Zahav or Suraya? I have a reservation for Suraya, but we can always eat at the bar at Zahav. First trip for me to Philadelphia.
I’ve never been to Suraya but Zahav is great. The off menu tasting menu which includes the signature lamb dish is fantastic.
Zahav. Hands down. Suraya is a cool and fun space, but pretty unremarkable food. I can’t figure out why people get so excited about it. It’s fine, but I’d rather go to the Armenian kebab place a couple blocks away in Northern Liberties. Zahav, on the other hand, is excellent always. We eat at the bar often.
My info is 6 years old (we moved) but Zahav was one of our top 3 restaurants in Philadelphia.
Tom
I agree with Sarah — Zahav. One of the best restaurants in Philly.
Suraya - meh.
Zahav - hands down.
TW
Thank you all. Obviously Zahav will be. Only at the bar.
Did not make it to Zahav, required me to be there at 4-4:30 but Sunday was the day for museums, and Philadelphia has some extraordinary museums. We started out with the Barnes Foundation. Incredible collection from a single individual. Then you take it up a notch at the Rodin museum. And when when you think it cannot be topped, you have the Philadelphia Museum of Art, just hard to believe what they have. I could not wipe a stupid grin off my face all day long.
Restaurants are great to fantastic too, and the prices are more than reasonable. Parc Brasserie is very, very good. One of the best charcuterie plates for me, and a great lamb dish for Mel; and great cocktails too (vieux carre is fantastic)
Next day we went to Bistrot La Minette, a rather small French restaurant that offers a fantastic 5 course menu for $55. Not only were all the dishes delicious, but they were also not the same for the two of us, so we could try a lot of different dishes. And the wine pairing for the 5 courses is only $20 and very well paired.
Last night we could only do reservations to Dandelions, which is ok for basic English dishes. Very good cask beers.
Overall, loved Philadelphia. Lots of history, incredible art collections, and loved the food.
Only negative for me was our Airbnb apartment, that although beautiful was right across from an underground party place that had music blasting till 4am. And then when you thought it was over, the circus would start with patrons coming out and yelling at the top of their lungs. Then honking the horns upon leaving. Nasty, nasty people with no regard for the neighborhood.
Otto, sounds like you had a great time. For most of our lives we lived in NJ, exactly half way between NYC and Philadelphia. This may sound crazy but we chose heading into Philly for a day more often than NYC. Easy to walk to most sites, history galore and fine restaurants many of which are true BYO (no corkage). Visiting Philadelphia is something we miss here in California.
Tom