Where We’re Drinking Right Now: The Best New Bars in Philly
The new wine bars, cocktail spots, and breweries you should check out next.
The Brown Dog from Bar Palmina / Photograph by Kae Lani Palmisano
Have you ever made plans to grab drinks with friends, but no one can decide on what bar to go to, so they ask you because you’re supposed to be “in the know,” but the second you’re put on the spot, your brain forgets every single bar you’ve ever been to? Same, friend. Same.
That is why we’ve made this list. We’ve scoped out as many recently opened bars as possible, all so that you can find a great place to drink. (Admittedly a tough gig; we take our work very seriously.) Here’s what’s new and cool — or chaotic but fun — in Philly’s drinking world right now.
Pray Tell Wine, Kensington
Opened: August 2024
When it comes to West Coast wines, we often think about California’s Sonoma and Napa Valley wine regions. But Pray Tell proves that some of the more interesting vintages are north, in places like Oregon’s Willamette Valley or the lesser-known Rocks District AVA, where the cool-weather grapes lend themselves to bright, fruity, medium-bodied wines. This new tasting room in Kensington is modest. Walking in, you might not know how celebrated these vintages are. Vinepair recently called out their 2021 pinot noir as one of the 25 Best Pinot Noirs for 2024, and a bottle of their syrah was featured in an episode of The Bear. So if this wine is good enough for Carmy and cousin Richie, then it’s good enough for us. 1615 North Hancock Street.
Bar Palmina, Fishtown
Opened: August 2024
After having a life-saving liver transplant in 2022, Nikki Graziano set out to make non-alcoholic cocktails that were more than just your average juice with a bit of seltzer for a little fizz. Bar Palmina offers a welcoming space for everyone to enjoy a well-crafted cocktail that happens to be zero-proof. If you’re into smokey, bourbon-based drinks, start with the Brown Dog, the first drink Graziano tinkered with when she started dabbling in N/A cocktails. Made with zero-proof bourbon, Earl Grey, and a bit of orange, it’s a smooth drink with a lot of character. Regardless of what you order on the menu, you won’t miss the booze at all. 1306 North Front Street.
Little Walter’s, Kensington
Opened: June 2024
Originally, it was the pierogi ruskie that enticed us through the door, but the Piłkarz pickle-juice martini and the Urbanista (their Polish take on the Citywide Special, which consists of a can of Żubr pale lager and a shot of Żubrówkathei) are what now keep us hanging out at the bar. If you’re in the mood for upscale takes on Polish comfort foods paired with Eastern European-inspired drinks served up in what feels like a rustic neighborhood bar, Little Walter’s checks all the boxes. Best of all, they just launched their Szczęśliwa Godzina happy hour, where you can get $5 beer and wine, $9 specialty cocktails, and their signature pierogi ruskie for just $6. 2049 East Hagert Street.
Wildfether Distilling, Haddonfield
Opened: May 2024
A cocktail bar in the ‘burbs? And in a dry town, no less! Tucked away in a historic building on Kings Highway, this new distillery makes vodka and gin — with whiskey still aging to perfection, set to debut in 2025. The long menu of elaborate craft drinks shows off just how versatile these spirits can be. The vodka’s bite brings out the tartness of the green apple and lemongrass of their Know Thy Ropes, while all of the botanicals in the gin shine through every gimlet and martini. Hang out at the bar after dining at one of Haddonfield’s many restaurants, or swing by and grab a few canned cocktails to bring to dinner. 236 Kings Highway East.
Yanaga Kappo Izakaya, Northern Liberties
Opened: March 2024
Northern Liberties’ new Japanese dive bar recently got its liquor license, and with it came the responsibility of filling the space Abbaye left behind after serving 21 years as this neighborhood’s trusted watering hole. Yanaga Kappo Izakaya does more than fill this corner bar with Japanese beer and sake; it makes the space its own. Anime playing on TVs around the bar, sushi rolls and rice bowls, Japanese beers, and an impressive selection of sake and shochu — what more can you ask for? 637 North 3rd Street.
Kampar’s Kongsi located upstairs. / Photograph by Kerri Sitrin
Kampar Kongsi, Bella Vista
Opened: March 2024
There are a lot of great restaurant bars in this city. But right now, there is no better, cooler or more perfectly of-the-moment seat than a stool at Ange Branca’s second-floor Kampar Kongsi. She designed this place in memory of the Malaysian neighborhood bars she knew growing up — blue-collar company joints where working stiffs could go for a cold beer and a quick meal at quitting time. But her Bella Vista version is a fantasy where the nasi lemak comes wrapped in little branded paper envelopes and you can drink Tiger beer and eat thick-cut steak fries drenched in brown curry sauce with a side of pork jerky while the radio blasts Southeast Asian covers of ’60s pop hits. The cocktail list is full of karbonat spritzes spiked with black vinegar and gin coolers jumped up with Midori, cucumber and lime, and so much love and attention has gone into the space that you can feel the memories like happy ghosts in every corner. 611 South 7th Street.
Bar Lesieur, Center City
Opened: November 2023
This odd space on Sansom Street has always served two purposes for the Schulson Collective. First (and perhaps most importantly), it has guarded the entrance to Giuseppe & Sons. Like that weird door in The Lord of the Rings that Frodo and his pals have to get through in order to enter the mines of Moria, this street-level real estate acts as a kind of fancied-up foyer for Schulson’s temple to Rat Pack red-gravy excess. Second, it has tried to exist as its own operation, attempting to find success as a deli, a luncheonette, and a pizza joint — and failing at all of them. But like a struggling ingenue just waiting for the right role to come along, its incarnation as Bar Lesieur might finally be the one that makes it a star. An unabashed love letter to cinematically French vibes, Lesieur has got the dim lights, the arched and raftered ceiling, the zinc bar and framed pictures on the walls. It feels like a place that’s been purpose-built for second dates, Graham Greene cosplay and resistance meetings. And the bar plays right along with a brilliant custom cocktail menu full of raspberry martinis, butter-washed bourbon, plum and elderflower, and a mezcal, crème de cassis and ginger-beer mix called Le Diable that will change the way you think about mezcal forever. 1523 Sansom Street.
48 Record Bar, Old City
Opened: November 2023
Inspired by the vinyl listening clubs of Japan, partners Donal McCoy and Joey Sweeney have converted the space above McCoy’s restaurant Sassafrass into a haven for those looking for comfort, cocktails, conversation — and some killer acoustics. 48 hosts ticketed listening parties, readings and other events, but on any normal night (Wednesdays through Sundays, 5 p.m. to 2 a.m.), it exists as a place for friends and neighbors to gather for curated tunes scaled so that they’re never quite the center of attention, custom cocktails (like Paris Is Burning with its Del Maguey Vida, Bluecoat gin, St. Germain, lemon and pineapple juice; or the old-timey Chrysanthemum with benedictine, absinthe and vermouth), and space to relax and actually hear each other talk. 48 South 2nd Street.
Royal Tavern, South Philly
(Re)opened: November 2023
Sure, the Royal originally opened back in 2002. But after a long pandemic closure, a little cleaning and a lot of freshening up, the new/old place is back again to remind us all that sometimes the best bars in the city are the bars you’re sitting in when you really need a bar to sit in. The Royal is where you go when you’ve got old friends in from out-of-town who aren’t impressed by flash. It’s where you go for both a first date and a seventh anniversary. It’s there for you on quiet afternoons and loud nights, when you’re rolling with a crew and when the only company you want is your own. The bartenders here can make any drink you ask for (and you should absolutely try the Fishtown Sour), but they understand that the classics do the job best. They can talk for an hour about beer (or boats or baseball) when things are slow, but they never make you wait for a drink once your rocks have gone dry. It is a bar for every day of the week and for every mood under the sun. And if it matters to you, the burger is really good, too. 937 East Passyunk Avenue.
Meetinghouse, Kensington
Opened: August 2023
Losing Memphis Taproom was a blow, absolutely. But there’s no sense in mourning when a joint like Meetinghouse comes in and builds a new neighborhood clubhouse out of its bones. The best thing about Meetinghouse is its absolute lack of ego. There are plastic baskets of fries and crab dip at the bar, roasted salmon with hollandaise, paper doilies and gravy boats. Plus, excellent house beers, proper gin martinis if you’re feeling fancy, and Long Island iced teas if you’re not. Service happens how it happens, food comes when it comes, and there’s no stress, no formality and no attempt at being anything more than what Meetinghouse was meant to be: a great street-corner bar that’s there to be whatever you need it to be. 2331 East Cumberland Street.
