparently asked them if they had a map, and somehow probably incoherently ordered pretzels and caramel dip, and then got the caramel all over my bf's car and my awesome red plaid coat.
Anyway... cheap awesome pretzels that are great after a long night of drinking, whether or not you remember eating them.
Why bother going to a retail pretzel store when you can get them right from the source. Granted, you have to wait until very early morning (around 12-2am) if I remember correctly, which is when they open their doors. Note: this is not a pretzel store per say, it's actually a large factory that ships pretzels all over Philly. If you are a broke college student in the Philly area, you have to swing by here once and a while and get a TON of pretzels for relatively nothing, it really cannot be beat.
Drunk? Hungry? Broke? This is your alternative to the wallet-raping, soul crushing, xenophobic Geno's. (Pat's is merely disgusting) In terms of snacks, it absolutely does not get better. Would be 5 stars, but tonight I was finally sober enough to actually taste the mustard and the cheese. The "spicy" mustard is just yellow mustard with some bullshit added to it. And the cheese sauce was watery and reminded all involved of melted plastic. Don't misunderstand; we LOVE cheese whiz. But this was not good.
I forgot how much I love this place - only thing that sucks is the hours. I have tried to stop here soo many times and its always closed. Last night on my way home I saw it was open and imediately parked in the middle of the street ran in and grabbed a bag for all of $2. another thing that sucked was the fact that they were out of nacho cheese!!
This place makes for a great and cheap after bar/club spot to soak up the excess alcohol. There have been many morning where I wake up and find trails of pretzel salt all through my house.
If you're looking for soft pretzels in Philly, you need not look far. On any block there is a store, street cart, or just a man with a box willing to sell you pretzels. These pretzels may whet your appetite, but they are usually hours past their shelf life, and so they are cold and stale.
Sadly, the soft pretzel really only has a shelf life of an hour, maybe two hours depending on the temperature and humidity of the day. The hour old pretzel and the fresh out of the oven pretzel are really two different animals. That means to enjoy a soft pretzel you must get it right at the factory. Luckily in Philly this can be done in several locations, Center City Pretzel being one of the them.
Here you stand literally 10 feet away from the oven churning out a countless number of pretzels. You can feel the heat blasting you in the face. In between you and this machine is a man who will grab you the next row of pretzels and rip you off three of them for a dollar (if you buy more it can get as cheap as $0.19 each). The pretzels are so fresh you can't even hold them with your bare hands. You wrap the pretzels in a piece of the brown paper bag you got them in and you slather on some of the free mustard. Then you bite into the soft, piping hot pretzel taking note not to burn the roof of your mouth. It is perfectly crunchy on the outside, soft but just chewy enough on the inside.
Much like how a good loaf of bread is just wonderful, a fresh soft pretzel is also piece of culinary perfection. To eat a soft pretzel in its full god intended glory is sadly something many people will never engage in. If you are in or around philly you should try to get one. If you're a tourist, soft pretzels scream Philly just as much as a cheese steak. Go out and drink at The Royal Tavern, Dive Bar, or any of the other good bars around there. Then, before you stumble home, make the two block walk for the best pretzel you may have ever had.
Oh, the good nights when I walked here from Center City, or stopped on my way back from a late-bight pick-up a the airport. I love salty things, and pretzels fall into this category. I also mostly think of them as a edible utensil for eating mustard. I LOVE mustard. Getting a hot press pretzel and dumping a crap load of mustard on it, and then getting mustard all over my face. That's awesome.
While the late-night hours add to the novelty and "members only" feel, I wish they were open at other times, too. And the last time I went, we got cold pretzels because the seller thought that the freshest batch was "too hot." Screw that. There is no such thing as too hot or too fresh when you're talking pretzels.
Best hangover prevention!
Best late-nite drunk fix! --Way better than Lorenzo's in that department, especially since they're so cheap. I'd still be way into them if they were expensive, though.
also:
Best way to burn your mouth!
Does their lurk a g-spot at the root of the mouth? Where those nerves flush from the top of our gums to the tips of our teeth? If so it can only be discovered at 1am when the Center City Pretzel Co opens it's doors and starts selling it's freshly baked pretzels for a mere 25 cents a piece. There is nothing more quintessentially Philadelphia than this. Crazy south Philly parties - pabst or yuengling, are you rich or poor? Who cares we all live in row houses anyway! But BUT, the real answer lies in who brings the pretzels to the party. That is the savior.
I LOVE THIS PLACE-- great late night drunk food
There's really nothing like eating these pretzels fresh off the oven. If you're up past midnight, it's worth the trip. Soooooo soft and delicious...
It hasn't been mentioned yet, but though pretzels here only cost 3 for a dollar, a tiny dixie cup full of cheez whiz will cost you a buck each.
Last time my buddy John was so drunk he accidently dumped 3 dollars worth of cheez-whiz on the hood of some dude's late-model bimmer. Since we didn't want any trouble from the cops, we immediately high-tailed it to Cirque du Soleil.
This review need not be long. These are the best freakin' pretzels in the universe! Words cannot describe them. Every other pretzel company (Federal St, Poser franchises, etc) does not even compare. I prefer the darker ones rather than the lightly-colored ones (no choice - it's hit or miss). But they're quite possibly the best, cheapest snack this world has to offer. I love them dearly. I'm going there right now to buy some. Forget the cheesesteaks...THIS place is what makes Philadelphia great! I would give them 10 stars if I could.
As Viv mentions in a previous post, their is a 'Pretzel Ride' every Tuesday night in which a whole slew of people, as diverse as you can imagine, ride from the Art Museum to Center City Pretzel Co Inc and get their fill for a buck! And boy is it fantastic! As an avid pretzel rider there is nothing I look forward to more than hopping on my bike on a nice summer night for this! The pretzels are fresh and hot, and they have mustard, caramel, and different cheeses for dipping.
Next Tuesday come check it out! Art Museum, 11:30PM. Be There!
I love coming here, late at night, for a yummy pretzel with lots of mustard! And if you wait out front long enough (which I'm fairly certain they don't appreciate) you're bound to see someone you know come along. Also, if the garage doors are open, sneak a peak at their ovens... they're fun.
Just a few notes...
Bring something to drink (I think there's a soda machine two blocks down)
Don't bother trying to go on a Saturday night... they don't make pretzels on Sundays, so they won't be open Saturday night.
Meh, this place was kind of a let down. The pretzels were fresh but I expected them to be warm too. It is a good spot to stop at before riding your bike home drunk back to west phila.
Hot Pretzels, right off the conveyor belt. A cheap late night snack whether you need to feed a hungry party of 50 or just a couple to get you home after a good night. Weekend night wise you can only get them on Friday night after midnight, which is actually Saturday. And Saturday night they're closed, cause it's actually Sunday. If you like mustard on your pretzel make sure to get a bottle from them. Accept no substitutes. They have the Deli Style bran mustard, which is made with mustard bran, whatever that is. Gulden's is not the same thing.
Hands down, the best pretzels. I may not be from philadelphia, but living on broad and washington street for two years, you tend to know your surroundings. I stopped at this place for what reason that I dont remember before going to work in NJ during a late shift and they sold pretzels right off the belt. Hot and delicious, you cant get that feeling of biting into one and think to yourself (with hot mustard) "holy mother of god, this is a good pretzel". Its the type of hole in the wall that you hear about in magazines or food network. I think about this place all the time, I live in los angeles now and I miss, cheesesteaks, wawas, and Center City Pretzels!
Apparently there's this Philly bicycle subculture where everyone takes a midnight ride around the city and ends up at the Center City Pretzel Co. This bakery not only supplies Philly food stands with cheap pretzels at wholesale prices ($0.19 each for 50 or more) but provides scensters with a fresh-out-of-the-oven doughy after bar food for a extremely affordable $0.30 each. Let me tell you...fresh-out-of-the-oven? SO GOOD. But don't try to go here during the day. They're only open in the middle of the night. Mmmm...midnight pretzel run. Add a little mustard and chow down.
So good! Worth staying up late for.
Thes are the best pretzels in the world!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I buy 2 dozen and bring them to work a couple times a month. My co-workers love them!!! They actually get upset w/ me if I don't get them. They are always fresh, never overbaked, not to salt. PERFECTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!
still awesome, i went back at 12 midnight to find bikers lined up for the bike to the pretzel factory event. this time my pretzels were so hot! love the mustard too.
I love the pretzels here, remind me of grade school and high school. the bran mustard is awesome… Read more »
Neighborhood: Rittenhouse Square
Category: Bakeries
Neighborhood: Rittenhouse Square
Category: Bakeries
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