More than six decades after it landed in LOVE Park, Philadelphia’s long-shuttered “flying saucer” building is preparing for its next mission. The first step begins Saturday — not inside the circular glass pavilion itself, but with a new outdoor beer garden surrounding it.
Broad Street Beer Garden at LOVE Park is the opening phase of a food-and-drink operation led by Broad Street Brewing, the Bucks County brewery selected by the Philadelphia Department of Parks & Recreation as its operator after years of fits and starts.
Saturday’s debut, on the final FIFA World Cup game in Philadelphia and amid the hoopla surrounding America250 festivities, will feature a beer garden with a limited food menu. Two Philadelphia companies, Rival Bros. Coffee and High Street Hospitality Group, will be involved as well. High Street, which operates Fork, a.kitchen, and the Bread Room, will assume a larger culinary role when the restored pavilion itself reopens in early 2027 as a year-round cafe, restaurant, and coffee bar. Its name has not yet been announced.
Broad Street Brewing’s partners (from left) Ed Webber, Tim Lohse, and Brandon Wellington with brewer Andrew Balmer.
For the Parks & Recreation Department, the concession is about more than filling the building at 16th Street and JFK Boulevard. Revenue from the operation will be reinvested in LOVE Park and the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, helping fund programming, maintenance, and improvements.
“This has been a long time coming,” said Katie Burns Kays, the department’s director of business and event development. “Our goal wasn’t just to find somebody to fill the space. We wanted a strong partner who would bring the kind of energy and story we want to be telling at LOVE Park, for both residents and visitors.”
Kays said officials hope the arrangement becomes “a sustainable funding model for our public spaces.”
Broad Street Brewing, which opened three years ago in Bristol, emerged from a field of applicants that included Four Corners Management, operator of Parks on Tap; Triple Bottom Brewing Co.; Tica’s Taco; Bower Penn, which operates Bower Cafe locations; and Little Susie’s Coffee & Pie, according to city documents.
The center in November 2001, just before the Independence Visitor Center opened at Sixth and Market Street.
Kays said the city used what it calls a “best value” procurement process, weighing community engagement, operational experience, partnerships, and programming alongside revenue. Financial terms were not disclosed. The department’s standard concessions run for one year with up to four renewals, and Parks & Recreation plans to seek City Council approval this fall for a longer-term agreement to support the investment, Kays said.
“It’s exciting to feature three local businesses rather than a national chain,” Kays said. “We really want visitors to experience Philadelphia through Philadelphia businesses.”
For Broad Street co-owner Brandon Wellington, the project is also something of a homecoming. When Wellington lived at Broad and Race Streets, he first began brewing beer before setting the hobby aside for more than a decade. During the pandemic, he and longtime friends Ed Webber and Tim Lohse left their previous careers to launch Broad Street. Although the brewery established its production facility and taproom there, Wellington said the long-term goal was always to return to Philadelphia. He reached out to High Street partner Ellen Yin — whom he knew through his commercial kitchen-ventilation business — about partnering.
The opening phase will occupy the terrace surrounding the pavilion and about a third of the adjacent lawn, with about 250 seats divided among cafe tables, picnic tables, and Adirondack chairs. Wellington said the goal was to create a gathering place for commuters, office workers, tourists, and park visitors while bringing regular live music and community programming to LOVE Park. The initial beverage program will feature at least eight Broad Street beers on draft.
Broad Street Brewing expects to operate the outdoor beer garden through late October, serving beer alongside grab-and-go items such as smash burgers and maintaining a presence during Christmas Village as the permanent indoor build-out continues.
Once the historic pavilion can be outfitted with a commercial kitchen, the partners expect to open a year-round operation with about 100 indoor seats. High Street will oversee the food program, while Rival Bros. anchors the cafe. Wellington said they also envision rotating guest chefs and an automated tap wall pouring Broad Street beers alongside selections from breweries across Philadelphia. The indoor operation is expected to debut around March 2027.
“I just don’t want people to think this is simply a beer garden,” Wellington said. “While it’s being quarterbacked by a brewery, this will be Center City’s ultimate open-air hub — an oasis where local commuters, corporate professionals, and tourists can relax and connect.”
On Aug. 4, 1957, The Inquirer reported the plan for what become the flying saucer-like building. In those days, Ben Franklin Parkway extended through what is now JFK Plaza to City Hall.
Long before it became known as Philadelphia’s “flying saucer,” the pavilion was conceived in the late 1950s as the Philadelphia Hospitality Center at what was then the corner of 16th Street and Pennsylvania Boulevard. News accounts placed the price tag at $150,000, exclusive of the land provided by the city.
Designed by Roy F. Larson of Harbeson, Hough, Livingston & Larson, the circular building opened in 1960 as a visitor information center for an era when families increasingly arrived by automobile. Its broad cantilevered roof and nearly continuous glass walls embodied the optimism of the Space Age and Philadelphia’s postwar redevelopment under city planner Edmund Bacon.
The pavilion predates both Robert Indiana’s LOVE sculpture and the boulevard that now borders it. When it opened, the roadway, which bisected the plaza, was called Pennsylvania Boulevard. Following President John F. Kennedy’s assassination in 1963, it was renamed John F. Kennedy Boulevard, giving the plaza the name by which it is now universally known.
Renamed the Fairmount Park Welcome Center shortly after opening, the building later served as park offices, a cafe, a concession stand, and exhibition space. After the Independence Visitor Center opened at Sixth and Market Streets in 2001, however, it gradually lost its original purpose and sat vacant for years.
Its future appeared uncertain during LOVE Park’s 2016-18 reconstruction. Although some questioned whether the aging structure should be demolished, preservation advocates successfully argued that it was among Philadelphia’s finest surviving examples of midcentury modern civic architecture. The city instead invested about $5.6 million to restore the pavilion, replacing its roof, mechanical systems, and custom-curved glass while preserving its distinctive appearance. It was added to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places in 2025.
Last year, the city broadened its search, seeking a cafe, taproom, or other community-oriented food-and-beverage concept instead of a traditional restaurant. More than 50 prospective operators responded.
Kays said the city deliberately slowed the process to avoid repeating earlier missteps.
“The city has tried this before, and the business was not set up for success,” she said. “We wanted to be much more intentional this time.”
Daniel Martino didn’t set out to build an empire of pie shops. He just wanted somewhere to get coffee without leaving the neighborhood.
When he bought his home in Port Richmond in 2013, the closest coffee shop was an hour round trip, he said. “Selfishly, I thought, I can put a little coffee shop here.”
The takeout window at Little Susie’s flagship location at 2532 E. Lehigh Ave.
And what goes better with a cup of coffee than pie? He had a recipe he’d been baking for family get-togethers.
Seven years after Martino opened Little Susie’s Coffee & Pie in the building next door to his house, his modest idea has grown into four Philadelphia locations, with a fifth expected to open Friday at the former Pop’s Bun Shop in Bella Vista, a franchise headed to Milwaukee, and plans for additional shops in Fairmount and Northern Liberties. All his stores run from takeout windows, requiring little more than coffee stations and electric ovens.
Today, the company employs 28 people and turns out about 1,200 pies a day from a bakery occupying two cramped rooms in the corner rowhouse on Lehigh Avenue.
Owner Daniel Martino with trays of pies at Little Susie’s.
Martino, 46, who grew up in Northeast Philadelphia, has spent much of his working life around food. As a teenager, he worked at a swim club snack bar before taking a kitchen job at what is now Jefferson Torresdale Hospital.
After studying film at Temple University, he joined Public House Investments, which ran City Tap House, as a DJ before becoming the hospitality company’s creative director, designing menus, logos, ads, and marketing material.
When the property next door to his house became available, Martino said he used a home-equity line of credit to buy it before securing a Small Business Administration loan to renovate it.
The takeout window at Little Susie’s. Hand-lettered signs advertise the specials.
By the time Little Susie’s opened in December 2019, he said, “I had maxed out every credit card I had. I even had to go to the bank, hat in hand, and sign a signature loan for the last $10,000 just to get it open.”
His shop offered a simple menu, little more than coffees and lattes and four kinds of pies. There was a counter for seating. The first day brought in about $180, and “it was the greatest day of my life,” Martino said.
Then the pandemic arrived. When COVID-19 restrictions shut down indoor dining, Little Susie’s shifted to window service. Customers called in orders, paid over the phone, and picked up coffee and pies outside. Even after restrictions were lifted, the shop never reopened indoors.
It wasn’t what Martino had imagined. His idea was ”Cheers with coffee — the neighbors and the mailman talking about the weather,” he said.
Instead, customers embraced the walk-up model and the seating at a picnic table beneath a maple tree. The pies especially quickly caught on. The signature is the crust. Rather than trimming away the excess dough, workers twist it around each pie by hand, creating what Martino calls “a fluffiness that the fork doesn’t provide — that flaky tenderness you want in a pie crust. The twist is its own special treat in and of itself.”
Owner Daniel Martino (rear, right) with staff and pies at Little Susie’s, set up in a rowhouse.
The pies, which are baked and not fried, are made with a simple crust of flour, butter, sugar, and salt. It’s a 48-hour process. Dough is mixed at the company’s Kensington location, where a 20-quart mixer runs nearly all day. The dough rests for 24 hours before it is brought to Port Richmond, where it is sheeted, filled, twisted, frozen, and delivered to the other stores to be baked to order.
Little Susie’s first menu included only blueberry, pork roll, apple, and mushroom Swiss fillings. Today, it offers about a dozen varieties, with eight available year-round and others rotating seasonally. “You can practically throw anything in this pie crust,” Martino said. “I haven’t been disappointed yet.”
Pies at Little Susie’s.
Pork roll remains the top seller, followed by apple, and a sausage, egg, and cheese breakfast pie encrusted with everything bagel seasoning. Seasonal flavors have included ham and Brie, chocolate-covered strawberry, and Cajun crab and corn. None are gluten-free because of the shop’s limitations, he said.
Not every idea works. “We tried to make a cannoli pie, but the cream just melted right out,” he said.
Each shop sells 200 to 300 pies a day. The production kitchen now employs 11 bakers, who track production on a whiteboard nicknamed “the Pieble.” Each variety get its own knife mark on top; an inverted V, for example, denotes mushroom Swiss.
The “Pieble” at Little Susie’s, the flagship pie takeout place located at 2532 E. Lehigh Ave., in Philadelphia, June 24, 2026.
Lena Hurchick, who has worked at Little Susie’s for three years, said she enjoys “the competition of filling all the shops” and watching customers eat pies she helped make.
“Susie” was the name of the dog that belonged to the former owner of the building. “When we had the community meeting here, I said, ‘I’m thinking Little Susie’s,’ and people started crying,” he said.
Lena Hurchick crimps mushroom pies at Little Susie’s.
Expansion has brought complications. A planned Fairmount location was nearly ready to open before the city determined that the property required zoning approval for food sales. “The city does not make it easy,” he said, adding that it will take months to get onto the zoning board’s calendar.
Even so, he expects the company to keep growing. He has a handshake deal for a spot in Northern Liberties. Milwaukee is planned as the first franchise — operated by a friend — while Martino has begun thinking about a larger bakery in Philadelphia.
“We’re basically bursting at the seams,” he said. “We’re probably going to need a 10,000-square-foot facility.”
Owner Daniel Martino at Little Susie’s.
He wants that growth to remain slow enough that the pies are still made fresh every day. “I don’t want to get too far away from making them every day, because then it just becomes some frozen-food empire,” he said.
Little Susie’s Coffee & Pies’ locations are at 2532 E. Lehigh Ave. in Port Richmond, Second and Chestnut Streets in Old City, 1772 N. Front St. in Kensington, and 1754 S. Chadwick St. in Point Breeze. A fifth, at 800 S. Ninth St. in Bella Vista, is due to open Friday. Hours are 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily.
The fire pits are ablaze by dusk at Hollow Pines, a sprawling compound with an outdoor bar, bocce courts, and a massive A-frame lodge where craft cocktails, duckpin bowling, and updated comfort food with a Jersey twist have been drawing guests by the hundreds to West Creek.
The vibe at this ambitious newcomer off Route 9 from the Tide Table Group, which opened in February, conjures a funhouse in the woods more than a beachside resort, even if it’s only half a mile from the bay just south of Manahawkin. It’s also part of a larger trend: the biggest new restaurant openings at the Jersey Shore this year are on the mainland rather than the barrier islands, where real estate prices have skyrocketed.
Veronica Smith of Barnegat (left) and Makayla Williams of Absecon enjoy drinks at Hollow Pines in West Creek, N.J., on Thursday, June 18, 2026.
“There’s only so much land on the islands, and the property value there is higher if you subdivide and put residential on it,” says Hollow Pines co-owner Billy Mehl. “Plus, the short season [on the islands] makes it harder to recoup the cost.”
The logic is similar farther south in Somers Point, where two mega-openings — the 400-seat Pablo and 250-seat Webster’s Tavern — aim to draw the growing year-round population as well as thirsty summer tourists pouring across the bridge from the dry island of Ocean City.
“You should see our after-church crowd! We sell a lot of Bloody Marys and it’s terrific,” says Webster’s owner Chris Webb, noting the construction of hundreds of new homes nearby as a reason for optimism beyond the summer season. “Somers Point is on fire right now.”
Of course, bigger is not necessarily better. New menus up and down the Shore have trended more conservative this summer, toward the safe bets of American tavern classics (wings, chicken Caesar wraps, and burgers), hedging for mainstream tastes at even a taco-themed fusion concept like Pablo. So, while I was sure to check out these large new players — results were mixed — I also explored some flavorful highlights from the international communities that have also settled on the mainland across from Atlantic City, from a stellar new chilaquiles specialist to the kebab combo platter of my dreams.
If you prefer to eat closer to the beach, do not fret. This is just the first part of my annual shore guide. I still have exciting dining dispatches from the barrier island towns coming the following weeks, with reports from more than 20 places from Cape May to LBI. But first, here’s a look at some of the rapidly growing options for food and fun before you even cross a bridge.
Nicholas Bisbee of Tuckerton, lead bartender and head trainer, chats with customers at the upstairs bar at Hollow Pines in West Creek, N.J., on Thursday, June 18, 2026.
PINELANDS
Hollow Pines
It took eight years and nearly $8 million for the Tide Table Group to finally complete Hollow Pines, a multipurpose destination built on five acres of marshland just beyond the edge of the Pinelands National Reserve. The owners envisioned a place for big groups to linger and play, not just eat and run. And its indoor-outdoor spaces offer a variety of activities to that effect, from cornhole beside a separate outdoor bar serving Spaghett beer cocktails, composed shots, and other drinks, to a lively four-lane duckpin bowling alley on the ground floor of a roomy split-level tavern hall lined with TVs and a more intimate mezzanine dining room tucked upstairs.
The outside bar and outdoor entertainment give patrons a reason to linger and play at Hollow Pines in West Creek, N.J., on Thursday, June 18, 2026.The inside main seating and bar area at Hollow Pines in West Creek, N.J., on Thursday, June 18, 2026.
With Tide Table’s track record for good dining experiences at restaurants such as Mud City Crab House in Manahawkin and Parker’s Garage in Beach Haven, it’s no surprise the food and drink programs here are thoughtfully crafted. There’s a wide selection of upscale comfort foods from chef Al Cuff, from a pull-apart hot dog wrapped in a horseshoe of puff pastry to rich crab chowder and tomato bisque and a homey, double-crusted pot pie filled with an herbal chicken velouté.
Some ideas were a bit too cute, like the salad heavily dressed with sour cream-and-onion dressing topped with potato chips. But the pasta is homemade in the pappardelle tossed with a hearty ragù of braised short rib. There’s plenty of lobster bits in the risotto to add some glamour to the salmon, and the oysters broiled in zesty Calabrian chili butter are decidedly local Briny Pinys. Jersey duck for the cassoulet and venison for the lasagna are appealing nods to the state’s sportsman traditions.
The S’more’s doughnut dessert at Hollow Pines in West Creek, N.J., on Thursday, June 18, 2026.
All this is fueled by a drink program that bubbles with local beers and whimsical cocktails, from an ice-cold tomato water martini (Nona’s Freezer Door) to the smoke bubble-topped rosemary gin drink (the Controlled Burn) appropriately named for a sipper at the edge of a national preserve. For dessert, I’m all about channeling the summer campfire vibe with the S’mores doughnut, a freshly fried fritter topped with molten marshmallow fluff that flows into a chocolate sauce studded with chips. It was both delicious and still on theme. Hollow Pines offers a nice reminder that New Jersey summers can be just as tasty in the forest as at the beach. Hollow Pines, 475 Main St, West Creek, N.J. 08092; 609-891-2558; hollowpinesnj.com
The chilaquiles divorciados dish, paired with a passionfruit drink, rests on a table at Chilaqueria Los Girasoles in Pleasantville, N.J. on Friday, June 19, 2026.
PLEASANTVILLE
Chilaqueria Los Girasoles
While the Shore has no shortage of Americanized Mexican food, you can find more traditional flavors just six miles north of Somers Point in Pleasantville, which has become a vibrant hub for multiple Latin American communities. At least a dozen Mexican restaurants operate within its city limits, and one of the newest, Chilaqueria Los Girasoles, is already one of my favorites. As the name suggests, chilaquiles is the focal point, with nine varieties of salsa combos used to sauté tortilla chips until they achieve the perfect balance of crunch and softness (they’ll even ask your preference). The traditional choices of salsa roja and salsa verde are so good, I’d recommend Los Girasoles’ unique pairing of the two for side-by-side fields of tangy green and earthy red on one plate, to be topped with protein of your choice. Try a hearty helping of eggs and steak, or salted cecina beef, then plan for a good nap when you’re done. The sweet and spicy mole poblano variation, made from a mole base shipped from Puebla, is also fantastic.
Raquel Soto, Miguel Cerón, and Sandra Aguilar at Chilaqueria Los Girasoles in.Pleasantville, N.J., on Friday, June 19, 2026.
As unique as this concept is (even in Mexico such a focus on chilaquiles is rare), this year-old project in a brightly rehabbed former Subway, owned by Sandra Aguilar, her husband, chef Miguel Cerón, and his cousin, co-chef Raquel Soto, is also an evocative tribute to their home state of Hidalgo. Their occasional weekend special of lamb barbacoa is outstanding, and I cannot stop thinking about their Hidalgo-style torta. A soft roll is stuffed with a thin slice of breaded top round beef, tender from its zesty marinade, then layered with stretchy quesillo cheese, creamy avocado slices, and a warm salsa of lightly cooked tomatoes and onions that gives this sandwich the perfect moistness. For dessert, don’t miss the fresh and delicate crêpes Cerón perfected while working in a previous job at a breakfast diner. Chilaqueria Los Girasoles, 310 S New Rd, Pleasantville, N.J. 08232, 609-241-0269; chilaquerialosgirasoles.com
Pollos Asados PLV
Since fire-roasted chicken is in the name, it’s no surprise that the juicy birds turning on a rotisserie spit, seasoned with a Chiapas-style marinade, are the big draw to Pedro Rincon’s restaurant in downtown Pleasantville. It’s been so popular that he’s moving July 1 from his current location (114 N. Main St.) to a larger space next door at 104 N. Main St. Few meals I’ve eaten at the Shore were more satisfying than a whole bird here served simply cut up into pieces in a Styrofoam box with a bundle of fresh-pressed tortillas, two squeeze bottles of vibrant salsas, and belly-filling sides of refried black beans and rice.
Chiapas-style chickens roast on the spit at Pollos Asados PLV in Pleasantville.
But Rincon’s kitchen has other worthy gems you absolutely should not miss, from the platters of extra-large seven-inch-wide tacos (I loved the juicy al pastor) to the paddle-sized bundles of Chiapanecas quesadillas, whose pliant tortillas are made with a blend of corn and flour. The long envelopes are big enough to share and come stuffed with quesillo cheese and a variety of fillings, from nopales to chicken. But the real quesadilla star here is the deshebrada de res, a stew of tender shredded beef so full of flavor, I just about ate the whole darn thing. Pollos Asados PLV, 104 N. Main St. (after July 1), Pleasantville, N.J. 08232, 609-640-6347; pollosasadosplv.com
Staff serve guests at Ruhani Kitchen in Egg Harbor Township on Friday, June 19, 2026.
EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP
Ruhani Kitchen
Chef Syed Abbas is best known for The Nizam’s, the well-regarded Indian restaurant in Egg Harbor Township that he owned for 15 years before selling it in 2022. The New Delhi-born chef says he needed a break for health reasons, and over the next three years traveled extensively through the Middle East. He worked for free in several kitchens in Dubai, shadowing chefs in Turkey, and gathering inspiration for a new concept back in New Jersey that would draw on dishes from across the region while also reflecting his family’s Persian roots. Ruhani Kitchen, which opened in December in the same narrow white roadhouse where he’d launched the first version of Nizam’s, is the result — and it is a delight.
The space has been completely rehabbed with vibrant blue walls, imported rugs, and comfortable furniture. The menu offers a greatest-hits list of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes from Lebanon to Afghanistan, and though the range is so broad that some nuances may not always be in perfect register, Abbas’ skill as a chef always shines through in the quality halal ingredients and satisfying flavors. The mixed app platter is a perfect place to start, from smoky baba ghanoush to tangy-sweet muhammara and vibrant green falafel made with fava beans.
Chef Syed Abbas at his restaurant, Ruhani Kitchen, in Egg Harbor Township on Friday, June 19, 2026.The fasooli baida spicy white bean soup with a side of rice rests on a table Ruhani Kitchen in Egg Harbor Township on Friday, June 19, 2026.
But the main courses are where Ruhani most impresses, especially with the Sultan’s platter, a generous medley of grilled meats — lamb and chicken kebabs tenderized with yogurt and fragrant seven spice; succulent shell-on shrimp; adana kebabs of both ground chicken and lamb scented with cumin and sumac — that can easily feed a crowd. Abbas’ talent with lamb shanks is also worth noting, served either Afghan-style plain over a pilaf enriched with lamb juices and sweet carrot laces, or Persian-style in creamy saffron sauce. I also couldn’t stop eating Ruhani’s take on the spicy white bean and tomato stew known as fasooli baida. The only thing off-key at Ruhani were the desserts, including a non-traditional knafeh that was strangely soupy. But even the ever-confident Abbas knows his limitations with sweets: “I cannot be good at everything.” Ruhani Kitchen, 6666 Black Horse Pike, Egg Harbor Township, N.J. 08234, 609-855-9719;ruhanikitchen.com
General Tso’s chicken is made gluten-free at China Sea of Absecon.
ABSECON
China Sea of Absecon
China Sea is a survivor on the Shore’s dining scene, an unassuming standby that has thrived for 31 years in an Absecon strip mall. Founders Lily Lin and her husband, chef Chei Lin, delivered consistently good Cantonese food with a special distinction: an expansive selection of gluten-free options. Chinese food can be tricky for diners with gluten intolerance because of the heavy use of soy sauce and fryers that are commonly contaminated by wheat flour. But once chef Lin discovered his own restrictions with gluten, he developed an entire repertoire of modified dishes that are rarely seen elsewhere, including what my daughter Alice, who has celiac disease, declared as the best gluten-free General Tso’s chicken she’s ever tasted. Tender nuggets of meat are encased in delicate crusts crisped in a dedicated wok and tossed in a vivid orange sauce with a hint of heat that was flavorful without being cloyingly sweet. I consider it one of the best General Tso’s of any sort that I’ve tasted. But that wasn’t all. There were excellent gluten-free versions of plump shrimp in peppery Hunan sauce, perfectly deep-fried chicken “wing dings” in a crackly salt-baked crust, and impressively tender beef with peppers that hummed with a mellow savory balance.
An entirely gluten-free Cantonese feast is served at China Sea of Absecon, including, clockwise from top left, fried rice, beef chow fun, General Tso’s chicken, pepper steak and Hunan shrimp.
Such consistently good flavors bode well for continuity at China Sea, which has been in a gentle transition since the Lins retired in September and sold to Lily’s niece, Melissa Xie, and her husband, chef Billy Zheng. The couple, who both previously worked as poker dealers in Atlantic City’s nearby casinos, have plans to introduce more traditional seafood dishes from Zheng’s home province of Fujian, where the former pro chef mastered lobster in ginger-scallion sauce, a spicier rendition of Singapore noodles than what the standard menu currently serves, and whole fish. Xie promises that China Sea’s classics will remain, but I’d definitely return to explore some of this kitchen’s new moves: “My husband [Billy] is very famous for his cooking within our [local Chinese] community,” she says, “but we have to be careful to keep everything else the same because we have customers who come from all over.” China Sea of Absecon, 662 White Horse Pike, Absecon, N.J. 08201; 609-569-1995; chinaseaofabsecon.com
Jersey Cow Ice Cream
Bordeaux cherry chip ice cream is one of the highlight flavors at the Jersey Cow Ice Cream chain.
The Jersey Shore has plenty of options for your daily scoop. But here comes Jersey Cow, a fast-growing mini-chain of retro-style takeout windows with modern touch-screen menus that’s expanded over four years from the original location in Northfield, to Absecon, Brigantine, and now Margate, where the frozen treat competition is already fierce. If my visit to the Absecon storefront is any indication, Jersey Cow has come to play, especially in the hand-dipped category, where the ice cream is made from high-fat milk that allows them to achieve more vivid flavors with less sugar. The Chocolate Therapy is fudgy and intense, while the Bordeaux Cherry Chip (so named for the premium variety of dark cherries) has a more fruit-forward punch than the typical maraschino version. I wasn’t a fan of the icy vegan salted caramel, and Jersey Cow is still outsourcing its soft-serve base. But I’ll go back for any of their originals, especially some of the unique Asian flavors featured on the rotating specials — ube, black sesame, mango sticky rice, or red bean served atop a pandan green waffle — inspired by co-owner Maureen Gaw’s upbringing in Myanmar. Jersey Cow Ice Cream, 610 Mill Rd., Absecon, N.J. 08201, 609-796-2525; details on Northfield, Brigantine, and Margate locations noted on website, jerseycow-icecream.com
The exterior of Webster’s on Wednesday, June 17, 2026, in Somers Point.
SOMER’S POINT
Webster’s Tavern
Some people come to the Shore to relax on the beach, dig holes in the sand, body surf, and read. For those suffering from screen-time withdrawal, Webster’s Tavern is there for you. “An elite TV program,” as I’ve heard it described, has helped pack the big parking lot of the former Windjammer turned giant sports bar in Somer’s Point. So many customers are willing to wait up to an hour for a chicken wing feast bathed in the pulsing glow of 38 TVs that owner Chris Webb has concluded “we’re going to add more [TVs], including one on the kitchen wall.”
The early days of Webster’s operations have exhibited some predictable hiccups as the tavern’s traffic rocketed to 750 customers a day within a couple weeks of opening in early June. The rushed pacing resulted in a multi-course meal that lasted barely as long as our 45-minute wait. The margarita was oversalted and sloppily mixed. (The pineapple-tinis, crushes, espresso martinis, and mud slides are apparently the safer move here). I appreciated the inclusion of local beers from Slack Tide and Somers Point Brewing on a list otherwise heavy with national brands and hard seltzers.
The something-for-everyone menu typical of the corporate restaurant world Webb comes from (he was a vice president at P.J. Whelihan’s) was uneven to say the least. The French onion soup and sheet pan nachos were solid, as was the classic tavern burger, which landed with a perfect medium rare on a branded brioche bun (a fair quality value for $17). But the house-breaded chicken wings were dry and chewy. The seafood mac ’n’ cheese was skimpy on the seafood. The chicken lettuce wraps were tepid and drowned in too much sweet soy marinade. The fried shrimp were oddly mealy. I take heart in hearing that Webb has already made some smart early corrections, switching to house-breaded shrimp since my visit. It’s a good sign to know that this personable and veteran restaurant executive is ever-present on the ground of his first solo project and that he is paying as much attention to the food as he is the number of TVs. Webster’s Tavern, 18 MacArthur Blvd., Somers Point, N.J. 08244, 609-657-3470;websterstavernsp.com
Pablo
Who is Pablo? That name was atop the list of every local I surveyed before my visit to the beach. It’s easy to see the curiosity factor at play: cars are often spilling out of the lot and parked on both sides of East Maryland Avenue beside the massive black hacienda of a restaurant and night spot called Pablo in Somers Point. The Zest Restaurant Group opened Pablo this summer after pouring $2 million into a renovation of the short-lived former Mexiquila. The Zest group, known for its stylish Cape May restaurants Port, Fish House, and Tacos Caballito Tequileria, has similarly transformed this rambling property (originally Clancy’s By the Bay) into a multi-room, four-bar, 400-seat extravaganza. There’s a moody lounge at the rear anchored by a DJ spinning house music, boosted by live musicians and pyrotechnics, an airy greenhouse dining room on the other side with skylights and garage doors that roll-up to a patio bar where they’ve re-created a beach. Fresh-juice cocktails fuel this fiesta, accounting for about 75% of the sales from the 1,200 or so guests that come through on a busy evening, says co-owner Ross Hammer, who concedes Pablo is a made-up name for the restaurant’s cheetah logo. (“Sorry, I’m Miguel,” said a passing server when I asked him for Pablo’s whereabouts.)
The exterior of Pablo on Wednesday, June 17, 2026, in Somers Point.
Pablo’s menu is a more affordable than its upscale-yet-underwhelming predecessor and conscientious to accommodate dietary restrictions. I only wish the kitchen put as much energy into making better-tasting food. Our meal was full of tepid overcooked meats, dry rice, stadium-grade nachos welded together with cheap cheese, and a parade of fusion tacos so disappointing that it was an all-out Taco-pocolypse, whose brightest bite was a tortilla topped with a cheeseburger. By that point, I realized that the wait — Hammer says it averages two to three hours for a seat in this no reservations dining room — is not worth it. Go to Pleasantville (see above) or pretty much anywhere else for your tacos, then return to Pablo for a tequila-spiked espresso martini, if you’re so determined, and boogie the night away on its ersatz beach. Pablo, 101 E. Maryland Ave., Somers Point, N.J. 08244, 609-469-6991; pablosomerspoint.com
Ember & Ash restaurant on East Passyunk Avenue in South Philadelphia is closed indefinitely after a late-night fire Wednesday sent flames to the roof through its ventilation system, its owners said.
No injuries were reported. Owner Lulu Calhoun said she, her husband and chef-partner Scott Calhoun, and another chef, John Forkin, were leaving for the evening through the kitchen door about 10:20 p.m. when they heard a loud sound from above.
Firefighters positioning a ladder outside of Ember & Ash, 1520 E. Passyunk Ave., on June 24, 2026.
“We didn’t know what it was,” she said. “We thought maybe like a helicopter or a jet.”
Scott Calhoun looked up to see fire on the roof. He grabbed fire extinguishers and ran upstairs to try to put it out, she said.
The couple called 911, and firefighters arrived almost immediately. Ember & Ash is about two blocks from Ladder 11 at 12th and Reed Streets, a fire company that was restored in 2024 after having been shuttered for 15 years. “We’re just so grateful, because it could have been a much, much worse situation,” Lulu Calhoun said.
A charred portion of the ventilation system at Ember & Ash, 1520 E. Passyunk Ave., as seen June 25, 2026.
Thursday morning, the full extent of the destruction was still being assessed, but she said the restaurant was facing professional cleanup for water throughout the building and repairs to the hood and roof. Fire damage was not apparent from the Passyunk Avenue sidewalk. The Philadelphia Fire Department said the fire was under control in about an hour and 20 minutes but had no information on its cause.
“That’s the part that’s the most heartbreaking,” she said. “It’s not only our livelihoods, but our entire team.”
She said the timeline for repairs was not yet known, adding that the duct work had been professionally cleaned recently as part of maintenance.
Ember & Ash, 1520 E. Passyunk Ave., on June 25, 2026.
The hearth at Ember & Ash, a live-fire restaurant built around a custom wood-burning grill made by Grills by Demant, has been the center of the kitchen since the restaurant’s opening in late 2020.
Fires that travel through ventilation systems can sideline a restaurant for months because damage is not always immediately visible and insurance claims can drag on. Kampar in Bella Vista has been closed since a February 2025 fire and has not announced a reopening date. Black Sheep in Rittenhouse has been closed since a May 18 fire. Tequilas in Center City was shuttered for about two years after a 2023 fire, though owners spent some of that time creating a second restaurant, La Jefa, in its rear dining room.
Calhoun said Ember & Ash was contacting customers with bookings along with parties that had reserved private events in July and August.
Bolts of lightning from the ceiling, a Ferris wheel behind the bar for top-shelf pours, and the idea of a glamorous night out: Here’s a first look at the new Mr. Edison at the Bellevue.
But first:
😋 Have a fun food day. Take advantage of early-bird pricing right now on tickets to The Inquirer’s Food Fest.
Halal restaurants: Eight can’t-miss spots throughout the region.
Love and hot dogs:A restaurateur decamps to the Jersey Shore.
News: I have an exclusive preview of Known Associates (the cocktail bar from Forsythia chef Christopher Kearse, opening Friday). Read on for the first word of a luxe Korean restaurant on its way to Center City.
Jeffrey Chodorow has opened splashy restaurants all over the world. Here’s his latest, Mr. Edison, opening Thursday in his hometown. And it’s a dazzler.
Here’s some McGillin’s lore: If it’s McGillin’s Olde Ale House, why does the sign spell it “Old”? Pub historian Irene Levy Baker explains: It opened in 1860 as Bell in Hand, and the original wooden hand holding a bell still hangs inside. Founder “Pa” McGillin ran it until his death in 1901, when Catherine “Ma” McGillin took over. For the 50th anniversary in 1910, she renamed it McGillin’s Old Ale House — which regulars were calling it anyway (presumably because it was old even back then). The “e”was added in the 1990s for effect, but since the neon sign is a reproduction of the earlier version, it still reads “Old.”
Center City’s newest bar is The Monto (above), which opened Saturday at 226 Market St. in Old City under the stewardship of Fergus “Fergie” Carey and Jim McNamara. Alas, there’s a bit of drama unfolding. N.A. Poe of Poe’s Sandwich Joint, who was attached to the project to meld Philadelphia sandwich culture with Irish pub fare, has apparently bowed out. You’ll see they’ve opened up the old Mac’s Tavern by shifting the bar to the middle of the room. It’s open at noon daily.
The historic City Tavern, which closed six years ago, is back. Outside, anyway. It’s hosting a summertime pop-up in its garden, including food, drinks, historical interpreters, lawn games, and special events.
Hillary Bor, who co-owned Pumpkin BYOB in Graduate Hospital for two decades, has a new love and a new food business in Margate. Amy Rosenberg says Dock Dogs also has a stellar view.
Tacos al pastor at a little corner spot in Old City, a crispy bibingka waffle in the Fairmount area, and a soft-shell crab offered as a ritzy BLT in Rittenhouse were among The Inquirer Food team’s favorite bites last week.
Scoops
Arirang, an upscale Korean restaurant, is in the earliest stages of development at 1219 Locust St., in the former Papery of Philadelphia space next to Vedge in Washington Square West. Linda and Myung Kee Hwang, who own the Old Nelson delis around town as well as the building, are planning a traditional menu, as well as a liquor license to serve Korean spirits. “When we started looking at the Korean restaurant landscape in Center City, we realized there really wasn’t anywhere that, as Koreans ourselves, we would go for a truly authentic Korean meal,” Linda Hwang told me. “Everyone does Korean barbecue, and beyond the fact that it’s overdone, we simply didn’t want the grilling and smoke inside the building. The food will be very traditional. No fusion, no shortcuts.” The name is the folk song that is Korea’s unofficial anthem. There’s no timeline yet.
Take a first look inside Known Associates, the cocktail bar from chef Chris Kearse of Forsythia, opening Friday at the former Varga Bar in Washington Square West. Read on for the details.
Restaurant report
Il Gusto. Now open at 114 Chestnut St., Il Gusto brings a Southern Italian-leaning BYOB menu and white-tablecloth atmosphere to the Old City storefront that previously housed Karma.
Chef-owner Tony Krupa delivers big-portioned Italian American and Southern Italian standards and, he says, “nothing trendy”: grilled octopus with cannellini beans and artichokes, fried calamari, mussels, clams, and fried mozzarella, along with a full slate of pastas, and chicken, veal, and fish entrees such as salmon Livornese as well as barramundi with shrimp, capers, and cherry tomatoes over capellini (shown above). Entrees are in the $20s.
Il Gusto, 114 Chestnut St., 215-518-9092. Hours: noon-9 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, noon-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Briefly noted
Trattoria Totaro in Conshohocken reopens today, nearly three months after a fire.
The Buttery, the popular Main Line bakery/cafe, opened its third location last weekend in Bryn Mawr. There’s at least one more on the way, the owners told Denali Sagner.
Villa Nuova in Deptford will close soon after 26 years in business, as owner Peppe Scotto announced on Facebook.
Surfside has taken over the U.S. alcohol industry. But its founders told Erin McCarthy that the brand’s base is staying put in Philly.
Aneu Kitchen’s new location at Ardmore Farmers Market in Suburban Square will open at 8:30 a.m. Monday with comp samples of her YEU On-the-Go bites.
South Philly Barbacoa, James Beard-winning chef Cristina Martinez’s business, is now set up inside Triple Bottom on Spring Garden Street, writes Hira Qureshi. That means tacos, chips and guacamole, and sweet tamales on a permanent basis.
The H Mart in Cherry Hill has been expanded, and Hira offers a tour of the emporium, aisle by aisle.
Cult of Trees’ nonalcoholic spirits are packaged by hand in Kensington. Sande Friedman explains that at local bars, they’re already a hit.
❓Pop quiz
Wine writer Marnie Old believes that one country might be on its way to overtaking France as the pinot noir capital of the world. What is it?
Is Angelo’s Pizzeria ever going to open that new place in New Jersey? — Scott P.
Many of my articles are inspired by readers’ questions. Here’s a follow-up to a story I wrote last July, when Angelo’s owner Danny DiGiampietro said he was taking over the shuttered Di’Nics in West Collingswood Heights. Construction has just begun, and DiGiampietro believes that it will open in about two months. Meanwhile, Angelo’s is getting into the wholesale bread business out of its huge bakery in Conshohocken. Here is the update.
📮 Have a question about food in Philly? Email your questions to me at mklein@inquirer.com.
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Veteran restaurateur Jeffrey Chodorow has spent decades in and around Philadelphia without ever opening a restaurant here.
That changes Thursday at the Bellevue, where the mind behind such destinations as China Grill and Asia de Cuba is opening Mr. Edison, a supper club-style restaurant and bar built around dinner, drinks, and live music.
Jeffrey Chodorow (left) with chef Matt Levin at Mr. Edison at the Bellevue.
Mr. Edison is also a throwback: a large, theatrical restaurant built as much for occasion as for dinner.
The room, in the former Polo Ralph Lauren store, announces itself immediately from the new Walnut Street entrance just west of Broad Street: a two-story space topped by a dense canopy of suspended Edison bulbs, clustered in branching formations that cast the dining room in a warm amber glow.
The ceiling seems to split open in places, allowing lightning bolt-like streaks of light through — all the work of Manuel Clavel of Spain’s Clavel Arquitectos. Behind the bar is a 12-foot-tall Ferris wheel, its dozen spokes each carrying a bottle of wine or spirits and turning the backbar into something like a stage set.
Caviar service at Mr. Edison.
Building owner Dean Adler, who is investing millions in the Bellevue as part of its redevelopment, put the 160-seat restaurant’s price tag at $10 million. “I think I got my money’s worth,” he said Tuesday. Adler also plans to install a library bar off the Bellevue’s lobby on the Broad Street side, where the Palm was before its closing in 2020.
“I love history, so to take a genre — a 1940s-type environment — and bring it into 2026 has been really exciting,” said Chodorow, who of late has been shuttling between his Bucks County home and Miami Beach, where he opened China Grill Bar Harbour two weeks ago.
Mr. Edison — named for Thomas Edison, who helped bring electricity to the Bellevue in 1904 — is calibrated to the building’s long identity as a grand social address. It also carries a personal connection for Chodorow. In 1982, when he was a lawyer at Blank Rome, he rented the roof for his own Rio-themed engagement party to celebrate with his wife, Linda.
“This is not a tiny little neighborhood restaurant,” Chodorow said. “This is a place where you come to have a night.”
Bottles glow inside niches at Mr. Edison.
Chodorow built his reputation on restaurants that function as entertainment as much as dining. He rose in the business in the 1980s and ’90s with New York hotspots, such as Asia de Cuba, Kobe Club, and Red Square, and said he long avoided opening in the Philadelphia area because he wanted to keep work separate from family life.
With his children grown, that changed. At the Bellevue, Chodorow said, he saw an opportunity to build destination dining — a place where patrons might stop in for cocktails and snacks or settle in for dinner and stay long into the evening. The room is arranged to support both. A large bar runs along one wall; tables and banquettes wrap around in multiple zones and along a mezzanine; and a piano with an old-fashioned microphone sits on a platform to one side.
Chef Matt Levin at the stove at Mr. Edison.
“We’re trying to create an experience,” he said. “Not just a restaurant.”
To run the kitchen, Chodorow recruited chef Matt Levin to come back downtown. Levin, who made his name at Lacroix at the Rittenhouse and later at Adsum in Queen Village, has spent much of the last decade in catering, consulting, and Bucks County restaurants. Chodorow found him at Pineville Tavern in central Bucks County, where Levin had been consulting and where owner Andrew Abruzzese is an old friend and neighbor.
Mr. Edison is more interested in reworking the classics than experimentation. Levin and Chodorow drew on dishes from Philadelphia landmarks, including the crab galette from Le Bec-Fin, where Levin worked for several years, the Milan salad from Jimmy’s Milan, and duck with orange sauce from La Panetière.
Edison bulbs provide the lighting at Mr. Edison.
Levin said the menu is a way of tapping into Philadelphia’s dining memory. “I think Philadelphia has a lot of shared history,” he said. “I think people will remember bits and pieces and say, ‘Oh, I remember that — let me try it.’”
The challenge, Levin said, was to build a menu flexible enough to support several kinds of nights at once. “You want to be able to have people come in and just have a drink and a couple of things,” he said, “but also have the people who are coming in to really have dinner.”
Jeffrey Chodorow in front of the bar and Ferris wheel at Mr. Edison.
Chodorow said average tabs would be $100 to $110 per person for a dinner experience. He said roughly 25 dishes can work as a grazing menu, alongside larger-format entrees, raw-bar offerings, seafood, and steaks. Levin also brought over a foie gras tartlet with cherries and pistachio, adapted from a dish he served at Moonlight.
The beverage program leans into the Edison theme with cocktails named for his inventions, including Patent Pending and Filament No. 6.
Filament No. 6 at Mr. Edison.
For Chodorow, the point of Mr. Edison is straightforward: “I wanted something that felt special,” he said.
“I wanted people to walk in and say, ‘Wow.’”
Mr. Edison opens Thursday at the Bellevue, Broad and Walnut Streets. Hours are 4:30 to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 4:30 to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The bar will remain open later.
When chef Christopher Kearse was planning Forsythia, the French restaurant he opened in Old City in 2019, he had two ideas that could not fit into the same room.
One was Forsythia. The other opens in Washington Square West on Friday, seven years later.
Phoebe Schuh of PS & Daughters (left) with owners Lauren and Christopher Kearse toast on a banquette at Known Associates.
It’s a 40-seat cocktail bar called Known Associates, taking over the corner space at 10th and Spruce Streets that previously housed Varga Bar. The concept is built around cocktails and a compact food menu rather than full dinner service, though the fare is substantial.
For Kearse, the opening is another chapter in a career that began far from cocktail bars and French dining rooms. He grew up in Levittown, one of eight children, and learned to cook while recovering from a serious car crash at 16 that left him with severe facial injuries. During that long recovery, he cooked for his parents and siblings. He later worked in some of the country’s most exacting kitchens — Charlie Trotter’s and Alinea in Chicago, and the French Laundry in California — before returning to the Philadelphia area to become sous chef at Lacroix and Blackfish, followed by 2½ years as chef de cuisine at Pumpkin. In 2012, at 28, he opened Will BYOB on East Passyunk Avenue, closing it to move uptown to open the French restaurant Forsythia in the former Capofitto space in Old City. Forsythia earned a Michelin recommendation last year.
The tile floor is one of the few elements saved from Known Associates’ previous incarnation, Varga Bar.
Known Associates is not intended to be an extension of Forsythia. Kearse and his wife, Lauren, who is also an owner, said the concept came into focus during their honeymoon trip through Europe, traveling by train from Zurich to Florence and spending time in smaller bars and cafés in places like Lake Como and Milan.
Lauren Kearse said one nearly empty bar in Como became the image they kept returning to: quiet, low-key, hospitable, and free of the sort of self-conscious “experience” building that now attaches itself to so many cocktail bars.
The bar at Known Associates, chef Chris Kearse’s new cocktail bar on 10th and Spruce streets, on Tuesday, June 16, 2026.
That idea is reflected in the room itself, which was rebuilt almost entirely. Phoebe Schuh of PS & Daughters, who also designed Forsythia, said the black-and-white tile floors were among the few elements retained from Varga, an unassuming gastropub with serious beer chops that closed after the unexpected death of owner Rich Colli in February 2025.
The Varga Bar murals painted on the ceiling — the “Varga girls” that were part of the bar’s identity for years — were salvaged and may be auctioned, with proceeds going to a fund in Colli’s memory, Schuh said.
Crudite with potato puffs and caramelized sour cream and onion dip at Known Associates.
The finished room is emphatically café lounge, not neighborhood drinking den. Floral wallpaper wraps the walls. Patterned banquettes line marble-topped tables. Mustard velvet chairs sit beneath wall sconces, with checkerboard flooring underfoot and a red-and-white striped canopy treatment stretched overhead. The overall effect is layered and slightly theatrical.
Schuh said her working relationship with Kearse is built on familiarity. “Chris and I just kind of speak the same language because we’re both artists,” she said. “We’re not that great at talking about our work, but we’re great at producing our work.”
The location — within blocks of Jefferson, Wills Eye, and Pennsylvania Hospitals — also helped shape the project. Lauren Kearse said they envisioned a room that could work for after-work drinks and dinner-adjacent snacking as much as destination cocktail traffic.
That balance shows up on the food menu, which is limited to 10 savory dishes and two desserts. Kearse said the kitchen’s role is to support the bar rather than turn it into another restaurant. Still, the menu is more ambitious than standard bar snacks and has some of Forsythia’s cheffy feel.
Cool ranch peas at Known Associates.
The burger that is a signature at Forsythia appears at Known Associates as burger au poivre, topped with Comté, cut in half, and served cut-side down in a pool of peppercorn reduction ($20). Char siu duck legs ($22) come on a pretzel milk bun with fish sauce and pickles. There’s also a chicken club ($23) with green goddess dressing and Benton’s bacon.
Lighter dishes include black-eye pea falafel with muhammara and green-scallion hummus ($15); hamachi toast with hard-boiled egg and piri piri ($22); pomme frites with Comté cheese foam ($10); and freeze-dried cool ranch peas meant for snacking with drinks. Seasonal crudité ($12) comes with potato puffs and a caramelized sour cream and onion dip. Desserts ($12) are limited to two: toasted rice milk ice cream with sesame and peanut brittle, and triple chocolate mousse with dulce de leche and toasted hazelnut.
The kitchen is led by chef Brandon Brokenbough, formerly of Enswell and Scarpetta.
Chefs Christopher Kearse (left) and Brandon Brokenbough at Known Associates.
Beverage director Chris Harrop’s cocktails are built around prep work and technique. The TNT ($18) — tomato and tonic — uses clarified tomato water made from tomato, red bell pepper, shallot, fennel, and cucumber. The solids left behind after clarification are dehydrated and served as chips alongside the drink. Harrop said the same clarified base can also be used as a zero-proof savory soda.
The Bittered in Bond ($20), a Boulevardier variation, is made with a house mezcal amaro, Bonal Gentiane, Cappelletti Aperitivo, Licor 43, and salt. It is bottled in a small flask with a batch number and bottling date and poured tableside, a nod to bottled-in-bond whiskey labeling.
Between Harvest ($19), meanwhile, is a Martinez variation with Hayman’s Old Tom gin, Luxardo Maraschino liqueur, Nardini Rabarbaro, and muddled cucumber. Harrop said the name came from a Forsythia customer’s observation that rhubarb and cucumber almost never overlap in season — one fading as the other begins. For summer, he said, the bar has a frozen zombie ($19) assembled to order, with the rum blend kept separate from the slush machine so each drink can still be measured and built fresh.
The name Known Associates carries a passing wink to spy movies — the Kearses are fans of Bond films — but Lauren Kearse said the bar is not built as a themed concept.
“We have no interest in doing that,” she said. “We wanted something punchy that had a little bit of mystery to it.”
Known Associates, 941 Spruce St., opens June 26 and will be open daily from 3 p.m. to midnight.
What makes Philly’s halal dining unlike any other city is the diversity of cuisines available. It’s what made dining so exciting for me when I moved to Philly in 2020. As a Muslim growing up in Tennessee, halal options — aside from chicken and rice and one barbecue hotspot — were hard to come by. From the moment I began eating my way through my new home, it was clear Philly’s robust dining scene offered a grander landscape of halal eats.
Halal meat follows the tradition of zabihah, defining whether the animal has been fed and treated humanely before and during slaughter, blessed in the name of Allah, and drained of blood. The literal meaning of halal is “permissible,” which can be used to describe various parts of Muslims’ lifestyle, including dining habits. For example, rice and bread are halal, but alcohol and pork are haram — or prohibited.
Most halal-serving restaurants will identify themselves as such on their website or menus but a simple ask also helps verify. Similar to kosher meat, halal certifications are available, but “if it’s a Muslim-owned restaurant and they are guaranteeing and promising you that it’s halal, then that’s really the only research that’s required,” said Toba Hoda, who runs the Instagram account @phillyhalalspots.
Over the years, I’ve compiled a list of my favorite halal spots, from crispy Ethiopian fried chicken in West Philly to slow-cooked beef rendang in South Philly. Here are a handful of them that show the breadth of cuisines to try in Philly. — Hira Qureshi
Al-Baik Shawarma
Tucked into a commercial strip on the ever-busy Willits Road, Al-Baik Shawarma is one of the best Palestinian restaurants in Philadelphia. Hailing from Ramallah, chef-owner Sohaib Al-Haj and his family serve juicy cuts of chicken, beef, and lamb seasoned with aplomb. Nestle into one of the plush booths and order the mashawi mixed grill platter to savor it all: kufta, chicken and beef kebab skewers, and chicken wings alongside rice, salad, hummus, grilled onions, tomatoes, and fresh laffa bread. The Northeast restaurant also has some of the best falafel in the city. Here, you can sip on Palestine Colas and enjoy sweets like coconut basbousa and pistachio Nutella cookies from local bakers. At least, that’s what I do.
In West Philly, chef Kurt Evans is serving an entire halal menu featuring Black American Chinese takeout. That means I’m walking in ready to order their crispy collard green egg rolls, saucy oxtail “lo-mane,” sweet and spicy General Roscoe’s chicken, sweet potato chili wings, and jerk chicken skewers. With limited seating, it’s best to take your order home — although I usually sneak a bite inside and end up scarfing down the rest while standing on the sidewalk.
What if halal fried chicken was also gluten-free? At Doro Bet, sisters Mebruka Kane and Hayat Ali (who also own the nearby Alif Brew, which offers traditional Ethiopian coffee service with fresh-roasted beans, and Salam Cafe in Germantown) make those dreams a reality. The fast-casual West Philly hotspot — an Inquirer 76 pick two years in a row — serves crispy, teff-coated fried chicken spiced with either berbere or lemon turmeric. It’s just a few blocks west of Clark Park, perfectly located for a savory treat after my farmers’ market visits. The restaurant also has Ethiopian classics like doro wot and tibs, along with vegetarian options like falafel wraps and teff-flour fried mushrooms. And don’t sleep on the tiramisu, made with the richness of that same Ethiopian coffee.
Philly’s new era of Indonesian cafés includes a South Philly spot that’s got a halal, pork-free menu. Griddle & Rice is all about dishes that marry Indonesian traditions with current trends and American breakfast foods. Take the nasi uduk, a breakfast coconut rice platter packed with crispy fried marinated chicken, sweet chili egg and tofu, sweet soy tempe, crunchy veggie fritter, sambal terasi shrimp paste chili, and crackly garlic crackers; or the iga bakar platter with grilled, Indonesian-spiced braised beef ribs, white rice, fried egg, more sambal terasi, and a salad. I would recommend ordering one of the best bowls of congee — with halal curry chicken broth and shredded chicken breast — in the city. And don’t sleep on the drinks — I slurped up the es kopi gula aren, a smoky Indonesian palm sugar latte, and mango matcha with coconut water in one sitting.
The beloved late Ena Widjojo’s family-run restaurant has been feeding South Philly for more than 20 years. These days it’s her daughter Maylia who runs the place, but they’ve stuck to the script — halal Indonesian classics. I love venturing to South Philly for their slow-cooked beef rendang, saté chicken (marinated in sweet soy and makrut lime juice, topped with peanut sauce), and crunchy Krupuk (garlic and tapioca chips). And I’m always reminded why the menu earned a semifinalist nod from the James Beard Foundation in 2018.
Since its inception in 2023, Korea Taqueria has mostly operated with a non-halal menu, with halal chicken offerings on a if-you-know-you-know basis. But as of March, owners Alexander Sherack and Rene Lopez announced their shift to a fully halal menu. “We’d be getting DMs [about halal offerings] just about every month, so there was always this seed planted from day one,” Sherack said. “Once we found local suppliers we made the shift.” The Korean Mexican grub, located in South Philly, Fishtown, and West Philly, includes bulgogi beef birria tacos, gochujang wings, Kimchi cheese fries, Korean fried chicken sandwich, and more. Consider ordering my go-to: the meal sampler, for all of it one order. Wash it down with horchata or watermelon agua fresca.
One of the 76 most vital restaurants in the Philly area sits in the middle of Montgomery County. The hour drive to Madness of Masala becomes a mandatory pilgrimage for those seeking halal goat pepper fry, malai paneer kabab, andhra shrimp curry, and other South Indian classics. The fiery tandoori spices tingle on my tongue as I devour stuffed mirchi bajji, kali mirch paneer, and goat ghee roast. I only need to order their syrupy gulab jamun and a Hyderabadi masala chai to cool down.
What makes this a West Philly institution? It’s owner Saad Alrayes’ chicken shish tawook — best known simply as the chicken maroosh. The first time I took a bite of the sandwich packed with juicy pieces of grilled chicken, tomato slices, sautéed onions, and snappy pickles, generously drizzled with creamy garlic sauce in a long hoagie roll — the namesake “maroosh way” — I understood. This was most definitely the best sandwich in the city.
As Philadelphia prepares to welcome visitors for the nation’s 250th anniversary celebrations, one of its most notable historic sites will stir back to life — at least outdoors.
Historic Philadelphia Inc., through an agreement with Independence National Historical Park and in partnership with event company Cescaphe, plans to open the Garden at City Tavern on June 25, transforming the shaded plot behind City Tavern into a seasonal destination featuring food, drinks, historical interpreters, lawn games, and special events.
The garden behind City Tavern, Second and Walnut Streets, on June 18, 2026.
The garden will operate from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday to Sunday through Labor Day on the grounds behind the shuttered restaurant at Second and Walnut Streets, offering visitors a chance to gather at a site that played a prominent role in Revolutionary-era Philadelphia.
What visitors will not find, though, is a reopened City Tavern.
The restaurant inside the three-story brick building has been dark since October 2020. Though the closure became associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, former chef-proprietor Walter Staib said the building’s mounting physical problems were the larger issue.
City Tavern chef/proprietor Walter Staib serving Ralph Archbold, portraying Benjamin Franklin, on Dec. 21, 2005.
“COVID was the perfect excuse to close, but it wasn’t the real reason,” Staib said Thursday. “The tavern would have closed anyway. The liabilities had become too great.”
The National Park Service sought a long-term operator in 2023, but no successor has been announced. “Lease negotiations are in process, which we hope to conclude by the end of summer,” park superintendent Steven Sims said in a statement to The Inquirer.
For now, Historic Philadelphia is concentrating on the garden.
“We really wanted to activate City Tavern itself,” said Amy Needle, president and chief executive officer of Historic Philadelphia. “The garden has always been a gorgeous space. For now, we’re focusing on that.” She said the seasonal run could be extended if demand remains strong and hopes to bring the pop-up back each summer.
City Tavern, on Second Street near Walnut, on Jan. 26, 2023.
Founded in 1773, City Tavern served as a gathering place for merchants, politicians, and many of the nation’s founders. Delegates to the First Continental Congress dined there, while George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin were among its patrons.
The original structure was damaged by fire in 1834 and demolished two decades later. The current building is a reconstruction commissioned by the park service and opened in 1976 as part of the nation’s Bicentennial celebration.
For decades, City Tavern operated as both a restaurant and a living-history attraction, eventually becoming closely identified with Staib, the German-born chef, historian, and television personality who took over the operation in 1994. Under his stewardship, the restaurant gained national recognition for menus inspired by colonial recipes and traditions, helping launch cookbooks and the PBS series A Taste of History.
Chef Walter Staib is shown at City Tavern in 2013.
Staib said many people still contact him, especially around patriotic holidays, asking when the tavern will reopen. “I tell them, ‘I’ve got nothing to do with the tavern,’” he said.
He said he declined an invitation to appear at the garden’s opening, but he would be delighted to advise a new operator. At 80 years old, he said, his days of restaurant ownership are history.
Among the building’s challenges, Staib cited the lack of a sprinkler system in dining rooms, aging infrastructure, and the absence of an elevator. Even before the closure, he estimated that bringing the property into compliance would require millions of dollars. “Add another six years of deterioration,” he said, “and it’s even more expensive now.”
The garden behind City Tavern, Second and Walnut Streets, on June 18, 2026.
Historic Philadelphia, meanwhile, saw an opportunity to bring activity back to the property. Backed by a grant from the Connelly Foundation, the organization upgraded the garden with new landscaping, seating, and other amenities. It also enlisted Cescaphe — Historic Philadelphia’s partner in other ventures, including Franklin Square — to operate the seasonal pop-up; financial terms of the arrangement were not disclosed.
Despite the historic setting, the food and beverage offerings are decidedly contemporary. The menu includes turkey sandwiches, wraps, charcuterie boards, pretzels, beer, wine, and canned cocktails with names such as Patriots Punch, Birthday Brew, and Liberty Lemonade. Cescaphe will use an off-site commissary rather than City Tavern’s dormant kitchens. Unlike the former restaurant, staff will not wear colonial-era clothing.
City Tavern, Second and Walnut Streets, opened in 1976 on the site of a former colonial tavern.
Historic Philadelphia’s “History Makers” interpreters will appear regularly at the site, and the organization’s Independence After Hours tours will conclude at the garden on Saturday evenings. During the Historic District’s Red, White & Blue To-Do celebration on July 2, the garden also will host live music.
Needle said the project reflects Historic Philadelphia’s broader mission of bringing activity to public spaces and historic sites.
“The garden is already used by neighborhood residents,” she said. “People walk their dogs there, and visitors come through as well. Part of our mission is bringing these places to life, so we’re excited to do that here.”
Popular Main Line bakery The Buttery is officially opening its doors in Bryn Mawr this weekend, marking the third location in a growing collection of cafésowned by husband-and-wife duo John and Silenia Rhoads.
Known for its sourdough breads, homemade pastries, and seasonal dishes, The Buttery describes itself as “part village bakery, part coffee shop, and part scratch kitchen.”
The Rhoadses opened the first Buttery location in Malvern in 2015 and have since expanded into the Ardmore Farmers Market and now Bryn Mawr, at 836 W. Lancaster Ave. The Buttery previously had a satellite location at the Malvern train station, which closed in December.
Vinny Petraglia, culinary operations director, drizzles olive oil on the avocado toast at The Buttery in Bryn Mawr.
Joli Ridenour, The Buttery’s community manager, said customers have been asking the bakery to expand for years. When they opened in Ardmore in October, patrons were over the moon about not needing to drive to Malvern to get their beloved kouign-amann and sourdough.
John Rhoads grew up in Devon, and he, Silenia, and their three teenagers now live in Paoli, so finding another outpost on the Main Line just felt right.
Bryn Mawr felt like “a good center point on the Main Line,” John Rhoads said.
“We’re so excited to be in this town. There’s such a hustle and bustle,” Silenia Rhoads said, adding that she’s already seen a “sense of community.”
At the bakery’s soft opening on Wednesday, loaves of sourdough and baguettes peeked out from behind long glass cases stuff with butter croissants, lemon currant scones, and fresh bagels. Packaged cookies, branded T-shirts, and bags of homemade granola lined the walls, and customers stopped to chat with the Rhoadses.
The 82-seat café is spacious, laid out with long communal tables, corner booths, and scattered two- and four-tops. The Buttery team wanted multiple kinds of seating options to allow for different dining experiences, from neighbors grabbing a quick coffee to families coming in for a long lunch.
Silenia (left) and John Rhoads, owners of The Buttery, at their new location in Bryn Mawr. Said Joli Ridenour, The Buttery’s community manager, “We want people to feel really at home and welcome and like they’re walking into an old friend’s house.”
“We want people to feel really at home and welcome and like they’re walking into an old friend’s house,” Ridenour said.
The Buttery’s Bryn Mawr location is serving its full breakfast and lunch menu, which includes bagels, quiches, sandwiches, open-face tartines, salads, and speciality Passenger coffee and tea drinks. The Rhoadses said they are hoping to expand to dinner service, as they have in Malvern, in the fall or winter.
Ridenour said the bakery always tries to source locally, milling flour out of local grain and purchasing eggs from Highspire Hills Farm in Glenmoore. Almost everything is made in-house, including roasting their own meat for roast beef sandwiches.
What to order? The Buttery’s staff says you can’t go wrong. The sablé cookie, a buttery French shortbread cookie, is a signature dish. Silenia Rhoads recommends the seasonal panzanella salad, made with fresh smashed cucumber, asparagus, homemade croutons, and a potpourri of herbs. The breakfast sandwich, serviced with harissa aioli on an everything brioche bun, is also a fan favorite.
Turkish eggs with homemade naan at The Buttery in Bryn Mawr.
The Buttery has been able to expand in large part due to a bakehouse the Rhoadses opened in Norristown a year ago. With more space and a centralized food preparation location, the bakehouse has “enabled us to set our sights on more,” John Rhoads said.
The couple said a Northern Liberties location will open later this year, and further growth is on the horizon for 2027.
The Buttery’s Bryn Mawr grand opening will kick off on Saturday. The bakery will debut a special Bryn Mawr-only pastry, a lemon poppy kouign amann baked with house-made creamy poppy seed spread and lemon sugar. The first 50 customers will get a branded tote bag and the first 100 will get a sablé cookie, on both Saturday and Sunday.
The Buttery will be open daily from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., with kitchen service until 3 p.m.
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