Civil Stock General Store
Whitney Bennett’s year-old general store feels like it’s always been there, welcoming you in to pick up functional but fun goods — a folding shovel, a brass fox-head letter opener, Victorian stocking-leg tweezers. She’s got the must-haves, too (tampons, shelf-stable groceries). Bennett — who sourced the wood furnishings, switched out the lighting to make it more rustic, and exposed a brick wall — says she wants it to feel like a mercantile of the 1800s. We say, well done. 1912 East Passyunk Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19148, civilstock.com.
Adam Blackstone
Blackstone has been the maestro behind some of TV’s biggest musical moments, in recent years directing ceremonies for the Oscars, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and the NBA All-Star Game. And the musician’s musician is starting to get more mainstream recognition for his pursuits, which include directing Super Bowl halftime and pregame shows over the last several years (including that 2023 Rihanna banger). And this year, he received two Grammy noms in the jazz category. All recognition long overdue. adamblackstone.com.
Beon Esthetics
You’d be hard-pressed to find a lash artist who works harder than Thaya Edmond. When she’s not formulating products, teaching other artists how to build their own businesses, or doing lashes for Philly’s own Jazmine Sullivan for the Met Gala, Edmond applies sets that fit your face and eyelash curl pattern at her West Philly studio. Gingers, blondes, and brunettes, rejoice — her salon even does color matching to give you lashes that pair seamlessly with your locks. beonesthetics.com.
Chops
The power crowd wants two things in a restaurant: enough of a scene that its worth being seen, and enough privacy that you can actually get down to business. Alex Plotkins City Avenue steakhouse offers both, which is why its become the perfect meeting ground for suits from city and suburb. Dine among TV newsers from nearby Channels 6 and 10, bigwigs like Carl Dranoff, Pete Musser and Charlie Pizzi, and the occasional Center City law partner playing hooky from the Palm or Capital Grille. 401 City Line Avenue, Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004, chops-restaurant.com.
Black Landlord
Funk meets hip-hop meets punk in this Philly octet composed of time-tested veterans of the local music scene, most prominently pimped-out-large-and-in-charge front man Maxx Stoyanoff-Williams, who leads his tight entourage through edgy, fierce horn stacks and beat breakdowns like James Brown on steroids. Buy the band's first full-length album, Addicted to Distraction, which came out earlier this year, or better yet, check out one of its energetic live performances. 00000, blacklandlord.com.
Philadelphia Diamond Company
Photograph courtesy of Philadelphia Diamond Company Gemologist Ken Black and wife Nicole have been in the business for just over two decades, taking abstract nuptial jewelry ideas and turning them into works of wearable art. The couple uses both lab-grown gems (a lower-carbon-footprint option) and natural stones for their genderless engagement and wedding rings, which are all certified by the Gemological Institute of America. For added sparkle: They have a design patent pending on a star ring band with five points of contact on the finger, which helps with comfort and fit and ensures that your huge rock stays upright. 421 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106, philadelphiadiamondco.com.
Jelloman
Paul Vile — a.k.a. Jelloman — has been a gelatinous folk hero for years, known for benevolently launching pre-packaged Jell-O shots into eager crowds at music festivals and Eagles tailgates. But his boozy legend reached new heights during the NFC Championship celebration, when he crowd-surfed the gathered Broad Street masses sling-shotting cups of kelly green slurpables. Then the Super Bowl requests flooded in, so of course Vile (yup, Kurt’s bro) spent the run-up prepping an astounding 4,000 shots of jiggly juice.
KMT Consulting
For those of us who break out in the math sweats at the mere thought of calculating a tip, tax time can be particularly challenging, but KMT Consulting will make you dread April a lot less. Led by experienced CPA Kirsten Toler, the whole team knows the minutiae of small-business finance. Emails are answered lickety-split, without even a hint of condescension. They take care to make you feel like a collaborator, like you’re capable of understanding your taxes, and maybe, maybe, even like you’re pretty good at math. kmtconsultingllc.com.
Izzy's Cocktail Bar
It’s easy to find Izzy’s. All you have to do is look for the crowd of people milling around on the sidewalk next to Ardmore Music Hall, waiting to get a seat at this small, dimly lit, and tightly packed izakaya. This is a place for grazing — for crowding up at the loud bar, knocking down plates of excellent hand rolls and birria bao, washing them down with custom cocktails from the Japanese-influenced list, and then moving on. If you need a place to rally the troops for a night out or to grab a bite before a show, Izzy’s is exactly what you’re looking for. 35 East Lancaster Avenue, Ardmore, PA 19003, instagram.com/izzys_ardmore.
Dhwani Saraiya
What would public art in Philly be without sports? If you’ve been to Citizens Bank Park lately, or outside, or on any social media platform, you may have seen Dhwani Saraiya’s comic-inspired work heralding the triumphs of Philly’s beloved sports teams. Despite donning Mets merch growing up, Saraiya found a muse in the Sixers in the late 2010s, then the Super Bowl LIX-winning Eagles, and finally the Phillies. As Nick Foles said upon being presented with one of her custom prints, the illustrations are “truly special.” instagram.com/dsaraiyart.
Cindy Carniecki
The Liquor Control Board isn't exactly famed for its knowledgeable staff. Which is why we were so pleasantly surprised to find Cindy Carniecki at the new PLCB-run boutique wine store in the Garces Trading Company, skillfully recommending a $15 French ros to go with our meal. It's nice doing business with a real wine enthusiast. (Cindy worked in the restaurant biz for 30 years before taking a job with the PLCB.) And apparently the feeling's mutual: The best part about working at the new store, she says, is customers who are excited about wine. 1111 Locust Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107, garcestradingcompany.com.
Revival Letterpress
Photograph by Jeff Fusco Matthew Hiller has been letterpress printing since 2011, and his equipment — antique Chandler & Price platen presses and a hand-cranked Challenge cylinder press — has been at work for more than a century longer. Inside his studio, Hiller designs everything from wedding invites and business cards to posters and custom packaging, then uses the finest paper and old-fashioned techniques to bring them to life. In a world where DM’d party invites and texted birthday GIFs have become the norm, these character-filled pieces convey the beauty of the human touch. 1901 South 9th Street, number 208, Philadelphia, PA 19148, revivalletterpress.com/project-gallery-page.
John Jarboe
The founder and artistic director of the gender-bending Bearded Ladies Cabaret company plans big things. One of her most recent projects is the Beardmobile, a performance van tricked out with a stage, sound system and lights that lets her bring drag anywhere she damn well pleases, including to libraries and public parks. In September, find her at Late Nite Snacks — the Fringe Festival cabaret she curates — and onstage in her new play, Rose: You Are Who You Eat, which is probably the world’s first musical about a twin who eats her sister in the womb. beardedladiescabaret.com.
Kalaya
With palm trees sprouting from the center of a perpetually busy dining room and a bar slinging lemongrass-infused cocktails, the new Kalaya — a partnership between Chutatip “Nok” Suntaranon and Defined Hospitality — certainly looks different than it did in its Bella Vista days. But in the face of the inherent Philadelphia skepticism that greets any beloved space’s evolution, Kalaya’s southern Thai dishes still pack the same delightful punch. And Suntaranon still floats around the dining room, sometimes holding someone’s baby, always representing a menu that pays exquisite homage to her heritage. 4 West Palmer Street, Philadelphia, PA 19125, kalayaphilly.com.
Andrew Meredith
This 38-year-old Northeast native's debut work, a memoir called The Removers, is dark and bleak and funny and utterly Philly. The down-on-his-luck narrator joins his sad dad, a disgraced former La Salle prof, in the business of making house calls to pick up corpses for local funeral homes. Between encounters with the dead and those they leave behind, he meanders in and out of love affairs, observes the dissolution of his parents' marriage, and ponders why he can't seem to gain any traction. A tour de force that should be the hands-down choice for the next One Book, One Philadelphia campaign. andrewmeredith.net.