“The principals behind St. Anselm near Union Market have a favor to ask: Please don’t call their restaurant, an import from Brooklyn, a steak house.”

“For 10 years, when I was first coming up as a chef, [molten lava cake] was on every single menu in the country,” says Peter Serpico of Serpico in Philadelphia. At the time, he was cooking at two of the only places where it wasn’t, New York’s Momofuku Noodle Bar and Momofuku Ko. Serpico was bowled over that it was so simple and yet so good. “I fell even more head-over-heels in love when I found out it was a mistake,” he says.

“Fact is, Philadelphia has for decades been a terrific place to eat out, from the vast Reading Terminal Market to the slew of restaurants opened over the years by Stephen Starr—the city’s equivalent of Danny Meyer, Charlie Palmer and Rich Melman thrown together.”

“German beer flows steadily through the day and night when German biergarten Frankford Hall teams up with neighboring BBQ joint Fette Sau for this popular Oktoberfest bash in Fishtown. Traditional Oktoberfest fare and lively entertainment round out the PHLOktoberfest festivities.”

“In the restaurant world, Stephen Starr openings are kind of like Spielberg premiers. You know they’re going to be big productions that involve a lot of talent and money, and the hype usually pays off.”