Haddonfield
It's just so freakin'cute. Seriously like,How could I swing moving here? cute. But besides the ridiculously charming, friendly, bucolic atmosphere along Kings Highway East, the shopping is simply divine. There's everything from kid stuff (Pipsqueak) to women's wear (Maxwell James) to sporting equipment (Haddonfield Running Company) to jewelry (McNelis and Sherry) to art galleries (Accent Studio) to gifts (Serendipity) to home furnishings (The Upholstery Shop) to lingerie (Georgie Girl Boutique) to music (Siren's Song) to spas and salons (Salon M Design) to ... Oh, we're tired. Just go, already. 00000, shophaddonfieldnj.com.
Dr. Thunder
At some point in the evening at Dr. Thunder's karaoke events, the following three things will probably happen: Dr. Thunder will strip down to a cape and shiny shorti-shorts with DR. THUNDER emblazoned across the butt in bright green letters; someone will sing Journey; and you will put on some ridiculous outfit and wig from his huge crate of costumes. Just know that those photos Dr. Thunder is taking of you while you're singing (read: making a fool of yourself) will wind up on Facebook the next morning. Mercifully, he rarely takes video. Find his busy schedule at facebook.com/thunderkaraoke. Call or see website for consultation, 00000, facebook.com/thunderkaraoke.
Fishtown
Where else to go but Fishtown? Start with the $2 tacos and tasty $4 margaritas at Loco Pezs lively happy hour (5 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 1 to 3 p.m. on weekends; 2401 East Norris Street, 267-886-8061) before challenging your date to a few rounds of Asteroids and Donkey Kong (and beers, of course) at Barcade (1114 Frankford Avenue, 215-634-4400). If things are going well, proceed to nearby Kung Fu Necktie (1250 North Front Street, 215-291-4191) for some affordable live music many shows are just $10. 00000,
Johnsons Corner Farm
At Johnson's, there's a fruit or veggie for all seasons, and for every fruit or veggie, there's a festival to go with it. These farm folks celebrate the harvest of their strawberries, blueberries, pumpkins, corn and apples and it's contagious. The music and baked goods and cookouts and hayrides out "to go a-pickin'" are so Garrison Keillor that before you're even done plucking your apples, you'll be planning your return trip to the 56-year-old South Jersey family farm for pumpkin season. The pickin's good seven days a week, and they'll weigh your bounty, charge by the pound, and then send you on your way to go make that pie. 133 Church Road, Medford, NJ 08055, johnsonsfarm.com.
12th Street Catering
Photograph by Stephen Recchia When the salad course impresses, you know you’re in for a good night of eating. And when the dessert is a mascarpone mousse made to look like caviar and toast points, you know you’ll never forget the cuisine. (The drinks are tops too!) That’s what you get with this 43-year-old woman-owned catering business, which focuses on sustainability — via carbon-neutral menus and produce grown within 100 miles, including in their rooftop garden — and just added the brand-new Edelman Fossil Park & Museum in South Jersey to its already stellar list of venues. We’re coming to your tasting. 12stcatering.com.
Broad Agency
There’s a trick to creating a captivating logo or designing a brand’s aesthetic — one that makes modern-day eyes, inundated with an unending stream of viral memes and frenetic videos, stop to really see. It starts with an agency that has a preternatural knack for asking the right questions and getting to know the client. The Broad Agency, run by two talented (self-proclaimed!) broads, Kristen Sachs and Hannah Dillon, shines in this arena. They pick up on who you are and what you want, maybe before you even know yourself, and can bring to life a new look for your business, including a website, swag and packaging. broad.agency.
“A Gritty Resolution”
Photograph by Jeff Fusco It’s been close to six years since the Flyers unleashed Gritty into the world, and we thought we had seen every possible creative tribute to the beastly orange mascot. But then, in June, Northern Liberties composer Melissa Dunphy, who has seen her modern classical music performed at such esteemed venues as Carnegie Hall and the Royal Albert Hall, debuted this dramatic five-minute choral work with words adapted from Helen Gym’s 2018 City Council resolution honoring our orange id. “I would die for Gritty,” Dunphy tells us. Catch a live performance of the song at melissadunphy.com. melissadunphy.com.
Ame Salon and Spa
Hitting up the "drip bar" is more than just Rihanna's latest obsession. The process fluids mixed with vitamins, taken intravenously seems to have legit health benefits. (We felt an instant boost that lasted all week!) Nurse Michael Anne McAllister spent years working with cancer patients and saw the power of this liquid firsthand, so she started Longevity Aesthetics, a business that treats everyone from those who are sick (cancer, Lyme disease) to your average run-down multi-tasker (i.e., all of us). According to McAllister, benefits include energy, glowing skin, shiny hair and our favorite removal of brain fog. 111 Waynewood Avenue, Wayne, PA 19087, amesalonandspa.com/index.html.
Abby Misbin
The humble cowboy hat has been reborn of late as the number one party-girl fashion staple. Fairmount-based Etsy seller Abby Misbin takes it to new heights with handmade designs, one of which has crowned the head of Beyoncé herself. Just two years after the Temple grad started her shop as a side hustle, she was personally contacted by one of Queen B’s stylists about using one of her disco-ball-inspired 10-gallons in Renaissance promotional material. Since then, Misbin has shot into local small-business stardom, and her hats are almost as hard to get as Bey’s concert tickets.
Mark Horowitz
The next time you need a custom conducting baton, turn to this retired actuary and actuarial software developer. The Ambler resident (whose father was the late, world-renowned baton maker Richard Horowitz) crafted replicas of Leonard Bernstein’s originals for Bradley Cooper’s Maestro. He designed a beauty bearing a rosewood handle for the Curtis Institute of Music’s Benoit Gauthier, and has created wands for the Philadelphia Orchestra’s principal guest conductor Nathalie Stutzmann and Riccardo Chailly of La Scala. Horowitz makes only about 25 batons per year: After all, he is retired. He’s doing this for fun — which is music to our ears. Horowitzbatons@gmail.com
Robert Drake
Photograph by Linette Messina For more than two decades, DJ Robert Drake turned his deep love of ’80s New Wave into communal celebration — most famously at his long-running Sex Dwarf dance party, where Depeche Mode, New Order, and Erasure reliably fill the floor. A WXPN mainstay, Drake also created the beloved 24-hour Christmas Eve broadcast "The Night Before," co-founded Philly Loves Bowie Week, and hosts the enduring radio show Land of the Lost. At 62, he’s still spinning — always chasing that high of bringing people together through music. Read more in our Best of Philly spotlight. instagram.com/djrobertdrake.
Chris Kearse’s Forsythia
Chris Kearse kicks a whole lot of ass for a whole lot of reasons, but one of the best things about him is the deep iconoclastic streak that made him close his dream restaurant — Will BYOB — and follow his muse, opening a perfectly realized modern French bistro at a time in Philly’s food history when fine dining, French influences and modernism were all on the wrong side of the curve. What’s more, he nailed it, serving things as simple as a perfect crab omelet, roasted duck with Bing cherries, and ham hock beignet with honey mustard — and making them all unforgettable showstoppers. Not every restaurant in Philly is going to survive 2020, but we’re lighting a candle for Forsythia. 233 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106, forsythiaphilly.com.
The Roof Doctor
When water is actively leaking into your home, the stakes are high for finding a roofer fast. So when you’ve gone down a list of recommended companies and none reply to calls, emails or carrier pigeons, you, wild-eyed and desperate, might believe that roofers in Philadelphia are an urban legend, like finding a parking spot in South Philly after dusk. Until you call the Roof Doctor, and a pro from the second-generation family business answers the phone. They’ll put you on the schedule and show up when they say they will. The reliability is only part of it, though; they also do quality work at a price that feels fair, even when not taking into consideration your level of desperation. 2315 A Sansom Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103, roofdoctorphilly.com.
Duross and Langel
We'll try not to gush too much but these guys are everything that's right with the city. It's not just the products (though truly, there isn't a soap, lotion, candle or hair-care product we haven't nearly tried to eat). It's what's in them (preservative-free ingredients derived from botanicals), how they're made (in small batches, in the in-house soap kitchen or nearby lab), how they're done up (in 100 percent recyclable packaging), and how they're sold in a way that totally builds up the community the store is part of (joining with other Midtown Village businesses for sales and events, and employing local Service and Help), that make this a model for how to run an independent shop in Philadelphia. So, the gushing thing? Yeah, we take it back. 117 South 13th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107, durossandlangel.com.
Black and Mobile
David Cabello, founder of Black and Mobile, is both incredibly ballsy and a little bit crazy. In a delivery economy dominated by behemoths like Caviar and Uber Eats, his idea was to launch a small, local delivery service that focused exclusively on Black-owned restaurants. He tried a Kickstarter campaign (which failed). He got hit by a car. He launched an app (that he designed himself) in Philly in October, with the goal of keeping jobs and money inside the Black community, and it worked. In March, he expanded to Detroit — right before coronavirus hit. And now he’s looking at Atlanta, too, with his biggest challenge being managing the speed at which his business is growing. All of this in under a year. Oh, and also? Cabello is 25 years old, so he’s just getting started. blackandmobile.com.