Weekend in Philadelphia

radroadkill

So I'm thinking of taking a mini overnight trip to Philadelphia for my birthday near the end of March! Neither the husband or I have been there but my company just opened up a spa there and I already have a dinner place in mind.

We're thinking of leaving early on a Saturday and probably driving up (from the Baltimore area) and then driving back sometime Sunday. Both the main things I want to do are on Walnut Street. I know nothing of Philly! We've never been!

Where should we stay? How does parking work? Is driving the best way to get there? Are there must sees or dos in the area? How's public transit or is walking around feasible? Give me all the advice and suggestions! (For any food suggestions, I am a vegetarian but the husband is not.)

shadowane

Where are you looking to eat? As a vegetarian, you should probably look into Vedge but it's a bit more hardcore than just regular vegetarian. What restaurant do you have in mind?

Public transit is fine but the subway doesn't get you a ton of places unless you are willing to take buses. They're fine but can be unreliable. Really depends on how far you want to go, though, as it isn't too hard to walk useful places.

What kind of restaurants are you looking to check out? Do you like beer?

Parking is like any city, I'm assuming you'd just want to pay for parking at a hotel, but who knows how much it'll be. If both things are on walnut, you could stay at the Sofitel or the hotel across the street from it. Depends on how much you want to spend. I don't know the hotels though as most people who visit me just stay at my house.

ceres

Do you like museums? There are some pretty great ones in Philadelphia. If you're into that sort of thing and have the time the Mütter Museum is a must-see.

radroadkill

I love museums and sight seeing! I wasn't sure how feasible it would be with only two days there, plus is depends on what time I get spa bookings. I've been wanting to go to back to Max Brenner for years since I went in NYC so that's the other must do besides Lush.

I don't really care for beer but I love food and tasty cocktails... but Quid LOVES beer so that is always a plus for him.

minirhyder

There's a place called Khyber Pass near Penn's Landing.
The food is amazing, and they have an epic beer menu.

ceres

The museum I mentioned is a medical history/oddity museum. If you are into that stuff it is incredibly cool, and if you don't need to linger too long on each exhibit you can kind of breeze through in about 3-4 hours.

If you aren't into that sort of thing, it may make you a bit queasy anyway.

ahava

the art museum. independence hall is worth a look if you're at all into history and things of the nation. it's probably change a LOT since the last time i was there in 2000 though. hmm. that's sad to think about.

I am a huge proponent of the Franklin Institute even if everything is broken (apparently they've got a brand new walk-through heart and I am so wanting to go back!)

the Rodin museum should still be around, and there's the Museum of natural History that I went to all the time as a kid. but I don't think they have the animatronic dinosaurs anymore.

Also, the zoo. First zoo in the country, and basically my second home as a kid.

can't help on the food or accommodation scene, I haven't been home in forever.

shadowane

The Khyber is awesome. It's basically southern food with amazing Poboy sandwiches and some excellent vegetarian / vegan food. Their beer list is top of the line as well. If you are down near 2nd and chestnut, it's worth a stop for lunch. Closer to Broad and Walnut, great beer choices with good food are Jose Pistola's (great mexican) at 15th and spruce, Perch Pub (solid food) at broad and locust, and if you want to visit one of the best known bars in philly, Monk's at 16th and Spruce. For the latter, you're there on the weekend so it'll be busy, but it should be less busy at like 2 or 3. Better to just get a beer at the bar and go somewhere else for dinner just because of the crowds.

For cocktails, a friend of mine loves the Franklin Mortgage. I'm sure the drinks are pricey, but he seems to love them. Has a good reputation, no idea on the food.

Everyone else has covered the tourist stuff so that's a few suggestions for beer bars. There's plenty more though. Quid's best bet is to use http://www.phillytapfinder.com if he wants to try anything specific. That'll lead him there as the site is generally up to date.

TheCanMan

Being a vegetarian, this isn't going to be for you. But if your husband is looking for a good sandwich you should check out John's Roast Pork. It's not walking distance from Walnut, but their sharp provolone cheesesteak made Adam Richman's "Best Sandwich in America" finals and Andrew Zimmerman called their cheesesteak one of the 5 best cheesesteaks he's ever had and their roast pork one of the top 5 best sandwiches of any kind that he's ever had.

Quid

radroadkill wrote: »

I don't really care for beer but I love food and tasty cocktails... but Quid LOVES beer so that is always a plus for him.

And let's make something abundantly clear here: My happiness is paramount during my wife's birthday.

Dex Dynamo

I stayed at the Holiday Inn Express on Walnut before moving to the city proper, and it was really nice and really affordable. Plus, there's a good chance you can see Ben Franklin's grave from you're window!

I'll second the recommendation for Khyber Pass (especially if it's just the two of you, since it can get crowded rather easily), and add in a few other places nearby:

• Euolgy Tavern, if you like beer, is a huge craft beer bar, with something for virtually every taste imaginable. I didn't like beer until I went and they found a kind of beer I liked.
• The European Republic, around the corner from Khyber Pass, has great Belgian-style Frites and sauces, perfect for vegetarians and carnivores alike.
• If you get a chance, I highly recommend McGillin's Ale House if it's not too crowded. It's the oldest ale house in the country, and is a certified historical landmark--which is cool both because of history, and because it means their prices are super low. Plus they have Columbian Root Beer on tap, and surprisingly good cocktails.

I see you've listed Lush as a must-visit: I love Lush, but may I recommend instead/as well a place called Duross & Langel, right off 13th & Walnut? Same kind of store, comparable prices, and is local, which I'm a dork for, I apologize.

My parking recommendation: park the car at the hotel, and get subway tokens. You can get just about to any major site via SEPTA, and it's much, much less stressful.

radroadkill

Yeah, seeing as I work for Lush and have for 6 years now... I'm good. It's definitely not the same kind of store.

But the rest sounds fun!

Rook

I went to Philly a couple of years ago on a conference, and since it was my first time in the states, I tacked two days on at the end to just do a bit of touristy site-seeing. I ended up buying a city pass which gives you four things to do and a day ticket on the touristy busses/trolly car things. (http://www.citypass.com/philadelphia). I did everything in a day, which was quite all right, although my feat ached a little. I wouldn't recommend the Philly Zoo, it was quite far out of the way, and not a particularly great zoo either. I did like the aquarium though, but again it was quite far away, nice to look at the city from the other side of the river though.

Just to follow up on what other people have said. Nothing in the Franklin Institute was broken and it was a nice museum with some cool interactive bits, but still might be best for those with children. I'd skip the Natural History Museum though.

I stayed at The Independent because I quite like quirky things rather than chain hotels. It was nice, very large rooms, convenient location to walk everywhere.