Han Dynasty
We love a Chinese restaurant where they'll tell you where to go if you try to order the chicken fried rice. That's how confident Han Dynasty owner Han Chiang is that the Szechuan and Taiwanese cuisine he serves in Royersford and Exton (and Old City, for urbanites) will erase any notions you had about wanting greasy corner takeout. 260 North Pottstown Pike, Exton, PA 19341, handynasty.net.
Han Dynasty
At the new Old City outpost of owner Han Chiang's three--restaurant dynasty (joining locations in Exton and Royersford), the menu is organized by spice, on a scale of 1 (mild) to 10 (call the fire department). Han isn't shy about telling you what to eat: the delicate dumplings in a chili oil bath (number 4 on the menu), dan dan noodles (6), and the dry-pot-style fish (10). Take his advice once the endorphins from all that spice kick in, you'll be glad you did. 108 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106, handynasty.net.
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,
Calumet Photographic
If Amazon's camera section had a storefront, it'd look something like this South Philly store, where pro photogs and amateurs alike pluck serious gear from a jaw-dropping inventory. 1400 South Columbus Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19147, calumetphoto.com.
Morgan's Pier
Yeah, our choice for Best Backyard Burger requires liquid nitrogen and a thermal circulator. What of it? One taste of this thing and you'll understand exactly what we mean. 221 North Columbus Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19123, morganspier.com.
Honey's Sit 'N Eat
Foodies and just-plain-eaters alike in Graduate Hospital whooped with joy when Honey's Sit-N-Eat announced a second outpost in their 'hood, to open later this year and in the meantime, the NoLibs branch is still all about crispy latkes, inventive omelets and pancakes as big as your head, served by cheery hipsters. 2101 South Street, Philadelphia, PA 19123, honeyssitneat.com.
Beans Beauty
The products here are so good, they can almost make you believe that, Yes, I could look like a picture in a magazine. We can't promise you will. But the unending selection of nifty products and tools will get you closer than you ever dreamed possible. 1733 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19127, beansbeauty.com.
McGlinchey's
I remember the first time I went to McGlinchey's, the notoriously divey (and smokey) dive bar on 15th Street. It was just after my 21st birthday (I'm 39 now, egad!), and I heard that the beers were some of the cheapest in the city, which is all I needed to know. Given that these were the days before Philadelphia was Beer Town U.S.A., I ordered a Rolling Rock. Within minutes, I managed to get screamed at by the prickly bartender and have a beer spilled on me. On a later visit, a blonde bartender pegged me in the eye with an ice cube, and a girl puked on my shoes. Little has changed. Unlike most dive bars in Philadelphia, which go through waves of cliques and trends (Bob & Barbara's is a good case in point), McGlinchey's is still the same old school McGlinchey's it was back in the good old days when every bar in the city allowed you to light up. And the cast of regulars that bellies up to the bar each night hell, each lunchtime, at this place is a study in colorful characters, so much so that Philadelphia photographer (and former McGlinchey's bartender) Sarah Stolfa won a New York Times photography contest for The Regulars, her series of pics of some of McGlinchey's most dedicated drinkers. You can have your gastropubs and trendy dive bars that have to actually try to be dive bars. Gritty, no-frills McGlinchey's is the real deal. Oh you can find all sorts of fancy beers here now, that's true... but don't worry; they still have the $3 Rolling Rock 20 oz. draft. And the jukebox is now one of those irritating play-anything models. But the bathrooms are still filthy and graffiti-covered, with barely enough room to stand up and pee (and God forbid you have to do more). You can still get a 75-cent hot dog from a crock-potted pool of questionable liquid. And if you so much as let a finger dangle into the waitress's service space at the bar, she will put a verbal beatdown on you. But that's okay. It's McGlinchey's. It's always been that way, and I, for one, hope it never changes. 259 South 15th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102, mcglincheys.com.
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.
Cindy Martino at Pileggi on the Square
The pre-tan prep (face-washing, application of cuticle oil on fingers and toes, taping of palms) and explanation of the product this tanning veteran is about to hose you with (works with your skin's own pigment, organic henna stains that mean you'll walk out with a glow) take much longer than said hosing but said glow is so worth it. 717 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106, pileggisalon.com.
The Republican
Common sense will tell you to avoid this place: It's dark. It's grimy. There are two poles and a mirror, and they're used frequently and with varying degrees of skill. But come 2 a.m., this place fills up with an almost glorious assortment of humanity. It's South Philly, folks; embrace it until the wee hours. And if you get too skeeved/drunk/hungry, the Melrose is mere steps up the street. 1734 Snyder Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19145, .
3rd Ward
The adult night-school world in the Philly region has been turned on its head by the brand-new outpost of the Brooklyn-based education company, which the New York Times has deemed a DIY utopia. Whether you want to learn how to develop a documentary, fabricate metal structures, cast jewelry molds, build an urban garden, create comic strips or design Web pages that look like they're from 2015 instead of 2005, you can do it here, at the wide-open learning space. Say goodbye to basket-weaving forever. 1227 North 4th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122, philly.3rdward.com.
Philly Beer School
Put down that PBR and enroll, so you'll know what you're doing when you tiptoe outside your comfort zone. 127 South 22nd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103, vinology.com/beer.php.
Schuylkill River Trail
READERS' PICK: Obvious, yes. Crowded, maybe. But how could any fitness buff turn down 20.5 no-cars-allowed miles from Philly to Valley Forge? 00000, schuylkillrivertrail.com.
Ploome
Founder Christina Stoltz takes all the trepidation out of the scary-looking Pilates reformer machine. Besides, one look at her fitness-model-toned body and you'll hop right on. 1040 North American Street, suite 1001, Philadelphia, PA 19123, ploomephilly.com.