Brad Ingelsby and <em>Mare of Easttown</em>
Guy Pearce and Kate Winslet act in Mare of Easttown. Photograph by Sarah Shatz/HBO The appeal of Mare of Easttown (the wild success of which landed Berwyn-native showrunner Inglesby a three-year HBO deal) transcends Kate Winslet and Jean Smart talking in our peculiar patois. While Mare was yet another detective series centered on a dead teenage girl, it was the only one the whole world was glued to this summer. We loved it for more than the accent work, but it’s also hard to overstate how validating it was to hear Winslet’s Mare utter, of the wet cast on her wrist, “Et arready etches like crazy en et smells like shet.” hbo.com/mare-of-easttown.
Aliesh Pierce
Amp up your self-care routine with a customized facial at Pierce’s namesake Chestnut Hill spa. The aesthetics educator, author, and former makeup artist to the stars now specializes in transformative skincare, combining clinical-grade ingredients and high-tech tools to give you blemish-free skin. Start with “The Assessment,” a 20-minute consultation paired with a gentle 90-minute facial — expect a skin analysis, a double cleanse, an exfoliation, LED light therapy and a mask. Afterward, stock up on products from Pierce’s private-label skincare brand to help maintain your glow. 92 Bethlehem Pike, studio 1-A, Philadelphia, PA 19118, askaliesh.com.
Adam Crognale
This Phillies batboy is a standout in a slew of ways. What game-watchers notice most is how quickly he rushes to retrieve discarded Phils weaponry and gloves. The 25-year-old Cherry Hill native has been on the job in the dugout since 2020, cleaning cleats, admiring bat spikes, and thrilling to the roar of the crowd. He’s also a survivor of childhood lymphoma and has been cancer-free for almost a decade. The guy Tom McCarthy and John Kruk have called “the fastest batboy in the league” is looking toward this season’s Red October and — fingers crossed! — maybe more.
Deme
Bright white marble surfaces, lollipop-red Saarinen stools and pristine Florence Knoll armchairs make this medi-center feel more like a medi-spa. It's not. At year-old Deme, you can meet with co-owning dental gurus Thomas and Cheryl George, have your face-lift fixed with fresh-from-the-Upper-East-Side surgeon Kevin Cross, get the best clinical facial in town from beloved former HUP aesthetician Betsy Rubenstone, and sign up for some serious massage therapy. If that's not spa-like, we don't know what is. 2200 Arch Street, #102, Philadelphia, PA 19103, demeonline.com.
Mish Mish
Along with Jeff Goldblum’s filmography and the bathroom jokes in Ulysses, this apricot-adorned spot fits into the highbrow/lowbrow category that makes daily existence more enjoyable. Mish Mish doesn’t take itself too seriously — the wine list has tasting notes like “red silk pajamas” and “gabagoolian” — yet the hospitality is as finely tuned as at any upscale spot. So if you ever need to create the illusion that you’re chill and have great taste, book a table, order some grilled octopus with muhammara, then sit by the Singing Fountain and discuss your hopes and fears and the Jawn Morgan billboards on I-95. 1046 Tasker Street, Philadelphia, PA 19148, mishmishphilly.com.
Phils Pitching Staff
There’s a lot of baseball left to play this season, but we’re ready to award Best Sports Revolution to the Phillies pitching staff, led by coaches Caleb Cotham and Brian Kaplan. The brain trust’s secret sauce has kept stars Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola at peak performance while elevating promising slingers Ranger Suárez, Cristopher Sánchez, Jeff Hoffman, José Alvarado, Matt Strahm and Orion Kerkering into the stratosphere. At press time, Phils’ pitchers stand heads and shoulders (and elbows) above the rest of the league. (Take a look at other Phillies winners throughout Best of Philly’s 50 years here.)
Dawn Staley
News broke back at the start of this year that North Philly’s own Dawn Staley had signed a multiyear contract with the University of South Carolina that made her the highest-paid women’s hoops coach ever. The deal, worth a jaw-dropping $25.25 million, shoots her past UConn’s Geno Auriemma and LSU’s Kim Mulkey. Since she headed south from her role as Temple’s head coach back in 2008, Staley has led USC teams to nine SEC tourney championships and seven Final Fours. Oh, and she has a new memoir out, too, in case you’re in need of inspo.
Cantina Los Caballitos
Not everything on the menu at the Cantina is cheap, but many of the best basics are, like the giant bowl of citrus-tinged guacamole ($7), the massive, overstuffed Tex-Mex-style burritos ($8 to $11), and the real-deal tacos ($8 to $11), all of which come with a healthy dusting of cilantro and a lime wedge for squeezing. After one bite of the menu stars the crunchy-soft fried plantains with melted cheese ($6), and the tamarind barbecued pork ribs paired with pickled jalapeos ($12) you'll forgive this hipster hang in South Philly for its long waits and too-cool-for-school crowds, and just order another $6 frozen blood-orange margarita. 1651 East Passyunk Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19148, cantinaloscaballitos.com/main.html.
Cake
We aren't a town known for our greens. Which is why the meal-sized tossed salads at Cake have us going out of our way to set lunch dates at this charming Chestnut Hill bakery-slash-cafe, a former greenhouse with a French-picnic atmosphere. There are enjoyable standards like tuna Nioise, classic chopped versions, and a carbed-up sesame chicken and udon noodle salad. But what we really love are the inventive options, like the generous Greek grain salad cleverly amped up with wheat berries, barley and red wine/dill vinaigrette, or the colorful roasted beet and mango dish tossed in vanilla oil with pomegranate balsamic syrup. 8501 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19118, cakeofchestnuthill.com.
Wit or Witout
It's been years even decades since someone was brave enough to enter into the Philly cheesesteak wars. But 2009 saw the opening of Wit or Witout, where Mayfair native Nicole DiZio not only tossed her name into the ring, but opened her modern red-and-gray shop in one of the key battlefields: the Northeast. And boy, did she do it right. Moist and meaty top round is sliced, grilled, slathered with melted American, Whiz or provolone, and layered on a substantial, chewy hoagie roll, creating a beefy sandwich that isn't overloaded with cheese. Watch out, boys (yeah, we're talkin' to you, Steve, Jim, Joey and Pat): There's a new girl in town. 7352 Frankford Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19136, witorwitout.com.
Maddy Siegrist
Villanova’s Maddy Siegrist may not have led her team to victory in the NCAA tournament this year. But that’s just about the only honor that eluded the recent grad — and number three pick in the WNBA draft. In her storied career, she was the all-time Big Five women’s scoring leader, the fastest Wildcat to reach 1,000 points, the Big East’s all-time regular-season scorer, and a multiple Player of the Week honoree; notched records for most points in a game and most field goals made … and became ’Nova’s leading all-time scorer, male or female, breaking a 36-year-old record. Look for her this WNBA season in a Dallas Wings uni.
Cape May
Thanks to a brand-new $2 million restaurant, bar and concert-venue development at the Cape May ferry terminal (where you can hop a boat to Lewes, Delaware), New Jersey’s southernmost shore has had some much-needed new life breathed in. At Ferry Park, get cocktails at Boat Drinks, brews and casual fare at Exit Zero, and steaks and seafood (and peerless views) at the Lookout. When it’s time for bed or just relaxing by the pool or sea, stay at La Mer Beachfront Resort for the most fashionable oceanfront suites in town. Before you head back home, kick it old-school at the Lobster House’s locals-heavy breakfast counter — if you can get a stool.
We Love Junk
During a home reno, this junk removal company will take everything you want gone — from drywall and unusable bricks to leftover concrete and shingles — and then recycle and donate anything salvageable. It’s all stuff the regular city dump won’t touch, and these guys whisk it away quickly and cleanly for a very reasonable fee. welovejunkphilly.com.
Kylie Kelce
From the moment Delco’s own Kylie Kelce (née McDevitt) came on screen in the Kelce documentary, describing her and Jason’s first Tinder date without an air of pretension, we knew we had a legend on our hands. Kylie’s rise has been meteoric, but the mother of three keeps it refreshingly real, with laid-back game-day outfits (black athleisure, jean shorts) and a makeup routine that can even be accomplished on the edge of a hotel bed (IYKYK). Of course, she can also glam it up at Milan Fashion Week and help sell out a vintage-style Eagles jacket (yes, the same kind Princess Di wore, naturally) — and raise $100k for the Eagles Autism Foundation in the process simply by signing and modeling it. But she doesn’t have to. And that kind of confidence never goes out of style. instagram.com/kykelce.
Philadelphia Folk Festival
After a spectacular and controversial collapse, the legendary folk fest, which started in 1962, has a new director and is back in business at Montco’s Old Pool Farm. The resuscitated festival runs August 16th to 18th, with acts including John Oates, Gangstagrass, and renowned banjoist (yes, banjoist!) Tony Trischka. We hope it will continue for many years to come. folkfest.org.