Fact Sheet

FUN FACTS
Insider Info About Philly’s Famous BYOBs

Star Locations, Star Sightings, Star Treatment:

• Not only was the Jamaican Jerk Hut featured in the film In Her Shoes, but director Curtis Hanson also selected the restaurant’s owner Nicola Shirley to prepare the food that was on camera. At the end of the day’s shooting, stars Cameron Diaz and Toni Collette joined Hanson in polishing off the cuisine.

Pumpkin

Photo by K. Ciappa for uwishunu.com

• The owner of the High Street Caffé was formerly the member of a rock band, and members of the rock groups Cinderella and Rat frequently dine in the restaurant.
• The Orchard features custom-milled mahogany lockers, where guests can stow their own preferred spirits. The staff maintains a register based on the contents of each locker, which is kept on file so guests can receive an up-to-date personal wine list with each visit.
• The specials are so good at Il Cantuccio that the staff has a list to call people when their favorite special is on the menu.

Love in the Kitchen:
A number of couples own BYOs in the area:

• Bistro 7: Michael O’Halloran and Sophia Lee
• Chloe: Mary Ann Ferrie and Dan Grimes
• Gilmore’s French Cuisine: Peter and Susan Gilmore
• La Boheme: Asthame and Isabelle Kabir
• L’Angolo: Kathy and Davide Faenza
• Lee How Fook: founded by Doris and Shing Chung, run by their daughter and son-in-law Sieu and Andrew Nguyen
• Lolita: Marcie Turney and Valerie Safran
• Majolica: Sarah Johnson and Andrew Deery
• Matyson: Matt and Sonjia Spector
• Melograno: Rosemarie Tran and Gianluca Demontis
• Meridith’s Restaurant: Meridith and George McLoughlin
• Pif: David and Catherine Ansill
• Pumpkin: Ian Moroney and Hilary Bor
• Sovalo: Joe and Karey Scarpone
• Pumpkin, located on South Street, was named in honor of the owners’ pet name for one another.
• Sabai Thai has an interesting décor, with owner Toi Ken’s wedding gown hanging in a golden frame in the dining room.

A-List Chefs and Interesting Owners:

• Michael Solomonov, executive chef at Marigold Kitchen, was invited to prepare dinner at the famous James Beard House in New York City on June 5, 2006.
• Chef/owner Alison Barshak of Alison at Blue Bell earned a national reputation as the debut chef at Striped Bass the year it was awarded Esquire’s coveted title, “best new restaurant in the country.” Since then she has been invited to cook at the James Beard House, has been featured in PBS’ “Rising Star Chef” series and has been covered in dozens of national publications.
• Meridith’s Restaurant started out as a catering business housed in a gift and antique shop. In response to popular demand, the owner added a few tables at a time, until in 2003, she closed the retail side, took over the whole building and opened a BYOB.

International Flavor:

• Philadelphia’s BYOB scene encompasses more than 30 different types of cuisines, including: Afghani, African, American, Asian, Cajun, Caribbean, Chinese, Continental, Creole, Egyptian, Euro, French, Greek, Indian, Italian, Japanese, Jewish, Korean, Latin American, Malaysian, Mediterranean, Mexican, Middle Eastern, Moroccan, Persian, Thai, Thai-French, Turkish and Vietnamese.

Putting the “B” in BYOB:

• The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) is the largest purchaser of wine and spirits in the United States. Because of its strong purchasing power, the PLCB is able to pass along discounts to consumers.

The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) makes Philadelphia and The Countryside™ a premier destination through marketing and image building that increases business and promotes the region’s vitality. For more information about travel to Philadelphia, visit http://www.gophila.com/ or call the Independence Visitor Center, located in Independence National Historical Park, at (800) 537-7676.

Note to Editors: For photos of Greater Philadelphia, visit our Photo Gallery. On the pressroom, you can also subscribe to RSS feeds to receive updates on topics that are specifically of interest to you: What’s New, Dining, Events, Seasonal Travel, Hotel Packages and Tourism Research.

CONTACT:

Caroline Bean, GPTMC
(215) 599-7433,caroline@gptmc.com

Carrie Nork, Cashman & Associates
(215) 627-1060, carrie@cashmanandassociates.com

Related RSS Feeds

Topic	XML Feeds
What's New This feed will be updated whenever any new content is added to Gophila.com’s Press Room. It includes all topics.
Dining Restaurant news, trends, openings, etc.

What is RSS?