Dim Sum Garden in Philadelphia is chef Shizhou Da's Shanghai dumpling room, reopened January 2025 on Race Street in Chinatown with a doubled soup-dumpling operation.
Signature dishes: Xiao long bao, Hand-pulled noodles
Must order: Xiao long bao by the basket; hand-pulled scallion-pancake noodles; the XL straw soup dumpling for the table.
Tip: Sit at the front window seats to watch the pleating. Cash works but cards land too.
Address: 1024 Race St, Philadelphia, PA 19107
Standard Tap in Philadelphia is the Northern Liberties gastropub since 1999, with a daily chalkboard menu, all-Pennsylvania taps and the chicken pot pie that locals reorder.
Signature: Chicken pot pie, Steak frites
Order: The daily chicken pot pie; steak frites; whichever oysters are on the chalkboard that night.
Tip: The roof deck opens April to October. No reservations; walk up and put your name on the list.
K'Far in Philadelphia is Michael Solomonov and Steve Cook's all-day Israeli bakery and cafe at 19th near Rittenhouse, the morning sibling to Zahav's evening service.
Signature: Borekas, Shakshuka
Order: A bourekas filled with feta and za'atar; shakshuka at brunch; the babka to take home.
Tip: Walk in for the bakery counter at 08:00 before the work crowd lands at 09:30. Pastries sell out by 11.
Honey's Sit 'n Eat in Philadelphia is the Northern Liberties comfort-food counter at 4th and Brown since 2005, with challah French toast, latkes and a hangover-grade weekend brunch.
Signature: Challah French toast, Latkes
Order: Challah French toast; potato latkes with sour cream and applesauce; the brisket-and-egg plate.
Tip: No reservations. Aim for 10:00 weekday or 09:30 Saturday. Cash and cards land equally.
Han Dynasty in Philadelphia is Han Chiang's Sichuan room on Chestnut, the kitchen that ranked the spice scale 1 to 10 and made the city order dan dan noodles by name.
Signature: Dan dan noodles, Dry pot
Order: Dan dan noodles, dry-pot rabbit at heat 7, three-pepper chicken, mapo tofu.
Tip: Order one dish below the heat level you think you can handle. The 10 scale is honest.
Barbuzzo in Philadelphia is Marcie Turney and Valerie Safran's 13th Street Mediterranean room since 2010, with wood-fired pizzas and the salted caramel budino that built the reputation.
Signature: Wood-fired pizza, Salted caramel budino
Order: Wood-fired pizza of the week; salted caramel budino, the dish locals order by name.
Tip: The bar counter overlooking the open kitchen takes walk-ups. Quietest table on a Friday night.
Pizzeria Vetri in Philadelphia is Marc Vetri's Neapolitan pizza room on Chancellor near Rittenhouse Square, with the wood-fired oven from Naples and the famous rotolo.
Signature: Margherita, Rotolo
Order: Margherita with buffalo mozzarella; the rotolo (mortadella, ricotta and pistachio rolled in dough).
Tip: Walk in at 17:30 on a weeknight. The main rush starts at 18:30.
