West Elm Market
You will literally want everything from West Elms new store-in-a-store kitchen shop. If you have the cabinet room, stock up on fire engine-red enamel cookware, glazed porcelain canisters (with adorable painted labels), monogrammed stemless glassware and pretty gold-plated utensils. On second thought, get it all and just make the room. 1330 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107, westelm.com/shop/market-general-store.
Engin Cycles
Engin Cycles owner Drew Guldalian / Photograph by Jeff Fusco Right off the bat: These are not cheap bikes. They start at $4,500, so we’d understand if your eyes just bugged out. But hear us out: They’re gorgeous. Nearly every piece of the bike is machined in-house, and the titanium frame adds a level of durability that no off-the-rack frame can match. So maybe put this on your “someday” list. 7837 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19118, engincycles.com.
Retro Pilates
Retro Pilates puts a blast-from-the-past spin on traditional reformer Pilates. You’ll lengthen and strengthen on one of six Allegro 2 machines to the sounds of rock, folk and blues music from the Stones era, surrounded by a mid-century modern aesthetic. After your full-body burn, chillax in a bright white-and-red egg chair. 2423 Frankford Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19125, retropilatesphilly.com.
Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve
The name is fairly self-explanatory: acres upon acres of positively gorgeous wildflowers. Plus, fun nature activities like the Shinrin-yoku nature therapy walk on August 11th and a family-friendly look at spiders on August 25th. Like what you see growing in the beds? Visit Bowman’s Native Plant Nursery to buy some for yours. 1635 River Road, New Hope, PA 18938, bhwp.org.
Aqua Experience at Joseph Anthony Retreat Spa and Salon
Scrub devotees, you won’t want to miss this. You’ll lie on a heated hammam table and get a full-body cleanse and polish in the spa’s own Turkish bath — a room tricked out with overhead Vichy showers, a color-changing crystal ceiling for LED light therapy, and seriously relaxing herbal steams. Save time for a hang in the salt lounge afterward. Philadelphia and Springfield, PA josephanthony.com.
Tribe
The space is white and bright, there are oodles of leather and wood, a flamingo mural and a living wall, and-—well, basically, we’d like to move in. Luckily, husband-and-wife team Emily and Andrew De Stefano’s venture just outside Kennett Square has pretty sweet hair and makeup services, too. (They offer four different kinds of ponytail styling alone!) 882 Baltimore Pike, Chadds Ford, PA 19317, tribebeauty.com.
Battleship New Jersey
This 70-plus-year-old vessel, originally built at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, saw action in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, making it the country's most decorated battleship. These days you can be led down its steep ladders and through its tight passageways by knowledgeable veterans, many of whom were on active duty on this very ship. 100 Clinton Street, Camden, NJ 08103, battleshipnewjersey.org.
Paesano's Philly Style
It's not a pretty sight, this breakfast-lunch-and-dinner on a bun: ribbons of fried lasagna, a meaty Bolognese, mozzarella, sweet peppers and a fried egg, all wedged into a seeded Liscio's roll. And yet there's an undeniable artistry in making something so unruly taste so fine. If loving you is wrong, Bolognese from Paesano's, we ain't ever gonna be right. 1017 South 9th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147, paesanosphillystyle.com.
Perrystead Dairy
At his new Kensington creamery, cheesemaker Yoav Perry is forgoing wedges of cheddar in favor of young-aged, soft-ripened lactic cheese he calls “Intergalactic,” natural and washed-rind wheels of long-aged cheeses, and innovative monthly specials. There are also drinkable yogurts, flavored kefir and whey tonic — all made with milk from Pennsylvania dairy farms. 1639 North Hancock Street Ste 103, Philadelphia, PA 19122, perrystead.com.
Lindley Gray
Photograph by Alain Simic This Kensington-based jewelry brand features genderless designs handcrafted from recycled metals, Fairmined gold and ethically sourced diamonds, often reclaimed from vintage pieces. The namesake designer’s aesthetic combines traditional craftsmanship, Art Deco influence, and a focus on the subtlety of natural materials. We’d say “I do” to those black-diamond stacking rings any day. lindleygray.com.
Poi Dog
Fried chicken junkies, if you’re looking to get your fix from different latitudes, you won’t want to miss this Big Island version, where the bird is dipped in sweet rice flour, doused in furikake seasoning, and topped with togarashi-yuzu mayo. Psst: It comes on the lunch plate with two scoops of rice, macaroni salad and pickled red cabbage. Yum. 102 South 21st Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103, poidogphilly.com.
Lamb neck gravy at the Industry
Pat Szoke first experimented with pork on the way to developing this memorable dish, but his pivot over to lamb necks which are even richer than the shoulder landed him an instant classic. Its simple: lamb necks braised in red wine and rosemary-accentedtomatoes, topped with creamy house-made ricotta and then served with grilled baguette rounds. Warning: When the bread is gone, you might find yourself licking the cast iron skillet the gravy comes in. 1401 East Moyamensing Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19147, theindustrybar.com.
Indoor Children's Garden at Longwood Gardens
There's an understandable "Observe in awe, but do not touch" edict at this immaculate Kennett Square destination. Except, that is, in the Indoor Children's Garden, where wee ones are encouraged to splash in the jumping fountains, get up-close and personal with the whimsical statues, climb through the twisty displays and smell the roses. (That it's tucked away inside the Conservatory means it's a great foul-weather destination, too.) 1001 Longwood Road, Kennett Square, PA 19348, longwoodgardens.org/gardens/indoor-childrens-garden.
Classic Game Junkie
Whether its the dreaded Playstation 3 red light of death, a scrambled screen image or a console that overheats, the experts here will fix up your childs gaming system before he starts exhibiting symptoms of serious withdrawal. Theyll also give you hope that maybe, just maybe, your kid can build an actual successful moneymaking enterprise out of that Halo addiction. 111 South Easton Road, Glenside, PA 19038, classicgamejunkie.com.
Big Top Thrift
Even if Big Top didn’t have a huge charitable aspect — which it does — we’d still want to shop here for the many lighthearted and fun finds (cowboy boots, kitschy kitchen goods). But winking tees are definitely the centerpiece: Garfield, Hard Rock Osaka, Mrs. T’s Pierogies and Uncle Fester are only a few examples. Claim yours by sending a DM through Instagram. @bigtopthrift. instagram.com/bigtopthrift.