Where should I go in Old City tonight?

[mrbigjas]

I got thea-tuh tickets tonight at the Arden, the early show.

So... Old City, 9ish, looking for something on the light side, not too pricey, not BYOB. Anyone been to Karma yet?

[KatieLoeb]

I got thea-tuh tickets tonight at the Arden, the early show.

So... Old City, 9ish, looking for something on the light side, not too pricey, not BYOB. Anyone been to Karma yet?

I'm a fan of Sassafrass on the block of 2nd Street between Market and Chestnut. Good bar, good food, not too pricey and very comfortable. Burgers are great and it's a nice sort of place for a plate of escargot and a glass of wine.

Serrano is also a fun option on that block, as is Plough & the Stars. Cafe Spice has very good Indian food but the drink bill can get pricey pretty quickly. IIRC they did, at one time, have certain cocktail specials that were very budget friendly for those of us frugal souls looking for a $4 drink special.

[herbacidal]

No idea where Karma is.

Sassafras is very good. They have a good buffalo burger.

Phila Fish and Company is good too, around the corner on Chestnut.

I've always liked Mexican Post for Tex-Mex, although I've only eaten their bar menu that I can recall.

[kosoffj]

Adriatica had a late night menu last time I was in Old City, but I don't think it started till 10pm? It was good though my husband and i shared a few small plates and i remember the lavender honey brie being a standout.

[KatieLoeb]

Adriatica had a late night menu last time I was in Old City, but I don't think it started till 10pm? It was good though my husband and i shared a few small plates and i remember the lavender honey brie being a standout.

Good call. I neglected to mention Adriatica. I still forget it's there sometimes, but it's a nice room, good wine selection and they mix a decent cocktail. I attending a wine dinner there and although the hors d'oeuvres and our menu weren't regular menu items, I was impressed with the caliber of the food.

[skroah]

This site has some reviews of a lot of places in old city.

http://home.earthlink.net/~oldcityreviewed/toc.html

There are a ton of places obviously so it really matters what you want. Most of them are pretty much the same though, "up scale" cocktail bars that I wouldn't really pay the money to eat at. In a lot of cases it's more style than substance. I don't think the best bartenders are working in old city. For example, I recently paid 11 bucks for a makers mark manhatten at bleu martini which was made by a half dressed young lady who probably never had one. Another night I watched the bartender at cuba libre train the hostess on making drinks. Hmmm.

I like serrano, the bar is ok, don't sit across from the fire if it's blazing. Eulogy used to be fun but I'm a little burnt out on it. Great beer to be had and the mussels are good. Mexican post I would not eat at but their margarita pitchers are very cheap and can be "customized". Paradigm is ok, mostly env. which you pay for. Same goes for Novelty. Cuba libre is ok and they have an ok selection of top shelf rums. The food is cubanesque. The list goes on. I would just troll around until you find what your looking for. Enjoy the show. Is it Proof or did I miss that?

Edited March 17, 2004 by skroah (log)

[menton1]

My favorite restaurant in Old City is Fork, Market Street off 3rd. Great room, banquettes are quite nice if you can get one-- open kitchen is interesting. Food is excellent, service also excellent, and prices moderate. No name on the door, just a pix of a fork!

Fork Restaurant

306 Market St

Philadelphia, PA 19106-2709 Phone: (215) 625-9425

Edited March 17, 2004 by menton1 (log)

[skroah]

Fork likes reservations. They have been on my list for awhile but I just haven't made it there. They have special dinners once in awhile, they just had a spanish/portugese wine dinner that I really wanted to go to. This thursday is book and the cook with Gordon Hamersley. Here is the menu for that.

http://www.forkrestaurant.com/specialevent2.htm

http://www.forkrestaurant.com/

Looks like a great place though. I need to work it into the budget or hit its late menu one night. You will miss this place unless you keep an eye out. I walked by it many days before I realized where it was.

[mrbigjas]

Fork IS a great place. I've never had a bad meal there. But both there and Chloe we've been to too recently; I like to try new places if I'm forced to be in Old City.

Anyway, thanks for all the suggestions! I don't get down there much, as you all have probably realized by now. Too full of... well you know how Old City is. And considering that it's St. Patrick's Day, I figure the more bar-type places will probably be fuller than usual--and especially Plough & Stars.

Karma is where Shivnanda was, on the 100 block of Chestnut. They brought in an award-winning chef from New Delhi (the city not the restaurant) and changed some things. I'm interested in going back, although someone I know said it wasn't so great.

All the other places, I'm thinking about them, including Adriatica (is your friend still the bar manager there, Katie?), where I do want to go eventually, but that's a bit pricey and we don't generally like to wait till 10 to eat.

I'm also thinking of Kisso--anyone been there lately? Oh wait, is it BYOB?

That website is cool except for their review of Charlie's--I been stopping in there now and then for years, and it's a pretty good bar.

The show is.... uh.... yeah, it's Proof. I think it's nearly done its run; we've had to change our ticket dates a few times already because of other events.

Thanks y'all.

Edited to say hey, maybe I'll stop by Panorama for wines and apps...

Edited March 17, 2004 by mrbigjas (log)

[kosoffj]

kisso is byob

[herbacidal]

Most of them are pretty much the same though, "up scale" cocktail bars that I wouldn't really pay the money to eat at. In a lot of cases it's more style than substance. I don't think the best bartenders are working in old city

I'll definitely agree with that.

When I go to Old City, I definitely don't expect the best-trained bartenders.

Or the best-trained waitstaff. Or the best-trained host staff.

I do expect the best-looking bartenders. And the best-looking waitstaff. And the best-looking host staff.

When I do go to Old City at night, it is more for the scene than anything.

I haven't eaten in Old City for a while.

But if I were to, I would have to push for

Adriatica, Phila Fish, Novelty, or Chloe,

knowing their respective limitations ( specialtylocation, liquor license, size, etc.)

and taking them into account.

[KatieLoeb]

Jas.:

All the other places, I'm thinking about them, including Adriatica (is your friend still the bar manager there, Katie?), where I do want to go eventually, but that's a bit pricey and we don't generally like to wait till 10 to eat.

Sorry - I just found out last week that my buddy is NOT the bar manager there any longer. I met the new fellow, but his name excapes me at the moment. It was at a wine tasting and you know how fuzzy around the edges I can get at those affairs... Nonetheless - Adriatica is a nice spot.

I'm also thinking of Kisso--anyone been there lately? Oh wait, is it BYOB?

Unless something has radically changed, Kisso is indeed BYOB.

Forgot about St. Patty's Day, or as I like to call it, Amateur Night in Green. Plough & the Stars would be out of the question tonight. Either Irish Pub, Fado, Fergie's, any Irish bar would be off my list tonight. I hate the drunken morons that are invariably out tonight. Horrible patrons. Had one of the worst nights of my life working on a St. Patty's Day at a pub where I was the night manager. I had 103 degree fever and was sick as a dog and my asshole boss wouldn't let me go home to bed because he wanted to party with his buddies and didn't feel like closing. That experience alone turned me off to St. Patrick's Day for life.

[mrbigjas]

Ended up at Karma after all. Pretty nice! Check out the okra dish in the vegetarian entree section, which is EXCELLENT. Maybe not the vindaloos, which are overly sweet and gloopy. Nice naan. Kingfisher will run you $5.

Edited to say that you shoulda SEEN the crew of plastic-green-bowler-wearing drunk-ass dudes crowded around the door waiting to get into Moriarty's. God I can't stand that shit.

Edited March 18, 2004 by mrbigjas (log)

[KatieLoeb]

Edited to say that you shoulda SEEN the crew of plastic-green-bowler-wearing drunk-ass dudes crowded around the door waiting to get into Moriarty's.

Yeah - that'd be them. The very morons to whom I referred earlier. What a bunch of jackasses. As if being a publicly drunk and disorderly spectacle were a means of showing your ethnic pride.

God I can't stand that shit.

Double ditto.

[mrbigjas]

As if being a publicly drunk and disorderly spectacle were a means of showing your ethnic pride.

... as compared to just being a way of life....

[KatieLoeb]

As if being a publicly drunk and disorderly spectacle were a means of showing your ethnic pride.

... as compared to just being a way of life....

Pathetically sad, but true in many of these cases.