Philadelphia Event & Entertainment Guide
Get Down
Philly is loud, opinionated, and deeply loyal - and that applies to its music scene as much as its sports. The Fillmore on Frankford Avenue in Fishtown is the big draw for touring rock and indie, and the room is gorgeous - a converted factory with that industrial Philly grit intact. Union Transfer on Spring Garden is the 1,200-cap sweet spot that books the kind of acts that sell out before you remember to buy tickets. And Johnny Brenda's in Fishtown is the tiny upstairs venue where you're three feet from the band and the fish tacos downstairs are unreasonably good.
The Met Philadelphia, a restored 1908 opera house on Broad Street, handles the bigger shows with chandeliers and marble staircases. It's like seeing a concert in a museum, except the drinks are better.
Game Day
The South Philly sports complex is where the magic (and the mayhem) happens. Lincoln Financial Field is where the Eagles play, and the fanbase is exactly as intense as advertised - they once booed Santa Claus and they're proud of it. Citizens Bank Park next door is where the Phillies play, and the ballpark experience is genuinely great - grab a Tony Luke's cheesesteak inside the gates and sit in the rooftop bleachers. Wells Fargo Center rounds out the complex for Sixers and Flyers games.
Eat This
Here's the cheesesteak truth nobody tells tourists: skip Pat's and Geno's. They're fine, they're famous, but the real best cheesesteak in Philly is at John's Roast Pork under the I-95 overpass. Get the roast pork with sharp provolone and broccoli rabe - it might be the best sandwich in America, full stop. Jim's on South Street gets the honorable mention for cheesesteaks if you want the classic experience with the line out the door.
Reading Terminal Market is the food hall to end all food halls - DiNic's roast pork, Beiler's doughnuts, Bassetts ice cream (the oldest ice cream company in the country), and Hershel's East Side Deli for a pastrami that rivals anything in New York. Go hungry.
After Dark
Fishtown is the neighborhood - Frankford Avenue has the density of bars and restaurants that makes walking from one to the next easy and dangerous. Garage on 2nd Street in Northern Liberties does great cocktails in a converted auto shop. For a classic Philly dive, Bob & Barbara's on South Street has a $3 Pabst-and-a-shot special and a drag show on Thursday nights that's been running for decades. That's Philly in a nutshell, honestly.
Cheesesteaks, championships, and a city that takes absolutely zero nonsense - Evil Tickets has Eagles, Phillies, and concert tickets whenever you're ready.
