Philadelphia and the Countryside - Press Room

Dining is big business in Philadelphia, with visitors spending $1.4 billion on food and beverage in 2010, according to Tourism Economics. Those in search of healthy choices are thrilled with the region’s vast and ever-evolving dining scene. From upscale white tablecloth with inventive vegetable creations to raw foods and gluten-free dishes, Philly’s veg-friendly scene offers possibilities aplenty. Here are some spots worth checking out:

Destination Dining:

• Blackbird Pizzeria, an entirely vegan pizza shop experience right off of South Street, serves up can’t-resist favorites like the nacho pizza, with caramelized onions, jalapeños, avocado and dairy-free cheese, and sandwiches including the

A city reveals itself through its street food, and Philadelphia has always had a bountiful spread of on-the-fly options. Locals and visitors can taste food truck fare en masse at Night Market Philadelphia, scheduled for two Thursday evenings this season, May 24 in Northern Liberties and June 28 along Washington Avenue, or at Philadelphia’s second-annual Vendy Awards, in which the city’s best food trucks vie to be the best, this July. Of course, foodies can always taste the yummy creations the original way, on city streets. Local food trucks run the gamut from student grub in stainless steel

Situated amidst richly fertile farmland and home to innovative urban growing projects, Philadelphia is a market-goer’s dream. The open-air stalls dotting the city and countryside—from the sleek urban gathering place known as The Piazza at Schmidts to the gingham-clothed tables of the Phoenixville Market—collectively connect consumers to freshly grown and produced food every day of the week. With many now accepting electronic payments, Philly’s growing roster of markets has made eating fresh, local food a way of life for its residents. Here are just a few places to find seasonal goodies and support area farms:

Year-Round Markets:

• The only

In Philadelphia and The Countryside®, more and more people—especially those with children—have developed an interest in understanding where their food comes from and finding ways to get involved in the local food scene. Whether they want to buy fresh food for their family, get a taste of new local flavors or teach their kids that milk comes from a cow not a carton, a growing number of visitors and locals are finding answers through agritourism—agricultural activities on or sponsored by farms.

Here’s a look at some of the region’s family-friendly offerings:

Easy Pickins:

• Active Acres Farm, located just north

Weekends were made for brunching—chatting with friends, digging into a stack of syrupy pancakes, lingering over a cup of a coffee and a few refills. No one knows this better than Philadelphians, who have a wide array of fantastic brunch options to choose from every Saturday and Sunday. Whether the craving is for a five-star buffet with caviar, a Latin feast of plantains and agua fresca cocktails or fresh granola and locally grown blueberries, Philadelphia foodies have plenty of go-to spots for a late morning or early afternoon meal. The following are some of the region’s best brunch options:

Brunch

Reading Terminal Market Expansion
A favorite of residents and tourists alike, Philly’s preeminent indoor market and local food hub has been around since 1892, but in 2012 the Reading Terminal Market is getting bigger and better. With increased sales, a growing city population and the recently enlarged Pennsylvania Convention Center stretching its capacity, the market—housing all of Philly’s classic foods (cheesesteaks, hoagies, soft pretzels and more) under one roof—is in the midst of a $3.5 million revamp. Storage has been moved to the basement, opening up stalls for five new retailers, and bathrooms are getting a needed update, in addition

According to local lore, the original hoagie-makers were Italian immigrants who sold their wares from carts or dockside luncheonettes. Today, the region’s favorite sandwich knows no bounds: From South Philly to the suburbs, there are go-to hoagie shops in every town and every neighborhood, and many even send their sandwiches through the mail to sate long-distance cravings. Whether it’s a traditional combo of spicy meats and fragrant dressing or a creative variation with artisan ingredients, there’s no shortage of the city’s signature cold sandwich. Here’s a look at some of the most sought-after hoagies in town:

All Over Town:

Here in Philly, cheesesteaks and hoagies are civic icons, tourist draws and cultural obsessions. Often imitated around the world, the sandwiches are rarely duplicated successfully outside of Philadelphia. Here’s the lowdown on the cheesesteak and hoagie.

What Is A Cheesesteak?:
A cheesesteak is a long, crusty roll filled with thinly sliced sautéed ribeye beef and melted cheese. Generally, the cheese of choice is Cheez Whiz®, but American and provolone are common substitutions. The art of cheesesteak preparation lies in the balance of flavors, textures and what is often referred to as the “drip” factor. Other toppings may include fried

A new wave of coffee has officially hit Philadelphia and The Countryside® like a red-eye with an extra shot. Included in the craze are cafes roasting their own signature beans, baristas who specialize in perfectly engineered espressos and coffeehouses that use one-of-a-kind La Marzocco machines. From an Australian flat white to a Chemex-brewed cuppa, the possibilities for delicious caffeination are endless. Here are just a few local favorites:

Signature Beans:

• Offering its own Fair Trade Certified, Certified Organic beans roasted in-house, Newtown Square’s Burlap and Bean distinguishes itself as an ambitious independent spot with a cozy, welcoming atmosphere. 204

Philly Homegrown®, the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation’s (GPTMC) education and marketing program promoting the area’s 100-mile food shed, has teamed with Pennsylvania Horticultural Society’s (PHS) “PHS Pops Up.” The giant temporary green space at 20^th and Market Streets is growing vegetables, herbs, grains and flowers for use by six local star chefs and hosting special tours, family events and Philly Homegrown® workshops to teach visitors and residents how to partake in Philadelphia’s local food scene.

Free Programming:
Philly Homegrown® workshops teach visitors how to grow regional fruits and vegetables using organic methods and how to save money

Hot dogs are especially hot right now, and Philly’s chefs offer literally hundreds of options for hot dog eating—from old-school franks with mustard to the house-smoked delicacy at MidAtlantic to the mac and cheese-topped wiener at the Dapper Dog truck. We double dog dare you try any—or all—of the following:

Traditional Hot Dogs:

• The steamed links at the Reading Terminal’s Franks A-Lot! have garnered plenty of awards for their plump and snappy texture. The toppings are basic: sauerkraut, chili, cheese and the like—proving that less can be more. 1136 Arch Street, (215) 625-9991
• A West Chester institution since 1940,

Waking up to weekend brunch is the ultimate luxury, and the inns and hotels of Philadelphia and The Countryside® make it especially memorable for their guests and residents. From buffet tables laden with caviar, French patisserie and chocolate fountains to à la carte poached egg concoctions from the area’s hottest chefs, brunch time is the ideal time to visit Philly’s hotels. Here are just a few ideas for getting the day started:

Bountiful Buffets:

• Bucks County’s Black Bass Hotel offers a value-laden $35 brunch complete with champagne, omelets, pates, salads, fruit, dessert and more—all served up with enchanting river

Chef: Robert Bahm
Restaurant: Becca’s, 19 S. Whitehorse Road, Phoenixville, (484) 924-8502, beccasrestaurant.com
Love of Local: After a few decades in the restaurant industry, including 10 years at the award-winning Taquet Restaurant, chef Robert Bahm knows what makes great food. “The better the product you have and the more you can do yourself you ensure a superior finished product. [With local/organic] you get a superior product,” said Bahm. That’s the commitment to local he brings to the tables of Becca’s, the two-year-old fine dining restaurant named after his 12-year-old daughter.
What to Expect: A Victorian farmhouse-turned-Main Line mansion houses this

Women have always had—and still have—a strong influence on what and how Americans eat. Yet from Betty Crocker to Rachael Ray, historically most have wielded that power from behind a stove. Today, there’s a new crop of women influencing the next generation of eaters—and many of them can be found right here in the Philadelphia region. But instead of making cooking simpler and eating easier, these female foodies are committed to providing high-quality local food and beverage. And instead of cooking up change from the kitchen, these smart and sassy ladies have chosen to cut the proverbial apron strings and

The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) has launched yet another way for residents and visitors to eat their way through Philadelphia and The Countryside®, and that’s by using Foodspotting, one of Time magazine’s “Best Websites of 2010” and one of Travel + Leisure magazine’s “Top Travel Applications” of 2010. To promote local restaurants, wineries, hotels and markets to more than 800,000 Foodspotting users, Visit Philly has become a featured destination on the web and mobile platform dedicated to helping people find and share good food. To kick off the program, GPTMC will award one grand prize and 10 first

Eating locally and supporting Philly’s food producers is simply a matter of knowing where to shop. From freshly made cupcakes and fried chicken at prepared food emporiums to the ready-made cookies and hummus at specialty markets to the simple wraps and locally roasted coffee at area cafes, the foods of Philadelphia and The Countryside® are made to be enjoyed on the go—during a concert at Crossing Vineyards Winery, at a picnic in Rittenhouse Square, in a hotel room or at home. The following are just a few of the many options to explore:

Prepared Foods:

• A foodie’s paradise, Garces

Surrounded by farms and populated by genius food artisans, Philadelphia and The Countryside® offers a local bounty that’s staggering in any season. From impossibly sweet corn and perfect chèvre to exquisite gelato and to-die-for canelés, the 100-mile radius of Philly eating feels like the center of the world. Here’s a look at just a few of the region’s amazing homegrown eats:

Down On The Farms:

• Kennett Square is widely known as the mushroom capital of the world, and Mother Earth Mushrooms, with its variety of fresh and dried organic varieties (white, portabella, baby bella and shitake), is a standout

In 2011, Philadelphians benefited from the creation of two public green spaces so visually, recreationally and environmentally significant that they transformed the city’s eastern and western riverbanks.

First, the former Pier 11 reopened as the Race Street Pier, a tree-lined park split into two levels. The upper level boasts an expansive sky promenade, and the lower terrace supports a lawn with generous seating and social space. Penn Park, an urban open space being built by The University of Pennsylvania, debuted along the Schuylkill River in the fall. The 24-acre park added athletic venues and areas for informal outdoor recreation and

On top of spaghetti, covered with cheese, tucked into a roll, grilled on a skewer—meatballs in all forms abound in Philadelphia, and not just in South Philly, the city’s largely Italian enclave. There are traditional Italian versions with gravy (commonly known as tomato sauce), Vietnamese pork balls in noodle soup, vegetarian tofu-ball sandwiches from street vendors and luxuriant rounds of short-rib hand-rolled by celebrity chefs. Here is a look at some of the most memorable meatballs in the region:

Old-School Meatballs:

• Repeat winner of the Golden Meatball Challenge between South Philadelphia and South Jersey and Food Network Meatball Wars

When foodies hit the road, they take their passion for farmers markets, culinary tours and tasting experiences with them. Whether it’s called culinary tourism or just plain fun, the chance to see, smell and taste the best of local gastronomy is a big attraction, and it’s getting bigger. According to the International Culinary Tourism Association, “Since its true birth as an industry in 2003, culinary tourism … is definitely on the rise, and that encompasses everything from farm-to-table meals, winery tours, cooking classes, trips to boutique stores that carry local cheeses, beers, or vegetables, plus everything in between.”

Philadelphia visitors