Is Old City Really Over?

Lately, we’ve been hearing a lot of “Old City sucks” commentary – from eaters, readers and from ourselves. But is Old City really that atrocious? What has it done to deserve its increasingly rotten reputation, when just a few years back it was considered a shining example of the new Philadelphia?

After reading Thrillist’s reference about “Manayunk coming to Old City,” we jumped to the conclusion that Old City had officially jumped the shark – which Philebrity called a while back – but after tossing around some of the neighborhood’s choice spots, we wondered if the good actually outweighs the bad in that neck of the woods? Read on for Today’s He Said, She Said: Old City edition. And weigh in yourselves in the comments.

kirsthenri: Old City is officially dead

kirsthenri: I’m calling it

foobooz: Ooh. Good poll question.

kirsthenri: well, the positives for old city:

kirsthenri: fork, amada,

kirsthenri: franklin fountain

kirsthenri: continental?

kirsthenri: chloe

foobooz: The Italian BYOB with the impossible to remember name.

kirsthenri: La BYOBa? [La Locanda Del Ghiottone]

foobooz: that’s the one.

foobooz: Panorama.

kirsthenri: yeah

kirsthenri: so those are some positives

kirsthenri: now, the negatives

foobooz: That’s still a lot of positives.

kirsthenri: getting shot at 3rd and market

kirsthenri: oh tangerine is a positive

foobooz: Mad River. Right.

kirsthenri: Buffalo Billiards? yes or no?
foobooz: it’s a sign the place is brain dead.

kirsthenri: getting shot in World Fusion

foobooz: Triumph is +

kirsthenri: maybe on life support and in a coma?

kirsthenri: so maybe the point of it is that in fact Old City is not dead?

kirsthenri: there are way more positives here

foobooz: Khyber too.

kirsthenri: oh yeah, love the khyber

kirsthenri: so the only negatives are:

kirsthenri: the clubs?

foobooz: Margherita Pizza on 2nd has the most maddeningly inconsistent hours.

foobooz: But yeah, it’s the clubs.

foobooz: and the clientele.

kirsthenri: oooh campos is good

kirsthenri: what clubs tho?

kirsthenri: are they even open anymore?

foobooz: I don’t even know anymore.

foobooz: Glam is gone.

kirsthenri: Cebu is gone

foobooz: right.

kirsthenri: Suede?

foobooz: Mint is there?

kirsthenri: Mint?

foobooz: Blue Martini is there.

foobooz: Exactly.

kirsthenri: what about Triada? Red Sky?

foobooz: Red Sky is closed, being redeveloped.

foobooz: Triada = Suede, no? Both closed.

foobooz: There’s Drinker’s, Lucy’s.

foobooz: National Mechanics is good though.

kirsthenri: so the big question here is:

kirsthenri: does Old City REALLY suck? Or is it a few bad apples ruining the perception?