Unsure how likely it is that someone will know the answer to this, but cant hurt:

Anyone know of any sports bars in center city that would be showing the rugby world cup? Best bets I guess would be English/Irish sports bars

Best bets - Fado at 15th and Locust and Tir na nog at 16th and Arch

ty

could also try "Dark Horse" @ 2nd and south

According to their websites, Fado is only showing the tape-delay at 11am, but Tir Na Nog's website had them showing Wales-Ireland live last weekend. No idea if they did or if they will for NZ-AUS. I just spew for the PPV

Glad to see a Filufyia thread, born and raised.

From KoP it's a straight shot on Turnpike to Parx, maybe 30 mins. The directions above are poor. They have their own freakin' exit now.

Sands you'd take the NE extension right to Bethlehem. Prob 45-1hr....so likely not worth it, poker room not so big either.

SugarHouse is such a ghetto pit. Don't get me wrong, I love my 1am dice games and they treat you like a king there if you're betting more than $10 a roll, but man, that place makes me....sad.

Would be awesome to get a 2/5 game [or 1/2] at Parx, seems like we got 5-6 people already. Also, I'm not very good.

Vouch. Drinks there are the nuts.

Zahav is absolutely worth trying, it's really really good.

And, this is obvious, but if you've never done Dim Sum in a real Chinatown, it's a must-do. Turns into a weekly must-do for a lot of people I've gone with who live near CC.

As for the Manay/CC debate, a few years ago I'd say definitely go with Manayunk if you're young and new to the city, now I'd say the opposite. If you can afford to live downtown, I think you'd be crazy not to do so. If you can only afford $500/mo then Manayunk it is, but CC is wayyyy better now.

Commute from CC to KoP isn't so bad, unless you go at prime rush hour. But as far as 'city commutes' go, it's nothing compared to NYC/LA/ATL/HOU/DC. EZ game.

Cheers guys.

I actually quite liked the food at Cuba Libre. We did the 15 course tasting menu, food wasnt phenomenal but was definitely very good. Very good value for your money as well. Agree the drinks are amazing

Any CC bar or lounge suggestions for a Friday first date drinks type thing? I would like something a bit more loungey and classy rather than your run of the mill pub.

Franklin Mortgage is really nice. Its pretty classy, but a great date place imo

http://thefranklinbar.com/

I looked up the place and some reviews, and it definitely seems like a place that would be great for a date. My only concern is that the reviews say the place is small and there might be a decent wait to get in. Should I be worried about this at like 6:30 or 7 on Friday night, or is it not quite as crowded at that time? Id hate to have to wait for 30min and start the date off like that, although I would probably love this place.

You can try calling ahead, which I've had success with. Sometimes it helps to know the guy running the door, too.

I can't imagine too much trouble that early on a Friday night, though. IF you have to wait a bit, you can go to Tria across the street, or Dandelion on the corner. And now A.Kitchen.

I don't think FM is that small, to be honest. The biggest issue people have with it are the prices, but it's a cocktail lounge; I don't know what people expect.

Speaking of A.Kitchen....anyone been there yet? I was there for lunch last week and it was delicious. And Craig LeBan (the big Philly food reviewer) gave it a 3/4, which is a great review, so it's going to start being packed a lot more often (which is easy to do because it's rather small when there's no outside dining).

Went to a.kitchen last week for drinks desserts and I loved all of their desserts. I had the goat cheese cheesecake which was awesome. The couple next to us had entrees and they looked so good I ended up ordering the chicken risotto with corn after eating dessert. Didn't disappoint.

Was surprised at the semi reasonable prices here considering the location. A better value than the overpriced Serafina across the street and I'd choose it over Tria when I'm looking to get a heartier entree or meal. They date their menus which makes me think they change it regularly. Usually a good sign of a creative chef at work.

Still like Tria more as a date spot though or for drinks/wine.

even though I haven't been to Tria it was my first thought for a first date just from knowing people that have done that same thing

another decent spot that I thought of was Valanni around 13th and spruce - their mojitos were the nuts like 5 years ago (super strong which is how i like my mojito) but they give you this sugar rock candy lolipop which was perfect for slurping it up - they're still good mojitos but not quite as strong as they used to be.

i walked by a.kitchen the other day and the place looked really nice and I was wondering how I hadn't heard about it, did it just open?

does anyone know the place across from Dandelion's name? I can't find it on google maps - I know I had a friend go there but I can't recall the name of it

anyone been to smith's?

I got the chicken risotto, too, when I was there. It was awesome.

Kyle, if you mean across the street as in Sansom, that's Serafina, the NY chain. If you mean across 18th street, no idea.

A.kitchen's been open for about 3-4 months now.

And I've been to Smith's a lot, since its right next to my work. Good spot for some appetizers (boneless wings are amazing). Pizza is pretty good too (very, very thin). Always gets a good crowd for sporting events, too.

So it sounds like our walks are pretty similar to work, mine being a little further at 20th and market... how long is it taking you on average? Or do you commute another way?

I could see it totally sucking in another month or so when it gets cold, mine is averaging 20 minutes each way..

Serafina is definitely what I was talking about, every time I walk by that place (even on like Mondays) every outside seat seems to be full.

Well, I've only walked a couple times because I'm lazy. But when i did walk, it was 20-25 minutes.

I take the subway from spring garden to city hall, transfer to the trolly, one stop, drops me off right in front of my building. piece of cake. $2 each way adn $84 for the month pass.

i'll walk when it's nice, but when it's cold, having the subway 1 1/2 blocks away is pretty clutch. and it made it easy as hell to get to the flyers game last night too.

20th and market? so how often do you eat at coventry deli??

Ha, I took the subway to the Flyers game last night (season ticket holder).. are we living dual lives? I didn't know about the trolley, I took the orange line only then walked and it didn't save me any time (still took 20 minutes). When you say trolley, are those the green ones?

I ate at Coventry every day for like a year - now I don't go as much and started packing lunch...

I walk everyday to work (about a mile, all in CC) and it is much worse imo during the summer. July and August in the city are unbearable. The wind however is really bad during winter. Around Market Street I imagine it would be quite awful if it whips up.

Yea I mean I'm borderline sweating the last 2 weeks so if it was 80+ I could see myself getting to work looking like I jumped in a pool..

The winds though, from my last 5 years of walking about 3 blocks/day in CC, can be really, really brutal

Tria is prob the best date/first date place in CC.

Yeah. The green ones. Easy connection from city hall. And it doesnt matter which one you take because they all stop at 19th and market.

Tria is garbage

Brag: The Franklin, awesome bar. Loved the old-fashioned and sidecar, and now I'm drunk posting.

Beat: Date, it was awful. It was an online date and she showed up 25+ lbs heavier than her pics let on to believe.

Variance: I'm headed to the Chester to go play 2/5 after this debacle.