Downtown Philadelphia Hot Spotss

May 29, 2008 11:24 AM

Philly-filter. One evening, mid-June, mid-week. Need watering hole recommendations for city center.

Business trip and first time to Philly. Made reservations at Vetri. Any other spots that are a must to squeeze into an evening? Would love to see the range from dives to upscale. Also wondering about live music spots, preferably jazz (but not picky), also downtown. Thanks.

posted by priested to food & drink (9 comments total)

Loie in Rittenhouse Sq can be fun for drinks and some dancing at night.
If you want to go more downscale, nearby bars are Bar Noir and the Black Sheep Pub.
posted by rmless at 12:07 PM on May 29, 2008

awesome dive bar is oscars on locust
posted by yonation at 1:23 PM on May 29, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]

Monk's if you like Belgian beer and maybe mussels.
posted by fixedgear at 2:44 PM on May 29, 2008

My favorite dive was Bob and Barbara's. They have a house jazz band, but they may not play during the weekdays.
posted by gnutron at 2:46 PM on May 29, 2008

If you want to grab a drink before or after dinner, hit up Valanni or Tria, both of which are just down the street from Vetri. If it's warm, you can sit outside at either place - they're upscale but not too fancy.

The only real jazz club downtown is Chris' Jazz Cafe, which is okay but not my favorite place to hang out. I'm not a big fan of jazz, though. I second Oscar's as a great dive bar. Bob and Barbara's is also fun and has a live jazz band several nights a week.

Enjoy! Philly is the best.
posted by jrichards at 3:38 PM on May 29, 2008

Thanks much.
posted by priested at 4:58 PM on May 29, 2008

Yeah, Bob and Barbara's is exactly what you're looking for.
posted by The Straightener at 7:14 PM on May 29, 2008

I think Loie, Bar Noir, and especially Black Sheep are generic and kind of lame. Chris' Jazz Cafe is excellent, with a nice atmosphere, good beer selection, and great bands, although sometimes there's a steep cover. Nearby is The Nodding head which is a nice brewpub with good bar food, and Monk's, which has a great selection of Belgians and some delicious burgers and fries.
posted by ludwig_van at 10:37 PM on May 29, 2008

the band at bob and barbaras is only weekends, mid week you may end up in the middle of a drag show or ping-pong tourny. oscars has cheap beer, but their jukebox is shite. mc glinchy's is the best dive IMO. nodding head and monks are good-beer bars with decent food. valanni is total douchery.
posted by swbarrett at 6:28 AM on May 30, 2008