Results tagged “oldcity”

There's Girard Avenue. Girard College. Stephen Girard Park. And Girard Fountain Park, the focus of this week's column. All are named for or funded by Stephen Girard, a banker from the 19th century who is apparently credited with saving the US from financial breakdown in the War of 1812. Created in the 1960s, Girard Fountain Park is next to the fire company on 4th and Arch street at what once used to be 325 Arch Street. A fund established by Girard to improve the Delaware Front of the city was used to refurbish the park in 1976.The park is a pocket park, since it is only .15 acre in size (a little bit bigger than your average row home). Unlike other city parks, this one is not overseen by the Dept. of Recreation or Fairmount Park but by the Fire Department. When approaching the park, you'll first hear the rushing water from its eponymous fountain. That may be the only clue you'll get that this is the park, as there aren't any signs announcing what it is. I wonder if that keeps people away: for the hour I was there, I was the only soul in the park (save for the birds frolicking in the large bowl of bird seed set out for them).

Good Morning, Philadelphia! Welcome back to your desk. We apologize for the late news, but we're still adjusting to our Monday morning just as we suspect that you are. So, pour yourself another cup of coffee and settle in with today's highlights.


• 20 tons of trash and 130 portapotties were hauled from the Parkway this weekend. No official number yet, but they're saying "hundreds of thousands" of people showed up to Philly for the Welcome America festivities.
• The weekend wasn't without it's sad stories, however. Nationwide, five people died from fireworks, one accident occuring in Quakertown.
• Watch where you park your car on weekday mornings. The PPA is installing 17 truck loading zones where ONLY delivery trucks will be allowed to park from 6am to 10am. The PPA feels the measures are warranted due to the backups on Chestnut Street that the delivery trucks create.

Living in a city full of history, it is easy to miss things that are full of historical value and interest. We're lucky enough to have a wealth of fascinating locations at our fingertips and so don't always notice that they are there. Take this week's park for example. Located off 2nd street between Walnut and Chestnut Street in Old City, Welcome Park tends not to stand out. I always just thought of it simply as the space in front of the Ritz East movie theater and not as an actual park, let alone an actual park with a neat story.

Take a good look at this photo. Does it look like a place you'd be able to go for a quick, affordable lunch on a weekday, just a few blocks from major streets and public transportation? No?

UK-based Katie Melua will be in town tomorrow night, playing an intimate show at Old City's Tin Angel. She's a big deal in her homeland and has even played for the Queen, but she really likes the smaller venues best, as you'll see below.

We were thrilled a few months ago when it was announced that Chef Michael O'Halloran of Bistro 7 on Third Street in Old City had acquired the former Sovalo location in Northern Liberties and would be converting it into a Hong Kong street food-style restaurant, inspired by visits to the Hong Kong home of the chef's wife and partner, Sophia Lee. And now we're even more excited, as it appears Kong is nearing its opening, currently is slated for July, with menu items like dumplings, noodle bowls, steamed buns all capping out at $20. We'll post more details as we receive them!

This, Phillyist readers, is shaping up to be the best. weekend. ever. With no less than three major outdoor events this weekend—all of which involve food or drink in some capacity—we'd be fools to tell you to do anything except going outside and exploring Philadelphia. We know we'll be out and about this weekend, even if thunderstorms are in the forecast. We never let a little rain get in the way of good times.

We're sensing a bit of a disconnect here: when you call your video "Philly Phootage," it implies that you've maybe got a sense of humor. So wherefore the music choice?

Somehow, we managed to forget that the James Beard awards were last night, and so it's with a lot of hometown pride, as well as a healthy love for tapas, that we wanted to pass on the good word that Jose Garces was awarded Best Chef of the Mid-Atlantic region for his work at Amada in Old City. Between that and the recent Philadelphia Magazine Top 50 restaurant list that saw each of Garces' establishments in the top half of the rankings, we can make this official pronouncement: it's Jose's world. We're just living eating in it.

Cinco de Mayo is not Mexican Independence Day. Hell, it's not even a holiday celebrated in all of Mexico. (Wikipedia actually has a decent explanation here.) But, here in America, we like to use the holiday as an excuse to get wasted anyway. (It's like St. Patrick's Day, but with tequila.)

This might be the best documentary on Old City, ever.

Well, if the producers of Tool Academy ever have a casting call in Philly, at least we can suggest a location for them! (Just look at all the striped shirts!)

Phillyist strongly recommends Pierre's in Old City.

We just received an email that Ristorante Panorama in Old City has been named the 2008 Wine Hospitality Restaurant of the Year by Santé Magazine, a publication for restaurant and hospitality professionals. (Panorama's location inside the Penn's View Hotel conveniently makes it appeal to both professions.) Panorama was selected "in recognition of [its] outstanding contribution to the professional service of food, wine, and spirits in the restaurant industry."

Sometimes, though, we do miss it. But not today!

Proofreading Philly tries to capture typos, wordos, and all other kinds of grammatical mistakes that we see around the city. But we need your help! Email photos to us from your computer or your phone, and show the city that you care about good grammar.

But in case you didn't, the Daily News was on the scene, too.

August 11, 4:30PM – About twenty minutes ago, this Phillyist heard a loud crash in her Old City office and noticed a Philly Trolley Works trolley seemed to be stopped at an odd angle just past the southeast corner of Third and Market, near Pizzicato restaurant. We're not sure of the details, but it seems that the trolley hit a Ryder moving van near the Ben Franklin Post Office between Third and Fourth Streets, then turned across the intersection and slammed into a construction van at Market and South Bodine Streets. It's not clear if there were passengers on the bus at the time of the accident. Details are very sketchy at this time (mostly he-said, she-said), but the driver apparently suffered a heart attack or stroke. At least one person (the driver, most likely) was seen on a gurney, being loaded onto an ambulance. We'll post more details as we get them.

Happy birthday Andy Warhol!

Sometimes, our curiosity and attention span are at odds: we see something we want to find out more about, make a mental note of it... and quickly forget at the first glimpse of something shiny.

Um... This wasn't nearly as rare as these guys would have you believe.

We're only listing two events tonight, but they are diverse enough that you should find one of them suitable to your discerning tastes.

Holy Dan Quayle, Batman! An "e" doesn't belong at the end of "tomato" anymore than it belongs at the end of "potato." And yet GiGi in Old City is far from alone in making this error (although it looks like they made it a second time, but managed to correct it).

Hey remember The Broad Street Diner, the grey lady of Broad and Ellsworth? It used to be “A Place For Ribs.” Now it’s “A Place Stephen Starr May Turn Into A Chic Restaurant That I Can’t Afford.”

Dear National Mechanics: