Center City Applebee’s Is a Hot Commercial Property

Photo via LoopNet

The most popular office space on the commercial listings site LoopNet is technically 1417 Locust Street, an address attached to the beautiful old building that housed Bookbinder’s for years and now has “Bourbon Street Chicken & Shrimp” as a new menu item at Applebee’s. I tell you, when Bookbinder’s closed and Applebee’s opened, I almost lost my mind. I spent half my youth with clarified butter dribbling down my chin onto a paper bib at that joint, eating lunch with my Dad back in the days when journalism paid well and expense accounts paid better. Nine years old, eating lobster tail, browsing the dozens of photos of luminaries who’d visited the restaurant…I didn’t know how good I had it. Now a night out at Applebee’s — $20 for that new entree — is actually a bit steep.

Anyway.

The month of October saw 658 people checking the listing out for the 20,000-square-foot property, which has frontage on Locust and 15th and commands much of that little alleyway. Speaking of the past, that alleyway used to be home to The Office, the notorious strip club where well-heeled men went to ogle down-at-heels women. A colleague threw me a 30th birthday party there. It was odd but not as odd as you’d think.

Anyway.

The building’s listing reads thusly:

The Building consists of a four-story elevator served mixed-use commercial building containing a restaurant and retail units on the first and second levels and office space on the upper levels.
CMX-5 Commercial Zoning

Located near the corner at Locust & South 15th Street directly in the Center of Philadelphia CBD with 22′ frontage along Locust Street, 38′ frontage along South 15th Street & 108.17′ frontage along Chancellor Street.

The price is negotiable and the sale is being handled by MS Fox Real Estate Group.

Listing: 1417 Locust Street [LoopNet]