Every time NATA comes to town, friends reach out asking where to eat and what to do. Rather than send the same recommendations to a handful of people, I wanted to share my Philly with everyone making the trip. I know Philadelphia doesn’t have the best reputation. Some folks arrive with mixed expectations and sometimes leave without seeing what makes this city special. These are the places I love, and I hope they help you fall a little bit in love with our city.

-Ellis

Coffee, Food, and Bars Near the Convention Center

Coffee

We’re going to need it. The closest good cups:

•      Old City Coffee (oldcitycoffee.com), inside Reading Terminal Market at 1136 Arch St. Local roaster, fast line, right across the street.

•      The Ground Rittenhouse (thegroundrittenhouse.com), 120 S 18th St. Plant-filled cafe with creative seasonal lattes.

•      Moka & Co, 1 S Penn Square. Yemeni coffee and teas, beautiful pastries, big seating area.

•      La Colombe Workshop (lacolombe.com), 1414 S Penn Square. The Philly-born roaster, flagship location.

•      Elixr Coffee Roasters (elixrcoffee.com), 207 S Sydenham St. Local favorite, excellent espresso.

•      Cypress Garden Coffee, 304 S 12th St. Tiny, warm, near-perfect ratings.

Nearby Quick(er) Bites – We <3 Sandos

Philly is a sandwich city. Eat as many sandwiches as you can while you’re here. If someone asks you if you want it on a seeded roll—just say yes.

Reading Terminal Market (readingterminalmarket.org), 1136 Arch St, is right across the street. Cheesesteaks get the press, but roast pork is what locals actually order. Hit Tommy DiNic’s for the legendary roast pork sandwich (order it with sharp provolone and broccoli rabe), Beiler’s Doughnuts for Amish-style donuts, Hershel’s East Side Deli for pastrami, The Original Turkey has stuffing worth ordering by the pound. Wait in lines. It’s worth it.

Middle Child (middlechildphilly.com), 248 S 11th St, is the can’t-miss sandwich shop. I get the Shopsin. Oh, and their breakfast sandwiches feature a heavenly, thick, fluffy egg patty.

Sit-Down Lunch or Dinner

•      Parc (parc-restaurant.com), 227 S 18th St. Stephen Starr’s Parisian-style brasserie on Rittenhouse Square. The french onion soup is incredible. Beautiful sidewalk seating. A lovely place to sit outside with friends and catch up. Open from 8 AM. 

•      El Vez, 121 S 13th St. Mexican, open from 11:30 AM.

•      Darling Jack’s Tavern, 104 S 13th St. American, two blocks from the convention center. Great flatbread pizzas, salmon bowl, and a beautiful room. Lunch from 11:30 AM.

•      Wilder (wilderphilly.com), 2009 Sansom St. Newer Italian/pizza spot near Rittenhouse with consistently great reviews. Lunch from 11:30 AM.

•      Talula’s Daily, 208 W Washington Square. Cafe-counter style with grain bowls, salads, sandwiches, soups. Quick but excellent.

•      Monk’s Café (monkscafe.com), 264 S 16th St. Best mussels and frites in the city and a world-class Belgian beer list. 

•      Sampan, 124 S 13th St. Asian small plates. Dinner only (opens 4 PM).

•      Vedge, 1221 Locust St. One of the country’s best vegan restaurants. Dinner only (opens 5 PM).

Eat Your Way Through Chinatown

The convention center is right on the edge of Chinatown. Walk into it. The neighborhood is under constant development pressure, so spending money there matters.

Dim Sum Garden (dimsumgardenphilly.com), 1024 Race St, has some of the best soup dumplings in the city. Order the pork xiao long bao, scallion pancakes, and dan dan noodles.

Also worth knowing: Tom’s Dim Sum (59 N 11th St), Nan Zhou Hand Drawn Noodle House (1022 Race St), and Ocean Harbor (1023 Race St) for old-school cart dim sum.

Bars

•      Tria Cafe Rittenhouse, 123 S 18th St. Wine, beer, cheese.

•      Graffiti Bar, 124 S 13th St. Hidden mural-covered patio behind Sampan.

•      Hop Sing Laundromat, 1029 Race St. Chinatown speakeasy: dress code, no phones, cash only. Phenomenal cocktails.

•      The Dandelion, 124 S 18th St. Stephen Starr’s British pub.

•      Walnut Garden, 1708 Walnut St. Outdoor beer garden in Center City.

Heads up: Philly bars have 4 AM permits during the World Cup. Expect late nights.

Breakfast & Brunch

•      Sabrina’s Café (sabrinascafe.com), 1804 Callowhill St.

•      Green Eggs Café, 1301 Locust St.

•      Middle Child (above) is also a great breakfast option.

Food Not Close, But Worth the Trip

You Must Experience Di Bruno Bros.

It will bring you to tears. Di Bruno Bros. (dibruno.com), 930 S 9th St, the original Italian Market shop. Cheese, salumi, hoagies. Let the staff guide you.

But I want a Philly Cheesesteaks!

Okay but skip Pat’s and Geno’s. Better:

•      Angelo’s Pizzeria, 736 S 9th St. Cheesesteaks, incredible pizza, great Italian hoagies. Pro tip: Angelo’s is on DoorDash and Uber Eats. Skip the line and get it delivered to your hotel.

•      John’s Roast Pork (johnsroastpork.com), 14 E Snyder Ave.

•      Jim’s South St. (jimssouthstreet.com), 400 South St.

(Remember—The seeded roll, always.)

Dinner Destinations

Kalaya (kalayaphilly.com), 4 W Palmer St. The one to plan around. Chef Nok Suntaranon’s Southern Thai, James Beard Best New Restaurant winner. Watch her Chef’s Table episode on Netflix first. Get the crab curry. It will change your life. If you like gin cocktails, order the Lum Yong. Reserve as early as possible.

•      Zahav (zahavrestaurant.com), 237 St James Pl. Modern Israeli, James Beard Outstanding Restaurant.

•      Laser Wolf (laserwolfphilly.com), 1301 N Howard St. Israeli skewer house, set menu, great for groups. 

•      Mawn (mawnphilly.com), 764 S 9th St. Beard-winning Cambodian, tiny BYOB. Reservations release the 1st of each month at noon. They do walk-ins for lunch but you have to wait in line. 

•      Friday Saturday Sunday (fridaysaturdaysunday.com), 261 S 21st St. Michelin-starred.

•      Suraya (surayaphilly.com), 1528 Frankford Ave. Lebanese, gorgeous space.

•      Royal Sushi & Izakaya (royalsushiandizakaya.com), 780 S 2nd St.

•      Pizzeria Beddia (pizzeriabeddia.com), 1313 N Lee St. Among the best pies in the country.

Brunch Worth the Uber

Café La Maude (cafelamaude.com), 816 N 4th St. Lebanese-French brunch in Northern Liberties. Honey’s Sit ‘n Eat, 800 N 4th St, is right around the corner.

Markets

Riverwards Produce (riverwardsproduce.com), 2200 E Norris St (Fishtown) and 146 N Bread Street (Old City). Tiny, beautifully curated grocery store with gorgeous local produce and prepared food. One of Ellis’ happy places. The kind of place that makes you want to move to a city.

The 9th Street Italian Market for old-school South Philly, and the Rittenhouse Farmers Market (Saturdays year-round, Tuesdays in summer) around Rittenhouse Square.

Other Things To Do While In Town

You Picked the Best Possible Week: World Cup Fan Fest

Philly is the only North American city hosting an official FIFA Fan Festival for all 39 days of the World Cup, at Lemon Hill in East Fairmount Park. Conference week is the Round of 32: every match is single-elimination.

Matches during NATA:

•      Mon June 29: 1, 4:30, 9 PM ET

•      Tue June 30: 1, 5, 9 PM ET

•      Wed July 1: 12, 4, 8 PM ET

•      Thu July 2: 3, 7 PM ET

Free, but register in advance at phillyfwc26.com/fifa-fan-fest. Giant screens, 75+ food trucks, live performances. Walk or take transit; don’t drive.

Catch a Phillies Game

Citizens Bank Park, 1 Citizens Bank Way. The Phillies are home every night of NATA, hosting the Pittsburgh Pirates. Mon–Wed games at 6:40 PM, Thursday day game at 12:35 PM. Take the Broad Street Line straight from Center City. Tickets at mlb.com/phillies.

The Mütter Museum: Built For You

You’re athletic trainers. You have to go. The Mütter Museum (muttermuseum.org), 19 S 22nd St, is one of the great medical museums in the world: Hyrtl Skull Collection, the tallest skeleton on display in North America, Einstein’s brain slides, Soap Lady, pathological anatomy. Ten minutes from the convention center. Bring colleagues.

Pennsylvania Hospital Museum (Brand New)

Opened May 8, 2026, marking the hospital’s 275th anniversary. The Pennsylvania Hospital Museum (pennmedicine.org/pennsylvania-hospital-museum), at the historic Pine Building (8th and Pine Streets), is housed in the nation’s oldest chartered hospital, co-founded by Benjamin Franklin and Dr. Thomas Bond in 1751. The restored surgical amphitheater (the country’s first), the original apothecary, and the historic medical library are open to the public for the first time. Exhibits include a life-size 3D touch-screen surgery table, interactive apothecary drawers, and displays tracing the hospital’s role in maternal care, mental health, surgical innovation, and pandemic response from smallpox through COVID. Open Wednesdays through Sundays. About a 15-minute walk from the convention center.

Other Museums

The Barnes Foundation (barnesfoundation.org), 2025 Benjamin Franklin Pkwy. If you like art, especially impressionism, do not skip this. One of the world’s greatest collections of Renoir, Cézanne, and Matisse, hung in dense salon-style ensembles.

Also: Philadelphia Museum of Art (philamuseum.org) for the Rocky steps and a world-class collection, and Eastern State Penitentiary (easternstate.org) for Al Capone’s cell and a Steve Buscemi audio tour.

Historic Sights

15-minute walk from the convention center: Independence Hall (nps.gov/inde, free timed tickets), the Liberty Bell, the Museum of the American Revolution (amrevmuseum.org), Elfreth’s Alley, and Christ Church (christchurchphila.org) where Ben Franklin is buried.

Art Outside the Museums

Mural Arts Philadelphia (muralarts.org) has produced over 4,000 murals since 1984, making Philly the “Mural Capital of the World.” They’re everywhere. Tours available, or just look up while you walk.

Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens (phillymagicgardens.org), 1020 South St. Isaiah Zagar’s massive mosaic environment.

America’s Garden Capital

Then Greater Philadelphia area is America’s Garden Capital: more than 30 public gardens within 30 miles, the highest concentration in the country. Find one at americasgardencapital.org/find-a-garden. My favorite: Longwood Gardens (longwoodgardens.com)—It’s a hike from Philly but its stunning.

Philly Green Spaces

Rittenhouse Square: the platonic urban park, 10 minutes from the convention center. Calder Gardens (caldergardens.org), 2100 Benjamin Franklin Pkwy: new dedicated home for Alexander Calder’s kinetic sculptures, with a Piet Oudolf garden. Schuylkill River Trail: walk, run, or rent an Indego bike along the river.

“I’d like to go for a run..”

Classic Philly run, ~5 miles: Convention center west to the Schuylkill River Trail (0.8 mi), north to the Art Museum (1.5 mi), Rocky steps, then continue past Boathouse Row on Kelly Drive. Reverse home.

“I am into Live Music”

•      Johnny Brenda’s (johnnybrendas.com), 1201 Frankford Ave. Small rock club, the best.

•      Union Transfer (utphilly.com), 1026 Spring Garden St. Mid-sized, best-booked room in the city, walkable from the convention center.

•      The Fillmore (thefillmorephilly.com), 29 E Allen St.

•      The Met Philadelphia (themetphilly.com), 858 N Broad St. Restored 1908 opera house.

•      Kimmel Center (ensembleartsphilly.org), 300 S Broad St. Philadelphia Orchestra.

Free music during NATA: welcomeamerica.com lists daily concerts for the Wawa Welcome America festival. Headliners include Idina Menzel, Queen Latifah, Eve, and Kirk Franklin.

Practical Tips

SEPTA’s Broad Street Line and trolleys are easy. Uber/Lyft everywhere. Book restaurant reservations 2 to 4 weeks out. The conference ends right before July 4th weekend, which is the 250th anniversary of the United States in the city where it happened. If you can extend your trip, do it.