We would like to take a moment to thank this week's advertisers on Phillyist. UWISHUNU, because you wish you knew. Love is a Mix Tape, Rob Sheffield's book about women, music, and love. Sony Card, because you'll get a free MP3 player if you apply. American Express' Urban Adventures-- for information about shopping, dining, and entertainment. Busted Tees, where they've got naughty holiday-themed shirts. If you're interested in advertising on Phillyist or any other site......

I love La Viola. It was the site of my first foodgasm, and a couple of foodgasms since. It's one of the first places I recommend to people who want a romantic meal before a night at the Kimmel or the Merriam. It's one of the first places I tell people to go for a first date. And when Ross and I decided to celebrate being Libras together, it was one of the first......

We'd like to take a brief moment to thank this week's advertisers on Phillyist. AMEX Urban Adventures, because there's shopping, dining, and entertainment destinations to be discovered. UWISHUNU, about Philly from the inside out. The Next Iron Chef, starting Sunday in its quest to find...the next Iron Chef. The Darjeeling Limited, in theaters now. PRAVDA, because who really wants an aftertaste to their vodka? Busted Tees, where they have some shirts on sale for $9.99!......

I have been waiting for tonight for a long time. Last time I ate at Bistro Romano, I basically foodgasmed over the lobster ravioli, and then I discovered that they have another lobster experience: a fifteen dollar dinner. I swear to you, there were tears of joy streaming down my face at that discovery. Unfortunately, it's been over three months, and I still haven't made it back. That's all going to change tonight. I......

Phillyist has always been a big fan of Guillermo Pernot, and with good reason. All of his endeavors have been, in our opinion, palate-worthy if not concept-worthy. He has won awards, written a book and Pasion has always been a consistently great dining mainstay. His standards precede his reputation, which is probably why he has such a good one. With some endeavors more popular than others (think Trust in what is now El Vez),......

Friday night, the boy and I went out for dinner at a trendy little bistro with some friends of ours. When we arrived, the hostess asked us if we'd like to sit inside, outside, or at the first available table. It was a gorgeous night, and we really wanted outside, but we were starving, so we decided to go with first available. The hostess assured us that we shouldn't have to wait longer than half......

I try, on the whole, to steer Monday Manners away from conventional, old-fashioned etiquette lessons. Sure, I've tackled opening doors, paying for dates, standing for the ladies, things not to talk about in "polite" company, and appropriate sidewalk behavior for ladies and gents, but for the most part, I tend to keep away from the "which fork do I use when?" etiquette lessons that you'd expect of a traditional manners column. (I like to mix......

Tinto, referring to the red wine often served in abundance at tapas eateries in Northern Spain, is wonderful. Not just because we love Amada. Not just because, despite its drab, low-ceiling, somewhat claustrophobic décor, the attention to detail is still there and appreciated. Not just because the wait staff cannot only memorize, but eloquently explain, the concept as well as the entire wine and cocktail list. Or lastly, not just because the food is perfectly......

A steaming hot pile of our favorite things from around the internets. Extra, extra! Google cares a lot less about the First Amendment than we thought. Think those squirrels you see frolicking in the park are adorable and harmless? Not in Denver, where apparently, they're carrying the plague. On this day ten years ago? Computer Deep Blue Something (how 1997 can you get?!) beats its human opponent in tournament-level chess. In what's surely an attempt......

As I write this, I've just returned from dinner with friends at Bistro Romano. I almost didn't go, because the restaurant's menu on MenuPages indicated that its prices didn't mesh so well with the Unemployment Diet, which I am still on. (I've lost twelve pounds, though!) Fortunately, my buddy Tom, who chose the restaurant, told me about Bistro Romano's Pasta Night on Mondays: a salad and any pasta dish off the menu for less......

No this isn't an ode to the Rolling Stones (though we do hear the bass line from that song in our head when we're walking down Market Street in the summertime). This is an ode to our love, Philadelphia. We are counting the hours until we get back to your edgy goodness. Unlike our other trips to Vegas, this one sucks. Perhaps it is because we are travelling alone and aren't in the mood to......

We keep forgetting to post about this article from the Washington Post that Phillyist writer Sydney de Lapeyrouse sent us a little while ago about Philly's BYO "revolution." We hesitate to call it a revolution, really—we've been BYOing for at least five years, since we first moved to Philly—but whatever they want to call it down in D.C., we do have to admit that our BYO culture really is unique to the City of Brotherly......

About ten days ago, I was able to live out a fantasy of mine (not that kind, you perv): I had the perfect Sex and the City brunch. That is to say, the company was straight from SATC, not the food. (I was with three girlfriends: a "Miranda," a "Samantha," and a "Charlotte." I'm happy being the "Carrie," so long as I don't have to grow SJP's nose to play the role.) We got......

In the past month, the only place besides work, home and L2 that I've actually incorporated into my life is Ten Stone. The place is adorable, their fondue brings tears to my eyes and they always have Woodchuck. These factors alone are enough to make me up and marry the establishment, but after discovering that even their bathroom is decorated in happy-Katie-fashion last night, I'm now trying to determine how to propose to a......

I have suddenly and rather unexpectedly found myself unemployed. No, no pity, please. I don't mind. Really. It's a blessing in disguise. But for one thing. Unemployment is hard for a foodie like moi. It means I have to cut down on the fine dining, and spend less money than I'd like on quality ingredients and fine wines and fancy cheeses. No dinner parties. Fewer organic fruits and veggies. The obvious thing to do......

As a small child, I was obsessed with Shirley Temple. I watched her movies until I memorized every last word to them, and subsequently became convinced that it was perfectly normal to break out in song to express my thoughts anytime, anywhere. My friends, uncultured fools that they were, did not share my views. My parents have always encouraged my creative pursuits, so I relegated my musical outbursts to the dining room. Until middle school,......

My freshman year of college, I spent Valentine’s Day wearing black. My friends, who are of the “We Love This Holiday Because We LOVE love!” camp, dragged me to the The Bridge to see How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days. Then they did everything in their power to stop me from throwing things at the screen. Now, I’m normally a sucker for romantic comedies, but bitter single chic + chipper friends + a......

Earlier this week, I celebrated Restaurant Week by hitting up Astral Plane with some Phillyists. My food was wonderful, and the dining room’s décor was comfy and adorable. But, trust you me, if there is one room in that place that truly reflects the restaurant’s name, the dining room it ain’t. The entrance to the bathroom is right off the dining room. The door has a big glass pane in it, but they’ve considerately......

To the people around me at lunch yesterday: I'm sorry some of you found yourselves dining solo. It must have been terribly boring and oppressively lonely. But don't take it out on me, just because I wasn't alone. Or being quiet. I wasn't aware that we were dining in a library. I know that I laugh loudly. Once in a while, I even shriek. But I don't cackle, I don't scream, and I don't howl.......

It’s Wednesday night and you find yourself in Old City. You’re tired of your old haunts (read: Eulogy is boring and nothing's doing at the Khyber) and you’re looking to do something a little different. We suggest flamenco. On Wednesdays at 9 p.m., let the musicians of Flamenco del Encuentro transport you from 2nd and Chestnut into the heart of Spain. We suggest getting to the bar at Amada around 8. Have a few drinks,......

So your New Year's Resolution was to lose a little weight, work out more, maybe not eat out so much. That last needs to be put on hold for a week: University City District is offering up its fourth University City Dining Days, running from January 11th to the 18th. Twenty-one restaurants are offering up fixed three-course menus in three price ranges: $20, $25, and $30, with some places offering two-for-one dining. Phillyist does the......

A ferocious head cold is slowly attacking everyone I know, and this Wednesday evening, I accepted that I, too, am sick. And then I accepted that I wanted soup and I wanted it now. On my way home from a rehearsal, I stopped by Szechuan Hunan Chinese Restaurant to pick up as much Wonton Soup as I could carry. While I was awaiting my food, I went in search of the bathroom. I initially......

We here at Phillyist know that a good portion of our readers may not reside within the limits of the City of Brotherly Love, and instead retreat to the pleasant confines of suburbia after a hard day's work. Rest assured, suburbanites! You are not alone, and Phillyist cares about your entertainment needs, too. That's why we've decided to start a new weekly feature here at Phillyist, focusing on fun to be had outside city......

We are terrible at managing money. It’s always feast or famine—either we're livin’ large the closer we are to pay day or slumming it pauper-style on the opposite end of the spectrum. Payday is Friday, so today it’s all pauper, all the time. Fret not, because it’s Wednesday, the day when you can have a night out in Old City for less than $20. The poor person's Wednesday night is as follows: Drive into town......

From cult to college? No, this isn't the Rocky Horror Picture Show -- it's the Divine Tracy Hotel, where the DP reports that the Father Divine cult is packing up to make way for Penn students: Where members of a tiny religious sect once stood singing hymns, students will soon rest in tanning beds and watch plasma-screen TVs. The former Divine Tracy Hotel at 20 S. 36th St. has been sold for $9 million......

Performances: P's & Q's (Lee Etzold and MyKindaPony) (Future performances); Eye-95 re-tarred (BRAT Productions) (Future performances). I took a two-day breather that wasn't really a breather at all, after my nine-in-three weekend, and jumped right back on the saddle with two shows yesterday, two today, two tomorrow, two Saturday, and (maybe) two Sunday. I love being "press." P's & Q's OMG, a show about manners! OMG OMG! Okay, now that that's out of the way.........

Even as the stores sport back to school sales (which depress us, even now), summer lingers on your friends the -ists. This week's collection of links provides some of the best, worst, and oddest bits of summer fun. So, bring your laptop up onto the roof, make yourself an umbrella drink or ten, and enjoy this week's choice posts from across the Gothamist network. Torontoist (where it's 75 degrees F as of this writing)......

Hey, have y'all been using our new "Recommend this" feature at the bottom of each post? This week we're bringing you the "Most Recommended" posts from across the -ist world, as well as recommending some of our own. Phillyist thinks that readers recommended this post the most because "most of our quieter readers (probably) agree with us that rude commenting sucks." Know what else sucks? Philly's not getting the Olympics, but they are getting thinner.......

I am not a parent, nor do I want to be for quite some time. I like kids, but I just feel I'm too young and irresponsible for them at this point in my life. But just because I don't have kids doesn't mean, as many parents will tell me, that I can't be annoyed with them. Actually, I'm rarely annoyed with kids. I'm just often really annoyed with their parents. You see, parents,......

Mother's Day has Philadelphia origins, having been conceived by resident Anna May Jarvis, as well as recognized here first as an official holiday. We only feel the need to share these facts because this Sunday is Mother's Day (and if you're just realizing this now, Phillyist has to warn you that all the good Mother's Day cards are already taken), and we wanted to let you know there are some things happening around town to......