Elektra Vintage
Once you’ve decided how you feel about the vintage Playboy mags on display, turn to the clothing. It ranges from the 1970s to the 2000s, with an emphasis on the styles you sported as a preteen or teen (if you’re a millennial, that is). Think low-rise jean miniskirts and Juicy Couture velour sets, plus men’s tees and jeans from the early aughts. Downstairs? Heavily discounted styles. And you won't be able to resist the retro drinkware in Technicolor hues on your way out. 53 North 3rd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106, elektravtg.com.
Jewellee Williams
Williams isn’t just an aesthetician extraordinaire, Hydrafacial pro or lash whiz — though she humbly showcases these talents and more at her Rittenhouse med spa, Crown Jewel Esthetics. She’s a serious educator, teaching clients how to best support their skin health with custom services and recommended regimens and mentoring beauty-industry folks through one-on-one coaching, global pop-ups, and her just-launched second biz, Beauty Pros United. 255 South 17th Street, suite 2407, Philadelphia, PA 19103, crownjewelesthetics.com.
El Chapulin
In case you’re wondering how many times we visit a restaurant before bestowing such an honor, in the instance of this bright and cheery Delco taqueria, we probably went 10 times — not just for due diligence, but also because we love it so much. From the birria to the tamales to the taco platters to the shrimp cocktail to the occasional appearance of menudo, we can’t wait to eat it all again. 8901 West Chester Pike, Upper Darby, PA 19082, .
Jumpstart
Want to live in tomorrow’s next hot neighborhood? Jumpstart’s four-week neighborhood-based training programs will teach you how to rehab a house, and they’ll finance your first project if it’s in one of the city neighborhoods in which they operate. Scouting a location outside their established zones? Download Jumpstart’s free workbook and train yourself — or make the case that your block should be next. gojumpstart.org/jumpstart-for-individuals.
Famous 4th Street Delicatessen
It's a dessert for the masses. Literally. Just one slice a roughly two-by-four-by-eight-inch slab of Famous 4th Street's checkerboard cake (moist chocolate and vanilla squares bound with a creamy mocha mousse) will both feed and please your whole party. Cake ain't your thing? How about the three-to-an-order cheese-and-sour-cherry blintzes, the New York-style cheesecake, a black-and-white cookie, or an old-fashioned egg cream? Yeah, we thought so. 700 South 4th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147, famous4thstreetdelicatessen.com.
Ignite Philly
In this quirky series, held at Johnny Brenda's whenever they damn well feel like it, speakers get five minutes to make (sometimes elaborate) slide presentations to packed-to-the-rafters crowds on just about anything: the link between dreams and video games, the virtues of canned goods, how to channel all those random facts crammed inside your brain. Surprisingly riveting at $5 a head See website for schedule, 00000, ignitephilly.org.
Oyster House
Honest to Jesus, we just don't comprehend how anyone can get any work done or deals made over the massive plates of red meat offered up at so many of this town's supposed power-lunch spots. Chasing a lobster roll with a couple of cold beers at Oyster House, on the other hand, leaves us with the energy and inspiration to do something other than sleep off a beef coma beneath our desks. 1516 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102, oysterhousephilly.com.
Fairmount Park Art Association
Download the Fairmount Park Art Association's new and free audio guide to about 50 of our city's public sculptures (museumwithoutwalls-audio.org) to your iPod and start walking. You determine the pace and how much ground to cover, all the while getting a thorough oral history of each work of art. And nobody will stop you from sipping a $5 black-and-white milkshake from Frog Burger (222 North 20th Street, 215-448-1100) while you take it all in. 1528 Walnut Street, Suite 1000, Philadelphia, PA 19102, associationforpublicart.org.
La Michoacana Ice Cream
Good, traditional homemade ice cream abounds in these parts. But what about earthy mushroom ice cream? Green and creamy avocado? Rice pudding? And, best of all, how about a sunny sweet-corn ice cream, sprinkled with hot chili powder? Yes, there are excellent versions of all the standard flavors, too. But trust us on this sweet-corn-plus-chili thing; it's addictive. 231 East State Street, Kennett Square, PA 19384, .
Three Potato Four
Husband-and-wife team Stu Eli and Janet Morales go out into the world and gather really awesome, unique retro, reclaimed and vintage stuff furniture, accessories, signs, knickknacks and the like and put it all under one roof, so we can lazily go and pick out what we like. Which is how we like it. 376 Shurs Lane, Philadelphia, PA 19128, threepotatofour.com.
Friday Nights at Donna's Bar
The old-world clientele, well lubricated by Zywiec beer and vodka, knows how to bring it better than any tarty 20-something. The song list is varied -- John Lennon, Miranda Lambert, Kings of Leon -- and the regulars are welcoming, but be forewarned: Owner Sophie Zalewski loves to run the recorder and put the "best" performances up on YouTube. 2732 East Allegheny Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19134, .
@laurenboggi
There's a reason Lithe Method founder Lauren Boggi has amassed a following of 15,000-plus Instagram fans: Her feed provides a mishmash of how-to exercise videos, fitness challenges and drool-worthy healthy meals that will have you reaching for a pair of weights and stocking your fridge with the makings for"zoodles" (those are zucchini noodles, for the uninitiated) in no time flat. instagram.com/laurenboggi/?hl=en.
Rue Landau and Nina Ahmad
Cherelle Parker wasn’t the only ground-breaking “first” to emerge from our primaries. Landau and Ahmad made some hard-to-believe history with their victories in the City Council at-large race. Landau will become, shockingly, the first openly LGBTQ candidate to win a City Council seat. And Ahmad will become the first South Asian and immigrant elected. Both communities have fought for decades to be represented within City Hall — we’re excited to see how they’ll impact change now that they’re finally there.
City Winery
A chain music venue? In the glorified mall that’s the Fashion District, née the Gallery? With a name like City Winery? Yeah, we were skeptical. But the fact is, this place offers an intimate, high-quality experience — with pristine sound and excellent production standards — like no other in the city. Oh, and the wine is great, too. How often can you say that about a music venue? 990 Filbert Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107, citywinery.com/philadelphia.
Millésimé
How to turn your home into a place that looks as if it's been plucked from the pages of a modern-design magazine: Let owner Jinous Kazemi walk you through her collection of Ligne Roset couches; customizable wall hutches by USM Modular Furniture; and decadent leather armchairs, side tables and headboards by Poltrona Frau — and then buy it all. 33 North 2nd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106, millesime.us.