The dining scene in historic Philadelphia is clustered in the Old City as well as on Walnut Street and Rittenhouse Square and most restaurants are within walking distance of the major hotels.
An outpost of one of the most popular restaurants in New York City, Buddakan in Philadelphia is housed in an equally spectacular setting with equally fantastic food. This Asian fusion dining destination should be first on your list if you like Asian food. It is a huge restaurant with exquisite decor that pulls off being a great romantic dining spot as well as a great place for groups and families. It is the food that ties it all together in the end. Dishes to try: chicken with ginger dumplings; lobster fried rice; edamame ravioli; crispy calamari salad; and the molten chocolate cake. Buddakan will be on your list to visit when you make your next next trip to Philly!
A Basque wine bar for dinner? Yes! Make a reservation at Tinto. Begin at the bar while you wait for your table. Sample the tapas. Then find your seats and settle in. The food is delicious and you will want to linger. Try the the Arugula Salad with figs, ham, and cheese croquettes; the duck confit; sauteed wild mushrooms; and chestnut soup. All are winners.
For a different night out, head over to The Restaurant School. You can dine in the student run International Bistro and get an affordable and delicious three course meal. Or you could choose their upscale restaurant called The Great Chefs, the American Heartland Restaurant that focuses on all American cuisine, or the Italian Trattoria. There is also a Pastry Shop you can drop into in the morning for chocolate croissants and other delectable pastries, cakes, tarts, and cookies. The Restaurant School is a delightful experience offering you the chance to talk to the students running the restaurant as well as the chance to have a gourmet meal at a reasonable price.
For the best cheese steak sandwiches in Philadelphia, visit Dalessandro’s Steaks on Wendover Street. It has been featured in numerous gourmet magazines for its to die for cheese steaks made with rib-eye steak. There is cheese steak, chicken steak, mushroom cheese steak, pepper cheese steak, chicken cheese steak hoagies, an on and on, including a full menu of other kinds of hoagies (long sandwiches), burgers and salads. You can dine for under $10 each and come away very full!
So from very high end, to very affordable, you now have a list to take with you to begin your culinary journey in Philadelphia!
Alex is a blogger and travel writer. He writes about everything from exotic destinations to beautiful hotels. He also writes a blog for Coupon Croc .