More than 40 restaurants are on the way to the Philadelphia area this fall. There are a few trends to watch:
Let’s start with the two food halls.
Ridge Hall (15 S. Ridge Ave., Ambler): Twisted Gingers Brewing Co., Pennsylvania General Store, and assorted prepared food vendors — such as 2 Street Sammies, Chicken Strip Club, Pho Mi, Lucky’s Roadside Stand, Char Lobster Rolls, Wanna Spoon — have soft-opened in a restored warehouse in downtown Ambler. Pierogie Kitchen, a relocation from Roxborough, and a branch of Herman’s Coffee from South Philadelphia are due to open there soon.
Gather Food Hall at Schuylkill Yards (3025 Market St.): Six vendors will be assembled at the former Bulletin Building across from 30th Street Station in University City. The food hall will also feature the full-service Bulletin Bar. Opening mid-October.
What’s new
dancerobot (1710 Sansom St.): Chefs Jesse Ito and Justin Bacharach’s novel Rittenhouse izakaya opened Sept. 30.
Doho (18 W. Hortter St.): Chic Latin-Asian hybrid started as a takeout taqueria during the pandemic and recently morphed into a bar-restaurant, inside Catering by Design in Mount Airy. (Opened Sept. 23.)
Gloria Sports & Spirits (1500 Main St., Warrington): Chef Brad Daniels and his partners from the Ambler-area Tresini have gone into the Shops at Valley Square with a massive sports bar, including an Italian-inspired menu of Daniels’ signature pizzas, golf simulators, and other family-friendly draws. (Opened Sept. 23.)
Rhythm & Spirits (1617 JFK Blvd.): Atlantic City-rooted Spanish-Italian bistro has come to One Penn Center. (Opened Sept. 26.)
What’s coming soon
L’Olivo Trattoria (570 Wellington Square, Exton): Chef Francis Pascal (Birchrunville Store Cafe and Butterscotch Pastry Shop) is cooking at this new French-meets-Northern Italian trattoria. Specialties include rotolo with ricotta and spinach truffle fondue, black ink linguini carbonara, and veal chop Milanese. Until its liquor license arrives, it’s operating as a BYOB with a $15-per-bottle corkage fee. Opens Oct. 1.
Bomb Bomb Bar (1026 Wolf St.): Joey Baldino (Palizzi, Zeppoli) has revived the classic South Philly Italian restaurant/bar; opening is Oct. 2.
Eataly (King of Prussia Mall, 160 N Gulph Rd): The Italian marketplace comes to King of Prussia Mall with 21,000 square feet of prepared and packaged foods; opening is 3 p.m. Oct. 2.
Wonder (930 Stony Hill Rd., Morrisville): New location of the food hall-style restaurant, near the Yardley Wegmans market, is due to open Oct. 3.
The Raging Bull (6007 Mansion Blvd., Pennsauken): Eric Adili, former owner of the Fat Tomato in Berlin, introduces his cheesesteak/smash burger/shake spot on Oct. 3 with free half-cheesesteaks for the first 50 customers at 11 a.m. and free smash burgers for the first 50 customers at 4 p.m.
The Buttery (Ardmore Farmers Market in Suburban Square, Ardmore): Malvern’s popular cafe opens in Ardmore Farmers Market on Oct. 4 with bagels in addition to everything else it does well.
Cafe Neos (16 E. First Ave., Conshohocken): A bright, modern daytime café (with cocktails) in the former Daniel in downtown Conshohocken that is the dinnertime companion to Neos Americana (see below). Opens Oct. 6.
Jax Cafe at the J Spot (501 S. 22nd St.): Healthful-food cafe in the front of a Fitler Square med spa; opening is Oct. 7.
Tommy’s Tavern & Tap (256 Mall Blvd., King of Prussia): New Jersey-based sports bar comes to King of Prussia on Oct. 8.
Rockwell & Rose (601 Walnut St.): P.J. Clarke’s installs a steakhouse over half of its footprint in the Curtis Building across from Washington Square; opening is Oct. 8.
Wonder (1600 Chestnut St.): The ubiquitous food hall-style restaurant has set 5 p.m. Oct. 9 for the opening of what’s described as its Philly flagship, smack in the middle of the Center City hubbub.
The Brew Room (6 W. Lancaster Ave., Ardmore): Eleni and Danny Chrisidis celebrate their Greek American upbringing with a Greek coffee shop featuring filo dough pastries and sandwiches; it’s due in the first half of October.
The Borough (149 E. Lancaster Ave., Downingtown): Keith Critchley and JT O’Brien‘s bi-level, 400-seat restaurant and entertainment venue, taking over for Georgio’s. Downstairs will be a modern sports bar with 20 taps. The airy upstairs includes a concert hall for live music alongside a full-service restaurant with indoor trees, water features, and selfie walls. It’s a few weeks away.
Forest & Main (1416 Frankford Ave.): The Ambler brewery, partnering with Gass & Main chef Dane DeMarco for the food, says “early to mid-October” for its taproom in Fishtown.
Mama Chang (118 Bethlehem Pike, Colmar): James Beard-nominated chef Peter Chang follows up from his King of Prussia restaurant with a new spot in Upper Montgomery County; it’s due Oct. 10.
Wokworks (5 Franklin Ave., Bryn Mawr): Brennan Foxman promises a wok robot at his Main Line stir-fry location, due to open Oct. 11.
Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley (225 S. Broad St.): Dallas-based comfort-food specialist/bar is targeting Oct. 18 at the ground floor of the Cambria Hotel.
Johnny’s Pizza (369 W. Lancaster Ave., Wayne): Second location for the fast-rising Main Line pizza-and-cheesesteak destination straight out of Bryn Mawr.
‘Late October’
Amma’s South Indian Cuisine (1500 Walnut St.): The popular South Indian restaurant, one of the restaurants on the inaugural edition of The 76, is building out a new location at the former Max Brenner (on the 15th Street side), to which it plans to move from 1518 Chestnut St.
Banshee (1600 South St.): Twin brothers Bryan and Kyle Donovan, partnered with Bing Bing/Cheu alums Shawn Darragh and Ben Puchowitz, are planning an American bistro offering casual cuisine influenced by Paris, London, and Basque wine bars. The evolving menu features mussels in harissa with grilled bread, deviled crab croquettes, grilled pork collar with beans and béarnaise, vegetarian tart flambé with roasted mushrooms, and baked Alaska. Stokes Architecture is going for a mid-century, Scandinavian-inspired look with wood paneling, warm lighting, and sleek finishes.
Cerveau (990 Spring Garden St.): Sourdough pizza, housemade pasta and other small plates, and natural wine and beer in the former Roy-Pitz Barrel House.
High Note Caffe (1243 Tasker St.): Chef Franco Borda has recrafted his South Philadelphia restaurant, closed since the outset of the pandemic, into a performance space with a supper club; premiere is Oct. 25 with Amici Opera Company performing Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana.
Manong (1833 Fairmount Ave.): Tabachoy chef Chance Anies says his next restaurant, in Fairmount, is a Filipino American grillhouse inspired by Outback Steakhouse.
Maris (214 W. State St., Media): La Belle Epoque’s Loïc Barnieu is taking over the former Two Fourteen space for a Mediterranean restaurant and bar.
Neos Americana (16 E. First Ave., Conshohocken): Stylish Mediterranean restaurant in downtown Conshohocken, replacing Daniel, featuring charcoal cooking and a 14-seat bar. Reservations start Oct. 20.
Taco-Yote (33 E. Main St., Moorestown): Carlos Melendez of Conshohocken’s Coyote Crossing is behind this taqueria in Moorestown.
Wine Dive (1534 Sansom St.): Chris Fetfatzes and Heather Annechiarico, with Susan Freeman, are installing their stylish former South Street bar/wine shop in a former Rittenhouse nail salon.
‘November’ or ‘sometime this fall’
Ayat (2021-23 Sansom St.): Abdul Elenani’s New York-based Palestinian restaurant is taking shape at the former Roxy Theater in Rittenhouse.
Brunch Bulls (1638 W. Passyunk Ave.): Brothers Jarrick and Derrick Long of Jakk & Dee Spirits Co. will feature brunch food and their own spirits in Newbold.
Carbon Copy (613 S. Seventh St.): Kyle Wolak and Brendon Boudwin’s brewery-winery is taking over the Hale & True space in Bella Vista.
Crust Vegan Bakery (4200 Ridge Ave.): Meagan Benz’s vegan bakery is moving from Manayunk to East Falls, picking up indoor seating, an expanded savory menu, espresso drinks, a private room for community groups or events, and a stage for performances, open mics, and other gatherings.
Dim Sum Factory (865 W. Lancaster Ave., Bryn Mawr): Popular dum sum shop opens a Main Line branch.
Fetch Park (3720 Main St.): Atlanta-based dog park/bar wants to make Fetch happen in Manayunk; there’s no timeline beyond “fall.”
Happy Place Homemade (690 Stokes Rd., Medford): Scratch-made cake doughnuts, soft-serve, and La Colombe Coffee, plus a drive-thru, in a former Burlington County bank.
Huda Burger (1603 Frankford Ave.): Chef Yehuda Sichel opens a burger shop in Fishtown.
Kabobeesh and Karak Cha House (3748 Lancaster Ave.): Asad Ghumman is moving his Indian/Pakistani restaurant and its fast-casual offshoot into larger quarters on the ground floor of Powelton’s Triad Apartments building.
LeoFigs (2201 Frankford Ave.): Justice and Shannon Figueras are behind what they bill as an unpretentious winery, bar, and restaurant at Frankford and Susquehanna in Fishtown.
Lillian’s (1900 S. 19th St.): Bartender Sam Ahern, previously at Fitler Club and Cicala, plans to offer a full bar and light snacks/charcuterie in her cozy, Euro-influenced space at 19th and Mifflin Streets in South Philadelphia.
Melange on Sycamore (255 N. Sycamore St., Newtown): Chef Joe Brown’s revival of his erstwhile South Jersey restaurants with a Louisiana-meets-Italian menu is taking shape in the former Sycamore Grill.
Nature’s Vin (193-195 E. Lancaster Ave., Wayne): Women-led natural wine bar and shop founded by Ragini Parmar, with operations led by Elyse Lovenworth, will feature bottles, tastings, art, and community events while blending approachable hospitality, education, and sustainability.
Netflix House (180 N. Gulph Rd., King of Prussia): The year-round attraction, the first of its kind, will feature merch stores, minigames, and activations based on hit Netflix titles at King of Prussia Mall; opening is set for Nov. 12.
Pine Street Grill (2227 Pine St.): Amanda Shulman and Alex Kemp (Her Place Supper Club, My Loup) are preparing to open a neighborhood restaurant on Fitler Square.
Scusi (1099 Germantown Ave.): Casual pizzeria from chef Laurent Tourondel at the Piazza Alta in Northern Liberties; will share a wall with Terra Grill (see below), also from Tourondel.
Secondhand Ranch (1148 Frankford Ave.): Country-western–inspired bar-meets-thrift concept opening in a former bank at Frankford and Girard in Fishtown. The blurb says, “This new outpost pairs a margarita-forward bar with a curated marketplace of quality secondhand and upcycled goods.”
Static! (1137 Spruce St.): This is the chill new bar from Kyle Darrow and John Grubb, creators of Next of Kin, in the former Tria Cafe in Washington Square West.
Terra Grill (1099 Germantown Ave.): A grill from chef Laurent Tourondel at Piazza Alta in Northern Liberties.