There are many different reasons to travel. Sometimes you go for a great museum, or to see a show, and sometimes you go to to hang out with friends and eat and drink ALL THE THINGS. My trip to Philadelphia was exactly that.
The trip started with a delightful train ride confirming that the train is officially the most civilized way to travel. You can have a hot meal at the station, walk onto your train, and a few hours later walk off in a brand new city. Plus train stations are just beautiful cathedrals to travel.
After arriving we hit up free happy hour at the hotel, and were pleasantly surprised when the bartender was able to make us the official girls weekend drink, dirty shirleys. While they may be pink they are mostly vodka. They also lead you to making friends with lovely couples who clearly snuck into the hotel for free drinks, but really who can blame them.
The rain kept us from going too far from the hotel for dinner but we did manage to find an inviting little spot, Mace’s Crossing, where they wisely put us in a private room upstairs, with our own fireplace and easy access to the chef for questions and to a fabulous waitress who kept our glasses full. I had some of the best fish and chips I have had in a long time, with a crisp and flavorful batter and gorgeous flaky fish inside.
For brunch we went to what may be my favorite brunch place ever, Sabrina’s. Despite the extra 45 minute wait as some folks would not give up their table despite the long line waiting, it was about as delightful as brunch can be. Since it was a BYOB place we brought our own champagne and vodka and the world’s greatest waitress Courtney kept us well stocked with orange and spicy tomato juice. The food was equally outstanding, spicy huevos rancheros, to a sweet, stuffed french toast, to a breakfast sandwich on crack. Like the previous night we made friends with the table next to us and they joined us for the rest of the meal.
brunch requires a LOT of cups
Courtney aka the world’s greatest waitress
After a short break in consumption we found ourselves at Monk’s for mussels, frites and a quick beer. I consider myself to be a mussels purist, preferring a simple broth of white wine, lemons, and garlic to cook my shellfish in. Monk’s used a base of beer and fish broth which I did not particularly enjoy. However the frites and aioli they were served with were a thing of beauty. Perfectly crispy shoestring fries, not oily, not too hot, and the aoili was flavorful and light.
On our way to the train station we popped into Continental for a quick retro cocktail and a photo shoot on couch thingys shaped like gummy candies.
After all of the eating and drinking I barely made it onto the train before sleeping the whole way home.
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