PHLGuide
The Best Restaurants Near Logan Square
photo credit: Nicole Guglielmo
We'll let you in on a little secret: Logan Square isn't really a neighborhood. It's more like the Benjamin Franklin Parkway sharing a couch with some hotels and museums. But there is a memorial fountain that becomes an unofficial pool during the summertime, as well as a handful of the city's biggest tourist destinations. The next time you get hungry after a visit to The Barnes, The Franklin Institute, The Museum of Art, or that overrated statue of a fictional boxer, stick to these restaurants.
THE SPOTS
This high-end seafood spot is not only the best restaurant in the area, but it's one of our favorite restaurants in the entire city. In terms of fanciness, we're talking about the kind of place with a long wine list and servers who fold your napkin when you're in the bathroom. As long as you're down to eat a lot of seafood—like king salmon crudo with trout roe or sea scallops in a winter citrus sauce—you're in for a special night.
Dates and groups of friends wearing Lululemon come to this casual sushi spot to eat spider rolls and toro-scallion hand rolls. The quality of sushi is totally fine. More importantly: the menu is relatively affordable. Specialty maki averages around $14, hand rolls go from $4 to $15, and an eight-piece sushi omakase tasting will cost you $59. Bring a bottle of wine (it’s BYOB), and take a moment to consider every shade that the Lulu scuba hoodie comes in.
photo credit: City Tap House
Based on the space alone, City Tap House is an ideal spot to watch a game. It has an enormous dining room and a bunch of TVs, so you’ll never feel cramped inside and you can usually walk in and find a table. This is a staple for the Logan Square post-work crowd. No matter what’s on TV, expect to see a group of people staring at the screen while blindly feeling around the table for a rogue chicken wing.
Thanal Indian Tavern makes incredible gunpowder shrimp tikka tossed in a mix of chili powder, curry leaf, and cilantro. While you could make a meal out of this dish and be happy, we also suggest getting the goat curry and the Malabar fish cooked in coconut milk and tamarind gravy. Thanal never gets too packed and there are plenty of tables, making it perfect for walk-ins or a last-minute group dinner when you want a place quiet enough to hear everyone.
Assembly is all about the views and not so much about the food. The busy rooftop bar is nine floors up (atop the Logan Hotel), so you can drink a margarita and look down at the Parkway or up at one of those eclipses that happen every 127 years. We recommend making a reservation, which costs $10 and guarantees entry. Plan to come on the earlier side so you get a seat on the semi-circle couches near a fire pit.
Victory Brewing Co. is one of the few breweries in Center City, which makes it a useful place to bring a group or watch a game. Another perk: they have a rooftop with yellow chairs, plants, and a U-shaped bar. Eat a Bavarian pretzel and some wings while inspecting the after-work crowd of people who would like to be 25 again.
Pizzeria Salvy inside the Comcast Technology Center is a good place to eat pizza and overhear business conversations about world domination. The Italian restaurant, although decked out in old-school white tablecloths and family photos, doesn't fit into its corporate wasteland setting. And no matter how light the meatballs are, you'll never forget you're in the basement of an office building. Come for a quick lunch or dinner when the setting doesn't matter.
photo credit: Nicole Guglielmo
This tiny Center City spot works best for dumplings and buns on the go. It’s a little too tight to sit in here for a full meal. Also, it's inside Suburban Station, a large regional train station. But for something fast, the pork soup bao with thick wrappers are great.
POWERED BY
This Japanese BBQ chain gets busy, so we suggest making a reservation if you're bringing a group or coming during Happy Hour. Inside there’s a small bar and a few booths where you can grill your own meats for around $40 a person. You’ll see all of the Japanese BBQ headliners here, like sukiyaki, bone-in kalbi, toro beef, umakara ribeye, and seafood—all marinated in miso, shio, or sweet soy tare. The quality of meat is good for the price. Just don’t burn it while telling a story about that weird thing you saw online.
photo credit: PHOTO CREDIT: SABRINA'S CAFE
We waited 58 years for the Eagles to win their first Super Bowl. So we’re okay with waiting to get into Sabrina’s Cafe for brunch on the weekends (they don’t take reservations). Get the Penelope's passion pancakes. These come with a berry compote, in case you want a change of pace from drowning your pancakes in syrup. Sabrina's is open every day of the week, so you could always ditch your group and head here for a solo Tuesday meal when you need some peace over pancakes.
Sitting at this French restaurant on the 59th floor of the Four Seasons is the closest you can get to being a Logan Square god. There are panoramic views of the city, a menu section dedicated to "caviar creations," little seats for your purse, and a six-course “land and sea” tasting menu for $218. When you need to plan one of the fanciest dinners of your Philly life—and are okay paying a pretty penny for it—this is the spot.
Cherry Street Tavern is part of a dying breed of old-school taverns where you’ll see Jimi Hendrix posters on the wall, drink cheap beer, and overhear conversations about the younger generation not respecting their elders. This place is famous for its hot beef sandwiches. Which is why you'll see a designated sandwich sculptor stacking hot roast beef and provolone on kaiser rolls like it’s some kind of seductive act. Order one—it's drippy and great—and count the whiskeys behind the bar. We lost track at 37.
Unit Su Vege exclusively serves vegetarian versions of Chinese classics. Everything is kosher and costs less than $20, including some good renditions of general tso's seitan, Chinese broccoli with dried tofu, and braised soy chicken in a red pepper sauce. We especially like the $11 lunch specials and the “shrimp” dumplings, which taste like imitation crab and have a specific crispness from ginger and bamboo shoots.
photo credit: Giant Food Stores
Yes, The Giant on 23rd Street is your run-of-the-mill grocery store selling eggs that will make you yell, "How much?" when reading the label. But this location also has an outdoor balcony with surprisingly nice views of the Schuylkill. Head out here with a bag of chips and some beer or wine from the store. Or bring a date for a slightly unhinged but sweet night.
