11 Best Restaurants in Old City and Historic Downtown, Philadelphia

Amada

$$$ | Old City Fodor's choice

At Amada, the first of chef-restaurateur Jose Garces’s restaurants, the Ecuadorian-American chef reinterprets regional cuisine with choice ingredients and a modern touch that feature in more than 50 tapas, from the crab-stuffed peppers with toasted almonds to the flatbread topped with artichoke, black truffle, and manchego. Ingredients—including even more glorious cheeses—are sourced from northern Spain, the main inspiration for the menu. The large, festive front room can skew loud; for a quieter meal, ask for a table in the second dining room, beyond the open kitchen.

Fork

$$$$ | Old City Fodor's choice

Happy sounds are always emanating from eaters at this comfortable, elegant eatery, one of Old City’s most respected and longest-running dinner destinations. The kitchen is known for its innovative pastas and breads, in-house fermentation, and the celebration of local meats and produce.

Franklin Fountain

$ | Old City Fodor's choice

You can’t throw a wet walnut in Philly without hitting an artisanal-ice-cream maker these days, but brothers Ryan and Eric Berley and their charming Colonial-inspired scoop shop have newcomers beat by years. On summer nights, long lines ripple out the door into the warm Old City night, but the wait (half an hour isn’t uncommon in summer) is worth it for the house-made seasonal flavors like fresh peach, brooding black raspberry, and honeycomb made with booty from the Fountain’s rooftop hives. Just down the block, the Berleys also operate Shane Confectionery, a candy shop informed by the same bygone era.

Recommended Fodor's Video

High Street on Market

$$$$ | Old City Fodor's choice

This sunny younger sibling of perennial favorite Fork is half clubhouse for Old City neighbors, half food-tourist magnet. Grain-brained High Street will take you from cortados (an espresso drink) and kouign-amann (a French pastry) in the morning to beet-cured salmon sandwiches in the afternoon to creative alt-flour pastas—spelt pappardelle, anyone?—at night.

Buddakan

$$$$ | Old City

This Stephen Starr restaurant is presided over by a 10-foot-tall gilded Buddha who seems to approve of the fusion food that pairs Pan-Asian ingredients with various cooking styles. The truffled edamame dumplings and tuna tartare spring rolls are tasty, but much of the appeal is in the theatrical decor and people-watching, also prevalent at Buddakan's outposts in New York and Atlantic City. A long "community table" provides an opportunity to dine with anyone else who snags this center-stage space. Be prepared for a loud and lively atmosphere.

Cuba Libre

$$$$ | Old City

People who have been to Havana swear this place is a dead ringer; in any event, it's lovely, with balconies and fancy streetlights, and even a leaded-glass window on the interior. An entire drinks menu is devoted to rum from everywhere in the Caribbean and Central and South America, including Cuba Libre's own brand, and of course, the mojitos are excellent. The appetizers, like Cienfuegos-style beef empanadas and malanga fritters, are authentic. Rice and black beans are served with classic entrées like vaca frita and ropa vieja.

La Peg

$$$$ | Penn's Landing

Peter Woolsey, whose tenured Bella Vista bistro, La Minette, is beloved by Francophiles, bet big on an out-of-the-way Penn’s Landing sequel named for his wife, Peggy. Housed in a former water pumping station, the digs are catnip for engineering and architecture nerds; rivet-studded I-beams crisscross the ceiling like a catwalk, and soaring arched windows overlook the brontosaurus hoof—like supports of the Ben Franklin Bridge. The menu hits a wide swath of comfort-food notes—New England clam chowder, pot roast, chicken and dumplings—with occasional Gallic flourishes. A spacious outdoor courtyard with a bar is in use for most of the year. The restaurant shares an address with the headquarters and main performance space of the FringeArts organization.

Panorama

$$$$ | Old City

The name refers to a lovely mural rather than a window view from this lively spot inside the Penn's View Hotel. The restaurant has the largest wine cruvinet (storage system) in the country. Besides more than 120 wines by the glass, there's a huge selection of well-chosen bottles. You can sip them in Il Bar or in the main dining room. The food is authentic Italian—simple and hearty. The ambience is either noisy or animated, depending on your tolerance level.

Plough and the Stars

$$$ | Old City

The cheery first floor of a renovated bank feels like a genuine Irish pub. A long bar with a dozen spigots is invariably spouting several imported and a few local brews. This is the place to get a Guinness poured the correct way. In winter, patrons crowd around a blazing fireplace on stools set around small tables. It's possible to munch on good Irish smoked salmon on grainy bread while imbibing; you can also head to the upstairs dining room for some respite from the crush and choose from a panoply of worldly appetizers, salads, and main courses.

The Bourse Food Hall

$ | Old City

Built in 1895 as a stock, maritime, and commodities exchange, the Bourse building is an icon of Philadelphia commerce. The skylighted Great Hall, with its Corinthian columns, marble, wrought-iron stairways, and Victorian gingerbread details, has been meticulously maintained, but the space has also been updated to house an internationally inspired food hall with local roots. Stop in for specialty coffee from Menagerie, modern Filipino cuisine from LALO, creative comfort food from Grubhouse, grilled cheeses from Mighty Melt, and dozens of other lunch and early-dinner options.

The Olde Bar

$$$ | Old City

This Jose Garces spot is located in the historic bones of Old Original Bookbinders, a fish house that catered to politicians, bigwigs, and celebrities in its day. The menu isn’t elaborate, but manages well with updates on seafood classics like snapper soup and lobster rolls, and the East and West Coast oysters are pristine, but the deep catalog of cocktails both classic and nouveau is the real reason to come—seasonal Old Fashioneds, elaborate swizzles, and sours as foamy as the ocean surf satisfy tipplers of all tastes. The handsome bar anchors the space in waves of carved mahogany; with nautical caged lights and low pressed-tin ceilings, it creates the vibe of a saloon on a luxurious ocean liner.

Philadelphia

Recommended Fodor's Video

Follow Us

Thank you for your interest!