50 Years of Best of Philly: A Look Back at the 1974 Winners

A look back at some of the original — and still-standing — winners and categories that continue to ring true today.

Launched in 1974, Best of Philly celebrates 50 years! Let’s look back.

Fifty years ago, we had an idea. Was it a good idea? No one knew. But it was an idea. So one editor and four interns put their heads together, and Best of Philly was born: 119 winners (and losers), ranging from hoagies and hot dogs to used car dealers and astrologers.

As soon as the May 1974 issue of Philadelphia magazine hit newsstands — and became the best-selling issue we’d ever had — we all agreed that it was in fact a very, very good idea.

Here, we take a look back at some of the original —and still-standing — winners and categories that continue to ring true today.

Bassetts Ice Cream

In the chronicles of American ice cream lore, one name reigns supreme: Bassetts. It’s America’s oldest ice cream company, the first business to sign a lease at Reading Terminal Market in 1892, and the only original merchant still standing.

Aside from its historic significance, every scoop of ultra-creamy, 16.5 percent-butterfat ice cream that passes over the original marble counter holds memories for generations of Philadelphians. It was the reward for being good while your parents went shopping in Center City and the dessert that cooled you and your high school friends down after a long summer walk around Chinatown. And whether you prefer the bold depth of chocolate or the sweet subtlety of vanilla, it’s still — always — the perfect ending to any meal at the market. 45 North 12th Street, Market East.

Famous 4th Street Delicatessen

Okay, okay, we get it. You’re probably thinking “Famous? The deli that got shut down, by the health department?”

But here’s the thing — you’re still gonna go. We’re still gonna go. Famous turned 100 last year, meaning that for more than a century, hungry Philadelphians — through war and peace, depressions and boom times — have gone to the glassy storefront at 4th and Bainbridge, ordered a bowl of soup or a pile of pastrami, and felt at home. And sometimes our home life is a little rocky. But it’s still home. So, yeah, we’re gonna give Famous a pass on this one. When it’s cold we’ll still slurp chicken soup, heavy with kreplach and kasha. In the summer we’ll switch to their crunchy, vinegary health salad.

And in 50 more years, when we’re doing this list for the 100th time, hopefully Famous will still be there, waiting for us to come home. 700 South 4th Street, Queen Village.

The Parking Garage at 1510 Latimer Street

In preparation for this issue, we’ve spent a lot of time in the archives. And something that revealed itself over and over again is the fact that, especially back in the ’70s, we loved giving awards to things that were simply very close to our offices. So it comes as no surprise that our 1974 pick for Best Parking Lot — “It’s small and covered and inexpensive. You can even leave with your car unscathed.” — sat … one block from our former offices at 1500 Walnut.

Now, 50 years later, as high rises climb around it, Latimer Garage remains a side street throwback — no frills, friendly service, cash only, its blinking red neon PARK sign still beckoning drivers on 15th Street. And even though our offices are long gone from Walnut Street, there’s still plenty of reason for us to use it: The garage sits just three doors down from the Pen and Pencil, the city’s press club.

The McGlinchey’s Jukebox

In 1974, we gave the Best Jukebox award to 15th Street dive bar McGlinchey’s, reasoning that you could “segue from the Stones to Sinatra.” It’s easy to forget, in this era of play-anything digital jukeboxes that allow you to segue from the Stones to Sinatra to SZA to Shaboozey, that jukeboxes were once very much part of a bar’s identity, which might mean “no longhairs” on a jukebox at a South Philly bar spinning Sinatra, for example. (We gave worst jukebox to the monochromatic one at McGillin’s that seemed to have an excess of crooners like Al Martino and Tony Martin.) But McGlinchey’s was different. It offered a little bit of this, a little bit of that, and, over the years, even slots for local bands to get a shot. It had personality — and, eventually, even its own Facebook page. Alas, McGlinchey’s succumbed to the play-anything craze, though it was one of the last to do so. It was good while it lasted. 259 South 15th Street, Center City.

Holt’s Cigar Company

When we gave this Center City cigar company Best Tobacconist in 1974, we admitted that there wasn’t much competition around. But 50 years later, the cigar industry is booming — and Holt’s Cigar Company still earns top billing. Things at Holt’s have changed since the ’70s, of course: They have swankier digs (in 1995, they ditched their storefront on 16th Street — where they’d been since 1966 — for a spacious Walnut Street flagship); a super-luxe cigar bar (located just above said flagship); a second retail shop, cigar lounge and sprawling distribution center in Northeast Philly (we’re talking 20,000 square feet of humidified storage); a massively successful online and catalog business; and their own widely acclaimed, award-winning premium cigar brand, Ashton. But for all this change, Holt’s is still a classic, destined to outlive every single vape shop in town. 1522 Walnut Street, Center City; 12270 Townsend Road, Northeast Philly.