2025 James Beard Award nominees in Philadelphia include 3 chefs and a bar
2025 James Beard Award nominees in Philadelphia include 3 chefs and a bar
00:34
James Beard-nominated Philadelphia chef and restaurant owner Jesse Ito is opening up his second restaurant in the City of Brotherly Love. Enter Dancerobot.
Yes, we promise that’s the real name of this restaurant, which began taking reservations ahead of its official opening on Sept. 30.
Dancerobot, located at 17th and Sansom streets in Rittenhouse, will serve Japanese classics paired with modern takes on Japanese comfort food. Think of dinner dishes like katsu curry, hamburger steak with demi glace and French onion soup a la Japonaise.
Ito’s second restaurant will also serve brunch, including dishes like housemade milk bread toasts, brunchy yaki onigiri and Teishoku.
Sorry, did we get your mouth watering?
Visitors can also expect a plethora of cocktails, ranging from decadent blends like a matcha spritz and a miso boulevardier to a black sesame espresso martini and green negroni sour. There will also be a vast selection of sake, wine and beer to choose from.
On Thursday night, Ito’s first restaurant, Royal Sushi & Izakaya, was named No. 32 on North America’s 50 Best Restaurants list for 2025. The Queen Village restaurant, located on South 2nd Street, also celebrated its ninth anniversary since opening earlier this week.
Ito was previously nominated for Best Chef in the Mid-Atlantic 2025 by the James Beard Foundation in May.
Those interested in securing a reservation at Dancerobot can do so online now. For a fun user experience, we also recommend checking out their website.