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| Striking a pose at the fabulous Terrain at Styer's nursery on the outskirts of Philadelphia. I wanted to move into this glorious and sprawling garden store. |
Gang:
How’s my crew? Any good adventures of late? I’d love to hear the good, the bad and the ugly. Bring it.
Last weekend I had a revelatory moment, and who doesn’t love a good revelatory moment, n’est-ce pas?
I traveled to Philadelphia.
Hmm, did that go down like a thud? Mais non, mes frères! Listen up. Philadelphia is, frankly, brilliant. I am smitten. It was like stumbling onto a 4-for-1 sale at Kiehl’s. Literally. I live in Brooklyn and Philadelphia is only two hours away from New York City, but I hadn’t visited the City of Brotherly Love in almost five years. I am thinking Philadelphia needs to amp up its marketing program and make some noise, but that’s another story.
Early on a Thursday morning, John and I drove down to Philadelphia in the Subaru with Jasper and Weenie (our dogs, if you don’t follow the blog religiously and shame on you) in tow for a long weekend. We checked into the very stylish and perfectly situated Hotel Palomar Philadelphia and set out to explore the town.
The art scene? Brilliant. I can’t wait for the re-opening of the Barnes Foundation this spring. And don’t miss the Van Gogh exhibition.
The restaurant scene? Incredible. From restaurateur Stephen Starr’s much-vaunted outposts such as Talula’s Garden to The Dandelion and Route 6 to stupendous BYOB spots such as The Farm and Fisherman, John and I lapped it up. But skip Vedge, they couldn’t have meaner hosts. Phooey!
The garden scene? Longwood Gardens. Amazing. And our favorite spot was Terrain at Styer’s, the nursery-cum-lifestyle-store-cum-café from the boys behind Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters. Incredible.
The architecture? Stunning!
The attitude? None. Refreshing.
So if you haven’t paid a visit to Philly in a while, book it. I am so, so impressed with the Philadelphia scene.
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| The whimsical interior at uber-restaurateur Stephen Starr's The Dandelion, a super-chic yet totally relaxed pub with terrific food. |
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Here's John in the stunning atrium of the former Wanamaker's department store and now a Macy's. This is where they filmed the seminal film Mannequin with Kim Cattrall and Andrew McCarthy. |