Via Bicycle
Curtis Anthony’s shop looks like your granddad’s garage, and it has bikes and parts older than your granddad. (Some date back to the 1890s.) And Anthony won’t try to sell you $700 in new gear if a $7 part will do the trick. 622 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19146, Bikeville.com.
Cathy's Half-Price Books
Most of the 60,000 or so gently used items at this 17-year-old stalwart are, indeed, half their original price or less. Then there are new reads and rare works — some with a Philly provenance — all stocked by bibliophilic owners Shannon and Cathy Rutherford. 7 Manoa Shopping Center, 1305 West Chester Pike, Havertown, PA 19083, cathysbooks.com.
Rundiscover
If you’re in a running rut and in need of views other than the Schuylkill River Trail, this virtual running challenge sneaks your routes through some of the area’s hidden gems — Wissahickon Valley Park, historic Valley Forge, the streets of West Philadelphia, and Brandywine Creek State Park. gorundiscover.com.
One-on-One Skateboard Lessons With Skate the Foundry
For $70, Skate the Foundry’s expert skateboarders will spend an hour one-on-one with your budding Lizzie Armanto or Tony Hawk at a variety of skate parks throughout the region. For $80, they’ll even come to your driveway. Because the coolest kid on the block is always the one who knows how to ollie. 120 Yorktown Plaza, Elkins Park, PA 19027, skatethefoundry.com.
Juju Salon and Organics
Forget its holistic mission, earth-friendly product lines and semi-crunchy following. The styles coming out of this five-year-old salon are nothing short of sublime, which is why even the what-the-eff-are-Birkenstocks crowd is now booking here. 713 South 4th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147, jujusalon.com/juju-salon.
Han Dynasty
This is where we go when we want the best. This is where we send our friends when they come to town asking about places they shouldn't miss. This is the place that, months later, those same friends are still thanking us for recommending. 260 North Pottstown Pike, Exton, PA 19341, handynasty.net.
Rittenhouse Row Spring Festival
Readers' Choice: When more than 50,000 people show up one one Saturday a year to eat, shop, drink, and hang around for some live entertaiment, it's going to end up giving every other festival a run for its money. (Even the Italians, who know how to throw a party.) 00000, rittenhouserow.org.
Bonjung
A fine-dining BYO sushi bar and traditional Japanese restaurant (with some Korean dishes thrown in) isn't exactly unheard-of in Philadelphia. But in the 'burbs? You'd have better luck finding a unicorn. And a unicorn wouldn't be nearly as delicious. 50 West 3rd Avenue, Collegeville, PA 19426, bonjungsushi.com.
Mica
Chef Chip Roman has done more than just open a couple of restaurants Blackfish is extraordinary, and Mica shows great promise. What's more: he and Mica partner Jason Cichonski have brought culinary hope to the many diners living in areas overlooked by Starr, Garces, Vetri and Billy Penn. 8609 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19118, micarestaurant.com.
Pizzeria Stella
Such a simple thing just a handful of little shrimp, scraps of guanciale, ragged bits of tomato, some chilies and a few loops of calamarata pasta. And yet to sit down before this bowl and take a bite is to understand the true meaning of what it is to cook and serve pasta. 2nd and Lombard Streets, Philadelphia, PA 19147, pizzeriastella.net.
Kristel Closets
Sorry, Stitch Fix. This Conshy-based service is refreshingly old-school in that clients get a closet critique from a real-life style expert, followed by one-on-one shopping trips to fill holes. Stylists are also available via Skype for quick consults. kristelclosets.com.
Rob Peters, Ardmore Wine & Spirits
This a joke, right? Nope, not when it comes to Peters, who holds certifications from the Society of Wine Educators and the Wine & Spirit Education Trust, among other organizations, and teaches at the Restaurant School. Main Line mavens swear by his recommendations for the best wine to pair with everything from boeuf bourguignon to tacos to pho. 62 Greenfield Avenue, Ardmore, PA 19003, finewineandgoodspirits.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/StoreCatalogDisplay?storeId=10051&catalogId=10051&langId=-1.
BDDW
This Port Richmond firm is responsible for the most gorgeous, refined furniture to come out of our area since Nakashima: grand live-edge walnut dining tables with cast-bronze wishbone bases, sculptural leather sling chairs, and the coolest ping-pong table we've ever seen. 3450 Salmon Street, Philadelphia, PA 19134, bddw.com.
Bona Cucina
At this 31-year-old cash-only BYOB, charming Frankie will take your order while her husband Pat cooks in the tiny kitchen — and never emerges. Come for ravioli, shrimp scampi, red-gravy dishes, and a homemade cannoli that we'll gladly put up against anything in the Italian Market. 66 Sherbrook Boulevard, Upper Darby, PA 19082, .
The Pub in Pennsauken
There's a time and place for fancy, clubby steakhouses. But when you want to go seriously retro, try the Pub, where the steaks all come off a charcoal-fired hearth, an expansive salad bar is included, and you do your feasting in a medieval dining hall on the outskirts of Camden. 7600 Kaighns Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 08109, thepubnj.com.