Most people on the East Coast know that Philly is a great city for food, with some very irresistible signature dishes – like cheesesteaks, soft pretzels, hoagies, roast pork, scrapple, butter cake, and so much more. Lately, it seems as though the rest of the world is finally catching on to Philly’s greatness, and not just where food is concerned. Our city is now being ranked nationally as one of the best places to visit and is attracting major worldwide events, like the Democratic National Convention and the World Meeting of Families. Look even Pope Francis is coming to visit!
Here are some thoughts on what it is about Philly that could be finally catching everyone’s eye:
Brilliant and Creative Chefs
Again, it’s no secret that Philly is delicious food town. We are lucky to be home to some of the most amazing master chefs who train their students well. Among those masterminds are (and remember these are just a few of our many): Nicholas Elmi, Bravo’s 2014 Top Chef; March Vetri, among Food & Wine magazine’s “Ten Best New Chef’s” and recipient of the James Beard Award for “Best Chef Mid-Atlantic;” Jose Garces, a regular guest on the Food Network hit Iron Chef America – a role he earned after besting nine other competitors on The Next Iron Chef; and Jen Carroll, competitor on Season 6 of Top Chef and Top Chef All-Stars.
Oh and did we mention that there are two Philly natives starring in tonight’s Season 14 of Hell’s Kitchen?! Tune in tonight to see Christine Hazel, chef advisor to Chickie’s & Pete’s, and Milly Medley, executive chef.
Open Space and Outdoor Activities
City officials have and continue to focus efforts on making more space available for outdoor activities in Philly. In fact, just last year the city built a new “boardwalk” on the Lower Schuylkill River, a part of the Schuylkill River Development Corporation connector to the Schuylkill River Trail that runs from Locust Street to the South Street Bridge, and established Dilworth Park, the city’s Center Square with on-going programming, amenities, and outdoor activities. And that’s just two of many things happening to encourage outdoor activity in the city. Some of the other things happening include: a bike-sharing program called Indego, supported by Independence Blue Cross and featuring over 60 stations and 600 bikes throughout the city; Pier 68 Park, which will provide a southern trailhead for the continually growing Delaware River Trail; another season of Spruce Street Harbor Park, one of the city’s coolest pop-ups with a boardwalk, arcade games, a hammock lawn, a bocce court, a floating restaurant, and a beer garden; and free outdoor exercise programs like Yoga on the Race Street Pier, where city dwellers can go in the morning and one evening a week to get their yoga on (starting again in April).
Art and Culture
If you’re into art and culture, Philly is the place to be. Not only are there great museums, like the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Barnes Foundation, Independence Seaport Museum, Mummers Museum, Mütter Museum, National Constitution Center, National Museum of American Jewish History, Please Touch Museum, Franklin Institute, Academy of Natural Sciences, and more – but there is art everywhere you walk, thanks to the city’s Mural Arts Program. You can’t miss the murals as they are on buildings, rooftops, bridges and even parking garages all over the city. And this spring the Mural Arts Program is launching one of the city’s largest and most ambitious site-specific art exhibitions called Open Source: Engaging Audiences in Public Space. The goal of the exhibition is to create a redefinition of what artistic practice can look like and tap into internationally renowned curators like Pedro Alonzo and 14 talented and diverse artists to produce large-scale, temporary public artworks all across the city. Oh and the Opera Philadelphia is also celebrating its 40th anniversary this year!
Great Annual Events
Philly is home to many annual events that are known not only locally, but nationally. Not only do we host the annual Mummers Parade, but we are also home to the Philadelphia International Cycling Classic, Philadelphia Auto Show, Philadelphia International Dragon Boat Festival, XPoNential Music Festival, Wawa Welcome America celebration and Philly 4th of July Jam, Philadelphia Folk Festival, Bastille Day at Eastern State Penitentiary, and of course the Philadelphia Flower Show (going on now) – just to name a few.
Some other exciting things that our city plans to offer both tourists and residents are an observation deck at the Liberty One skyscraper – set to offer breathtaking, picture-perfect skyline views 57 stories above the ground starting this summer – and a redesigned LOVE Park, which will involve $14 million worth of changes and is scheduled to start in early 2016 and be finished in 2017.
We Are Supported By:
