After a winter of hibernating, you probably need a quick reminder of where to eat when it’s warm. The following restaurants, by no means a comprehensive list, are a mix of casual and nicer spots with outdoor seating where you can enjoy the springtime no matter what you feel like eating. Stay tuned to find out where to go for delicious BBQ, innovative tacos, sustainable farm to table and pretzels bigger than your face.
Fette Sau
Photo by Danny Goldenberg
This is an excellent barbecue spot in Fishtown. Its outdoor picnic tables are the perfect place to hang out, share a bbq platter (or two) and explore an extensive whiskey and bourbon selection. Fette Sau runs a great happy hour weekdays from 5-7 pm where Manhattans and Old Fashioneds go for just $5. The bbq is outstanding and has awesome sides like creamy mac ‘n cheese and sweet potato mash. Fishtown is also fun to explore – we highly recommend wandering around to check out what this neighborhood has to offer.
Talula’s Garden
Photo by Morgan McKeever
Talula’s Garden, one of the nicer places on this list, lives up to the hype. The menu is drool worthy. The food is impeccable. Everything is fresh and farm to table. Even the outdoor seating reflects this honest, down to earth theme. Go for either dinner or Sunday brunch – you’ll never be disappointed. Brunch boasts a “Breakfast Burger” with bacon jam as well as a delicious huevos rancheros dish with cheese crisp arepas, pork carnitas and sunny side eggs. Dinner is equally enticing and includes options like goat cheese gnocchi, bone-in beef short ribs and pan seared scallops with lemon risotto.
Heffe
Photo by Sarah Pilger
This is another cool, unpretentious Fishtown spot. It’s a taco joint by Peter McAndrews who owns Paesano’s, Monsu and Modo Mio. Just like his incredible sandwiches at Paesono’s, McAndrews’ tacos are creative and delicious: beef cheek tacos, fried chicken thighs tacos and lamb belly burrito, to rattle off a few. Two tacos come in an order for around $6-9, and Heffe stays open ’til 3 am on weekends.
Le Virtu
Photo courtesy of @kikitiki30 on Instagram
This South Philly spot is known for its pasta. It is authentic Italian at its best, and it is made even better by its beautiful, simple, outdoor patio. The menu has a wild boar ragu pasta, a duck ragu pasta and a lamb shoulder ragu pasta. Other dishes include porchetta with broccoli rabe, perfectly roasted chicken and poached branzino. We recommend working off dinner by walking along East Passyunk – it’s a cool street with lots of great restaurants, shops and bars.
Frankford Hall
Photo by Danny Goldenberg
This place is not just for beer! Temper your Oktoberfest withdrawls and come to this outdoor beer garden, but also enjoy oversized pretzels, sausages, burgers, strudel and schnitzel. You can even get a spit-roasted half chicken. Take your time scarfing the food down and nursing your pints by taking breaks to play ping pong, foosball and Jenga. Seriously, this place has everything.