SusanCS

We'll be in Philadelphia the latter part of July and are looking for a fun, casual restaurant for a party of 50 to 60 people. My husband and I will be at the Sofitel and most of our guests will be at the Marriott on Market.

My understanding is that these two hotels are within walking distance of each other and we'd like the restaurant to be somewhere between them.

Does anyone have any ideas? Thanks in advance!

MLTimes

Can you provide any more detail about what you are looking for? Seated dinner or cocktail party? BYOB or liquor license? Price range? Type of food? Night of the week? And how casual is casual?

SusanCS

Not a BYOB, in fact I didn't know there were BYOB restaurants in Philadelphia!

We're hoping for Wednesday night (the opening night of our event), very casual, maybe a buffet or cocktail buffet. I think a seated dinner would be too formal for us. As for the price, I hesitate to guess, but maybe in the $50 a head range, (or more or less). How's that for being wishy-washy? Mainly, we're just looking for the best venue.

MLTimes

First things first . . . Philadelphia is a BYOB mecca.
http://www.gophila.com/BYOBMap/

As to the original question, with no firm budget, many options come to mind, ranging from McGillin's Olde Ale House to Estia. For more of a gastropub atmosphere there's the second floor at Good Dog or Fergie's, or the basement at Black Sheep (which is not technically between the two . . . a few blocks out of the way in any direction opens up even more possibilities, like Vietnam Palace in Chinatown.

SusanCS

Thanks so much! I'll definitely check these all out. Estia was recommended on TA, along with Maggiano's (with the caveat it's a chain) and Joseph Poon's chef's table.

I'm inclined to steer clear of Chinese (and other Asian inspired food) because our last hosting experience in San Francisco was in Chinatown and our guests weren't quite as enthusiastic about the cuisine as we were.