Here's a look at new Philadelphia eateries, drinking spots, hotels, conference areas, private rooms, and other spaces for all types of summer entertaining and events. The new and renovated Philadelphia venues are available for corporate parties, fund-raisers, outdoor events, business dinners, teambuilding activities, conferences, meetings, weddings, and more.
Located on Avenue of the Arts, Cambria Hotel Philadelphia Downtown Center City opened in March. The 223-room property includes multiple areas available for meetings or events. A 2,298-square-foot meeting room seats 120 guests theater style, 80 classroom style, or 48 conference style. The 510-square-foot boardroom seats 12 around a large conference table. Meeting amenities include a ceiling-mounted screen and projector, wireless microphones, built-in speakers, and HDMI-compatible hookups. The hotel also features a restaurant with views of the city skyline, Bluetooth compatible mirrors in each guest room, and in-room microwaves and refrigerators.
Since May, Ardmore on the Main Line is home to the Bercy, a modern French brasserie. Patrons here enjoy classic, refined dishes like foie gras, escargots, trout amandine, and steak frites. The chic restaurant measures 10,000 square feet with seating 210 total guests. A 2,000-square-foot private dining room seats 50, and a 2,500-square-foot mezzanine, complete with its own bar, accommodates 40 seated guests or 60 for cocktails.
In May, Parx Casino in Bensalem opened a 3,000-square-foot restaurant adjacent to the performance venue XCite Center. Oliveto seats 130 guests in a dining room and bar with mosaic tile floors, exposed brick, and Italian marble. New York-style pizza and classic Italian recipes like meatballs in tomato gravy and chicken marsala comprise the menu, which is accompanied by signature cocktails and a 25-bottle wine list.
Concourse Dance Bar, a retro underground dance bar, opened in February in Center City. Measuring 5,000 square feet, the venue holds as many as 1,000 guests for buyouts. Smaller spaces are also available for groups, with room for 20 in the lounge, 100 on the mezzanine, 300 in the center bar, and 500 in the main bar. Planners can use the venue’s DJ booth and concert-level lighting and sound, as well as an optional stage. Fun added touches include a 20-person ball pit and a vintage photo booth. While there is a limited in-house food menu available, planners may bring in outside catering.
Indoor-outdoor restaurant Harper’s Garden opened in Rittenhouse Square in May, offering an atmosphere that encourages socialization and relaxation. A 75-guest, 1,000-square-foot mezzanine lounge overlooks the main dining room, which measures 2,500 square feet and seats 50. Outside, a 2,500-square-foot patio, complete with twinkling lights and seasonal flowers, seats 100. Buyouts can accommodate as many as 250 guests for reception-style events. The bar features a 30-tap draft system, while the food menu offers dishes like strawberry salad, white tuna crudo, and fried cod bahn mi sandwiches.
The Spring Arts neighborhood welcomed Love City Brewing in April. The venue pays homage to its heritage as a factory that manufactured parts for the bygone Reading Railroad, with high ceilings, abundant natural light, and old machinery serving as decor. The brewery pours seven featured beers and serves food from the Baby Blues BBQ food truck, as well as house-made snacks like pickles, pretzels, and popcorn; outside catering is allowed, as well. In total, the 9,000-square-foot brewery features 2,000 square feet of space for dining and events that seats a total of 125 guests or holds 195 for cocktail-style parties, Smaller areas are available for semi-private events, including a 36-seat bar, 24 seats at tables in the bar area, seating for 48 at picnic tables and benches, and 16 comfy lounge chairs.
In May, Brickwall Tavern and Dining Room, a 10,000-square-foot modern diner, opened in Midtown Village. The decor includes red vinyl booths, eye-catching wall art and fun touches like large-screen TVs, darts, shuffleboard, and corn hole. The space is divided into two dining rooms, each with its own bar, and can accommodate as many as 215 seated guests or 350 for cocktail-style parties. Patrons enjoy comfort food like pierogis, shrimp and grits, mac and cheese, and chicken pot pie, along with cocktails and a rotating selection of local and regional craft beer.
Silence DoGood’s Tavern in Old City completed a renovation in May. The restaurant now includes shiplap wood paneling, upgraded lighting, street-facing windows and an outdoor seating area. The menu was also overhauled to specialize in burgers, beer, and bourbon. In total, the 1,300-square-foot space holds 50 guests for indoor cocktail-style events or 80 for receptions that include the outdoor space. A private dining room seats 14. As part of the venue’s philanthropic focus, there is no venue rental fee for nonprofits.
Rittenhouse Square staple Branzino Italian Ristorante unveiled a renovation in March, with new floor-to-ceiling windows, an open plan for the front two dining rooms, a new marble-topped circular bar, and updated color scheme. Measuring 3,500 square feet, the restaurant is comprised of three dining rooms that seat 180 guests total and a courtyard with seating for 45. The upscale Italian menu features elegant dishes like crab ravioli with asparagus and lemon, veal cheeks with marrow in a pork wine reduction, and suckling pig with smoked eggplant puree.
Saige’s third Philly coffee shop joined the lineup of food and retail outlets at Schmidt’s Commons in Northern Liberties in February. The menu features café fare like muffins, croissants, paninis, and salads, along with Red House Roasters coffee, fruit-infused teas, and smoothies. Exuding an industrial yet inviting vibe, the 1,100-square-foot space is available for meetings, small gatherings, or performances for as many as 35 seated guests.
