PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — This week on FYI Philly, we taste a new Stephen Starr restaurant, visit a new sports bar for the ladies and check out a historic theater that is getting a new life.
History has been renewed at the Lansdowne Theater. Shuttered for nearly 40 years, the near-century-old space has been restored to its former glory.
The theater originally opened in 1927. An electrical fire caused it to close in 1987. After years of sitting empty the space got new life with a restoration project that took nearly 20 years.
Lansdowne Theater is on the historic register. A blast from the past that remains one of the few theaters from the Hollywood movie era of the 1920s.
The restoration project recreated the original theater’s grandeur using images from the theater’s former life to imitate the original stage curtain, the décor on the seats and lights that line the walls. Original items include the centerpiece chandelier and the neon clock on the front wall. And you can’t miss the marquee that welcomes guests to the new home for entertainment in Delaware County.
The former movie house is now a live stage for music, comedy and community events.
Lansdowne Theater | Facebook | Instagram
31 North Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, PA 19050
Stephen Starr’s Borromini is a new spot in Rittenhouse Square. The James Beard-winning restaurateur was inspired by a trip to Italy and has brough that inspiration to the iconic Philadelphia neighborhood.
The two-floor eatery offers views of the park and a menu that includes house-made pastas. The 100-layer lasagna has been an early menu favorite.
The cocktail menu includes favorites like an Aperol spritz or the tomato-forward pomodoro martini.
Borromini | Facebook | Instagram
1805 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103
The Slider Company makes chef-driven small sandwiches a specialty. It’s a Philly pop-up with a slogan that doubles as a greeting: servers start each order with the phrase, “How you slidin’ today?’
Co-founders William R. Johnson, Jr. and Anesha Garrett developed the business as a spot for elevated sliders, and not just burgers.
The current pop-up location at The Meadows by NKDCD, in a park-like setting complete with a vintage Philadelphia trolley. The business is also in residence at The Luxe apartment building at 1705 N. American Street, and will be moving to a permanent brick-and-mortar in the spring at 2043 Frankford Avenue, just steps away from the park.
It runs through November.
The Slider Company | Facebook | Instagram
2211 Frankford Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19125
215-598-2581
Big Swerve’s BBQ brings fun, foodie, family vibes to South Jersey. Stephen and Darlene Clark are the cookin’ couple behind the Westville joint. The husband and wife team started the business in 2020 in their backyard, and have grown to have a restaurant, a food truck, a catering service and a banquet hall, named after Darlene’s late grandmother, Stella. Stephen does all of the meats, and all of the sides are Darlene’s recipes.
The set-up is housed in a modified shipping container that Darlene found online.
Big Swerve’s BBQ | Instagram | Facebook
201 Broadway
Westville, NJ 08093
Restaurant: 856-349-7469, 7481
Catering, food truck, Stella’s: 609-866-9847
Stella’s Banquet Hall & Cafe
Every weekend, Christina Dezzi is popping up somewhere sampling and selling her pickles dubbed Dezzis Dills.
She makes about a dozen varieties, from garlic parm, wasabi and sweet & tangy to Bloody Mary dill, a bread & butter pickle and a spicy hot Dillablo.
But her most popular pickle is the Philly Dilly, a sharp provolone with pickle spice, long hots and garlic.
Chrissy brines in a licensed commercial kitchen in Springfield, Delaware County that she shares with Julie Tamaccio, the Founder of Sweet Treats by Julie.
Julie takes orders on social media, for everything from cookies and cakes to her grandmother’s biscotti. She also bakes for Bean Ability, a cafe in Drexel Hill that employs adults with disabilities.
You can find Dezzis Dills at a number of local shops plus she pops up nearly every weekend at various markets.
Dezzis Dills| Facebook | Instagram
1-833-353-4557 |dezzisdills@gmail.com
Sweet Treats By Julie | Facebook | Instagram
(610) 742-3482 | stbyjulie@gmail.com
Marsha’s is set to open its doors on South Street on September 19, making history as the the city’s first bar centered on women’s sports.
Chivonn Anderson is the founder and president. She grew up in Olney, a lifelong athlete and sports lover.
But it was a 2019 trip to Paris to see the US women’s team play in the World Cup that changed her life.
She was photographed in the stands wearing Megan Rapinoe’s #15 jersey and carrying the Pride flag. She and her friends were in Prague for the semi-final match and watched it in a bar. But back in Philadelphia for the FIFA final, she says the bartender refused to put the game on because the Phillies were playing that night.
That’s when Chivonn decided the city needed a space that gives female sports the platform that they deserve.
The focal point behind the bar is a giant painting of Marsha P. Johnson. It’s Chivonn’s homage to one of the most prominent figures of the gay rights movement.
She has decades of experience in the service industry but she’s also a licensed real estate agent and so she bought the building, the liquor license and all of the business assets to insure that Marsha’s is here to stay.
Phase Two is transforming the 2nd floor into an event space.
Longterm, Chivonn dreams of opening Marsha’s across the region and the nation so everyone has a place to watch women’s sports.
Marsha’s South Street |Facebook | Instagram
430 South Street, Philadelphia, Pa. 19147
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