One of the best things about Penn is its Philadelphia locale, and one of the best things about Philadelphia is its food. But, as Street has told you time and again, one need not venture into Center City for a good meal — West Philly is full of culinary delights.
Starting today and going through next Thursday, the University City District is celebrating its epicurean offerings with University City Dining Days. We’re all familiar with Center City Restaurant Week, but when prices were raised to $35 for dinner (excluding drinks, tax and tip, of course) and menus remained limited, we were a little turned off. U City Dining Days improves upon the Restaurant Week model by separating participating restaurants into three price categories: $15, $25 and $30.
This makes so much sense, especially when you consider that a three-course meal at the West Philly outpost of Marathon Grill is set at $15, while dinner at Marathon on the Square will set you back $35 during Center City Restaurant Week — truly absurd.
Campus haunt Pod is one of the restaurants getting the pricier $30 treatment, but its Dining Days menu includes all of our favorites and then some: the Pod Caesar, glazed Chilean sea bass, macadamia chicken stir fry, Fluffernutter spring rolls and their too-perfect-for-summer sorbet assortment are just some of the options.
If you’re looking to head further west, Dock Street Brewery is offering up their incredible pizzas (plus salad and dessert) for $15 and both Marigold Kitchen and Rx will help satisfy your highbrow BYO cravings. White Dog Cafe, Distrito, Vientiane Café and the new Blockley Pourhouse are also included on the list. While there are some misses (Penne… what are you?), we’re confident you’ll be digging the selection.
For a complete list of participating restaurants and links to reviews, check out underthebutton.com
