PHLReview
Common Wealth
This spot is Permanently Closed.
There aren’t a ton of places you can go in the city for good Southern food - everything is either an “upscale take” on it, which just ends up meaning they serve fried chicken with caviar on top, or it’s a dive bar that serves you something that they say is gumbo, but is completely unrecognizable. Common Wealth is the perfect middle ground, and somewhere you can go for a consistently good, low country-inspired meal.
It’s not much to look at - it’s really just a bar in Old City with a tin roof and some tables lined up against the wall - but it’s well priced and the food is exactly what you want from a southern spot, like the fried green tomato pimiento melt on sourdough that’s basically just a way better grilled cheese. It’s a good spot to have a casual lunch during the week if you have some time to kill, and it’s also one of our favorite places to grab brunch on a Sunday. They serve things like apple cider pancakes, and their mimosas are strong enough to make you forget you have to to back into the office the next day.