Royal Tavern

Walking up to the bright blue exterior of Royal Tavern feels a little like meeting up with an ex. There’s all this anticipation, and, after one negroni, the groove just comes back. At the 2.0 version of this Queen Village neighborhood standby, old regulars mix with new ones. There might be A Christmas Story playing on one TV and a Sixers game on the other. The kitchen, which closes at 1am, serves bar food classics and good vegan options. Yes, there’s still the famous burger with smoked gouda, bacon, and pickled long hots, and wings that are crispier than we remember. But the smoked beef round sandwich is the thing we’ll be tracking down the next time we’re a little drunk and hungry at midnight. Do the same if you like late nights featuring Elton John on the speakers and maybe flirting with old flings.