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Welcome to the third wave of Philadelphia dining, an era in which locals are more likely to chat you up about their favorite chorizo tacos, wild-yeasted ales, or tasting menu than anything cheesesteak. Yes, the famous sandwich is still around (eat one if you must) but is slowly losing traction to its distant cousin, the roast pork. This is the Philly sandwich to try, be it a traditional rendition at John’s or DiNic’s in Reading Terminal Market or a new-school take, like the one topped with lacto-fermented broccoli rabe at High Street on Market.
Speaking of Old City’s High Street, its chef/partner, Eli Kulp, represents a group of Philadelphia chefs that has had a massive impact on the dining scene in the last few years: the ex–New Yorkers. Like Kulp, Peter Serpico of Serpico, Eli Collins of Pub and Kitchen, Greg Vernick of Vernick Food & Drink and other talented former 212-ers have shifted their careers here from some of NYC’s finest kitchens and restaurant groups. Even in East Passyunk and Fishtown, white-hot neighborhoods that are dethroning Center City as Philly’s dining nucleus, inflated rents are bargains compared to those in the Big Apple.
The recent influx of out-of-town chefs complements Philly’s homegrown talent. This has always been a scene that has fostered and supported its own, and the last several years have seen young chefs rising through the kitchens of Stephen Starr, Marc Vetri, and Georges Perrier and going on to debut compelling, idiosyncratic, solo projects. Like Pierre Calmels, who left the storied (now closed) Le Bec-Fin to open tiny Bibou in Bella Vista, and his LBF successor, Nicholas Elmi, who won Top Chef after opening Laurel on East Passyunk. (To give you an idea of the depth of talent in the 215, Elmi is the second Philly chef to win Top Chef.) And then there’s Michael Solomonov, a former Vetri capo who went on to found Zahav, the restaurant that ignited America’s passion for Israeli cuisine, and win a James Beard Award. Solo (as he’s affectionately known here) is in conscientious empire-building mode with longtime business partner, Steve Cook, and mentoring a new generation of young chefs. You can still catch him working the bread station at Zahav most nights, between annual research trips to Israel and surfing breaks at the Jersey Shore.
The Israeli, Iraqi, Turkish, and Yemenite recipes on the menu at Zahav are just a handful of the cuisines represented in this multiethnic town. Philadelphia has a long history as a city of immigrants, from Western Europeans in the early 20th century to the Vietnamese, Mexicans, and Africans of today. Chinatown reigns as the city’s hub of hand-pulled noodles, breakneck dim sum, and siphon coffee before it was cool, while Middle Eastern, Ethiopian, and Senegalese hideaways occupy tree-lined storefronts and old banks in West Philly. Vietnamese pho halls and bakeries congregate along Washington Avenue in South Philly, also home to the city’s vibrant Mexican population. In the Italian Market, many of the old businesses have given way to industrious taquerias. You can follow the trail of fresh-pressed tortilla crumbs from Bella Vista down into East Passyunk, a hood where it’s not uncommon to hear Spanish, Vietnamese, and five different dialects of Italian just walking down the street.
Smoke, coal, fire, and ash create a through line for the menu at a.kitchen, on the ground floor of the AKA Hotel. Attired in blond wood and Carrara marble, it looks like a spa in the Italian Alps, and its Rittenhouse address guarantees a scene, but chef Eli Collins has transformed it into a serious restaurant with an ace sommelier and a steak tartare that cannot be missed. The cocktail bar next door is also among the best in the city.
Championing craft beer well before it was cool, this laid-back Newbold tavern set the bar for Philly’s gastropub boom way back in 2003. SPTR’s ever-rotating 14 tap selections, plus cask ales and a nice bottle selection, hit local, national, and international notes that nicely accompany a menu that reaches well beyond the expected pub grub with creative snacks, sandwiches, and seasonal specials conceived to celebrate local and organic products and produce. The kitchen pays ample mind to vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free guests, too; it’s this accommodating spirit that makes a neighborhood bar.
South Jersey native and James Beard–award winning chef Greg Vernick spent the bulk of his career opening restaurants around the world for Jean-Georges Vongerichten. When he and his wife, Julie, wanted to do their own place, they came back to the Delaware Valley and made waves with their bustling (but intimate) modern American restaurant, whose ever-changing menu features delicious things on toast (avocado, foie gras, Maryland crab), Asian influences, and large-format proteins (whole chicken or rack of lamb) cooked in a wood-burning oven. Expect it all rendered in thoughtful, joyful expressions, and served by a vivacious staff.
Chef Randy Rucker does seasonal, elevated food inspired by many things, including his southern heritage, love of Philadelphia, and interest in Japanese cooking. Go here for modern dishes like swordfish with housemade yuzu kosho (a Japanese condiment made from fresh citrus), carrot tartare with black truffles, very fresh oysters, and the Mother Rucker, a burger that's available as an add-on to the tasting menu.
Less a restaurant than a roving dinner party spread among several rooms in a tony Center City brownstone, Vedge is a true celebration of vegetables, many of them sourced from nearby farms. This is not to say you won’t find tofu or seitan, but they’ll be starring as themselves, in landscapes of gorgeous produce touched by spices, smoke, and fermentation. The ethereal desserts are can’t-miss.
