48 Hours of Drinking in Philadelphia

a.bar is the Rittenhouse Square casual cocktail-and-snack offshoot from the celebrated a.kitchen team — a tight programme of seasonal drinks paired with a small Drop bags. Find a hotel-adjacent bar within a five-minute walk. Order something simple to anchor yourself to the city.

Attico Rooftop at Cambria draws a steady local crowd in Center City. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. The polished room you'd take a first date to. Sit at the bar. Talk to the bartender. Stay one drink — you're scouting, not committing.

Fox & Hound Philly draws a steady local crowd in Rittenhouse. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Walk into the city's drinking quarter (the heart of the night, not the tourist version). Two drinks, two rooms. Pace yourself — Saturday is the long day.

Amada Bar draws a steady local crowd in Old City. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Sunset. Find a rooftop. Order whatever the house specials around sundown. Take photos but don't lose 90 minutes to your phone.

Blackbird Pizzeria Bar draws a steady local crowd in Bella Vista. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Eat somewhere with serious bartending built in. The right room is one you order both your dinner and your nightcap from.

Bok Bar draws a steady local crowd in South Philly. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. The bar that made you book the trip. The pre-research one. Reservation-only ideally. Stay until last call.

East Passyunk Avenue is one of the most concentrated streets for eating and drinking in Philadelphia, and Brigantessa is among its finest. The osteria opened in Mary, Mimosa, or whatever low-ABV house play the room runs. Eat. Pay. Walk.

Cherry Street Pier Bar draws a steady local crowd in Old City. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Find the hotel bar at your departure airport equivalent — somewhere quiet, low-volume, well-staffed. End the trip on a martini and a clean conversation.