Philadelphia, PA June 13, 2018

For just a few days, the Columbia Pint Night Crew experienced living in the city of brotherly love during the tail end of Philly Beer Week. Our home for 3 nights was just a few blocks south of Rittenhouse in a neighborhood called Graduate Hospital. 

Graduate Hospital is a pedestrian-friendly neighborhood full of bars, restaurants,  cafes, and shops. The streets are busy with young people, many with families. Carefully arranged window boxes and planters adorn the streets and buildings. The people are friendly. In fact, one night before a storm hit, someone knocked on our door to check if we owned the car with its windows down.  Pretty much the definition of the city of brotherly love.

William Penn named the city Philadelphia, which means philos, “love” and adelphos, “brother“. After facing discrimination in Europe, he hoped Philadelphia would be a sanctuary, welcoming all religions.

But Philly is not all sunshine and moonbeams.

I am a bicyclist. When encountering fellow bicyclists I’ve always experienced a friendly wave or a nod. That is until I came to Philly. Several years ago, My friend, Art, and I rode from Valley Forge to the Philadelphia Art Museum, a beautiful ride. One memory is etched into my brain. While Art and I rode side by side,  another rider whizzed by me and yelled: “Get the fuck outta the way, asshole”. Welcome to Philadelphia. I had 3 or 4 similar experiences that day.

Again, this Philly beer week, we experienced some non-brotherly love. We saw 2 drivers jockeying for position in the street, violently hurling profanities at each other. No blows were thrown that time or the 3 or 4 other “Welcome to Philadelphia” episodes we experienced. For the most part, Philadelphia seems warm and friendly, but the city that pelted snowballs at Santa is lying just under the surface.

Our time at Graduate Hospital was a neighborhood of friendliness, an oasis of goodness. After our trip to Ardmore and Tired Hands, we stopped at South Street’s local pub, Ten Stone to watch the Belmont Stakes and eat some dinner. We sat at a table surrounded by families. While drinking a low ABV Dogfish Head SeaQuench and chowing down on a cobb salad, I witnessed history in the making as Justify took the Triple Crown. Outside of Ten Stone, I got a quick lesson in window box gardening  as I chatted with someone replanting a box for the summer.

The next morning we enjoyed a delicious breakfast at Honey’s Sit ‘N Eat. The hipster waitress served me a Toad in a Hole (poached egg on toast and covered in Hollandaise sauce). The micro-greens on the plate were a nice touch.

Graduate Hospital is an oasis of neighborliness in the city of brotherly love.

Cheers!

Warren