Passing through Philadelphia - 1 hour, where to go?

Submitted by WandarFar t3_xwjjfj in philadelphia

So, I’m an Aussie driving from NYC to Virginia and am gonna detour via Philly (Phillie?) as always wanted to see it. Only got an hour to spare. I don’t do monuments, museums, touristy stuff like that. I travel Bourdain-style. I wanna be where the food and people are, even if it’s a little gritty. What part of Philadelphia is quintessential Philly where I can get a good bite and feel for the town? I know an hour is never enough but I don’t want to sit in a Starbucks across from a museum.

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diatriose t1_ir6ssu4 wrote

Reading Terminal or Italian Market

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akapterian t1_ir6t5ig wrote

Second this if it's very brief. You get access to tons of food options and see a quintessential Philly place at the same time.

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WanderlustFella t1_ir6uien wrote

Reading Terminal has been featured on lots of publications and travel videos. You may end up spending your entire hour on just one or two spots here.

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WandarFar OP t1_ir6wlvu wrote

Seems to be a popular opinion. Thanks for that! Will take a look.

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Delfiasa t1_irazdvv wrote

Reading Terminal Market is also great because you get an amazing cross section of the city’s population - white collar and blue collar people on lunch breaks, immigrants speaking other languages, every race, class, and age… they all go to Reading Terminal Market. Great people watching.

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riotincandyland t1_ir7fh3y wrote

Reading terminal is a good answer. BUT they're gonna spend a good chunk of the alloted hour fighting traffic.

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JT07 t1_ir6t1l3 wrote

You basically described Reading Terminal, so go there.

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TrustThe_CPA_Process t1_ir6tulm wrote

Reading Terminal is the correct answer. Do that then maybe walk to Old City and visit Independence Mall real quick. If I had an hour in Philly, that’s what I’d do fwiw.

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dandykaufman2 t1_ir6u8p4 wrote

Bourdain-style lol

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SpaceCakeHenry t1_ir6vd1g wrote

"It seems that the more places I see and experience, the bigger I realize the world to be. The more I become aware of, the more I realize how relatively little I know of it, how many places I have still to go, how much more there is to learn."

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wrubs t1_ir6va69 wrote

I thought the same thing. Bourdain hated Philly.

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GoldenMonkeyRedux t1_ir6xstr wrote

No he didn’t. I literally talked to him about it. He was pleasantly surprised by the city.

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wrubs t1_ir6ybuq wrote

I was going off how much he bad-mouthed the city in Parts Unknown episode. He did say at the end he was surprised and enjoyed it, but he was pretty harsh in the beginning of the episode.

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GoldenMonkeyRedux t1_ir6ywhv wrote

So in other words, he changed his mind over the course of his time here, and your post was he hated it here. Despite saying at the end that he had a nice time and was pleasantly surprised.

I don’t get it.

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dandykaufman2 t1_ir6vzxm wrote

I didn’t know that. It’s just kind of fake deep, like saying forget your body, I wanna fuck your mind.

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bierdimpfe t1_ir6sh37 wrote

It's Philly.

If there's a specific cuisine or dish that you're interested in, I'm sure you'll get lots of differing opinions on where to find the best version of it.

If you want to play it by ear, check out Reading Terminal Market, there's lots of good options for a quick meal.

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44moon t1_ir6tlom wrote

italian market. it's supposed to be sunny and ~70ish the next couple days so hopefully you'll get in at the very tail end of the season. great place for food and id say a good balance of scenic location and regular philly.

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tsneildiamond t1_ir6ssjk wrote

Monk's Cafe - Awesome Belgian beer bar and restaurant. Get the mussels and drink an Orval.

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TheFAPnetwork t1_ir73mcq wrote

Gooey Louies

I suggest this because as you being Aussie, you'll get a feel of the deep rooted deli style sandwiches. It's a dive style deli but worth the stop if you want culture

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jellyguapo t1_ir788qc wrote

One pound steaks in Kensington

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tclumsypandaz t1_ir6tq2j wrote

Go to the Magic Gardens, and if you get a chance you can stop at Tattooed Moms on the way out. Perfect little edgy artsy preview of Philadelphia. The Magic Gardens is an art exhibit that started as one guy's backyard art project and grew and grew and grew until he turned it into a lil public exhibit. He lives up the street and regularly hangs out at the exhibit just 'cause. You can find his artwork all over the city.

Tattooed Mom's is a bar that is nearby that perfectly captures the Philadelphia vibe & spirit in my opinion. Casual, a little bit of an edge, but great food, really good drinks, endless interesting graffiti on the wall, and chill friendly crowd. The bar is a place that supports artists and is almost in itself a community activist.

If you like traveling Bourdain style you will love philly, and I highly recommend a return. This city makes a point in celebrating the nonpretentious, casual local gems & that's one of my favorite things about it! You'll walk by a snazzy fancy restaurant and find out the famous chef actually owns the dollar taco joint next door instead.

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Conalou2 t1_ir6ynn5 wrote

Old City You get some history and good food/bars.

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FTBNoob17 t1_ir71sbf wrote

You’ll see plenty on the drive in to park at RTM. Drive through old city and you’ve seen it all if you look up, to the right and left!

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cardioqstl t1_ir7dzk2 wrote

Parc Rittenhouse square and people watch

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massivetypo t1_ir7sf6a wrote

Reading Terminal. The beef sandwich with broccoli Rab from DiNic’s

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hockeystuff77 t1_ir89cpo wrote

Don’t forget to call Pete. He’s Australian as well.

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WandarFar OP t1_ir8fkxt wrote

I… don’t know who Pete is… but I’ll give calling him a crack anyways and see what comes of it.

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napsdufroid t1_ir6veao wrote

You could try sitting in a Starbucks NOT across from a museum. Seriously, RTM is your place.

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hn201B t1_ir77vod wrote

Harp and crown

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Trafficsigntruther t1_ir6vhof wrote

> I travel Bourdain-style.

Didn’t he off himself in a hotel room.

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WandarFar OP t1_ir6wj9u wrote

Ok. Bourdain-style “to a point”

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Head-Kiwi-9601 t1_ir7lnto wrote

Reading TerminalMarket if you’ve got an hour.

I’d go for a pastrami Rachel at Hershel’s Deli.

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Remote-Heat-8475 t1_ir7e11m wrote

Philly is a warzone just keep it moving bul

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BearPhilly t1_ir6whq4 wrote

Kensington and Somerset.

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