Linnea B.'s Profile

Absolutely loved Devon!  Could have had something to do with a balmy May evening on our last night in Philly as well as the excellent food and an attentive server.  

We had reservations for 8 PM and had to wait a bit to get an outside table but it was well worth waiting for.  The bar was crowded and the bar staff not super attentive, but we did get a good drink and were at our table before we finished it.  Loved overlooking Rittenhouse Square and people watching as we enjoyed our dinner and a bottle of wine.  

As appetizers, the prosciutto crusted scallops were to die for, and the duck trapped smoked salmon excellent also.  

We split a filet and crab cake entree, but added a second crab cake on the advice of our server - and very good advice it was!  

Awesome place - I highly recommend it!

I agree with Russ C.  The Elephant & Castle serves its purpose, in this case to be attached to the Crowne Plaza and therefore served as a place to have a last drink at the end of the evening and chat with friends who were also staying at the hotel.  

We arrived in Philly really late after a long day of travel with little food, and seeing as how we were on West Coast time, felt like it was time for dinner.  Happily the E&C was still open and we were able to get some pretty good halibut & chips.  

We stopped in for a night cap the rest of the nights we were in town and got decent drinks at a decent price, and our server even remembered us & what we liked to drink.

No one should be surprised that an old-school diner is just that - a diner.  You know you'll get OK eats served quick and no-nonsense about it.  

Just what I expected when I went there for a Saturday breakfast before sallying forth on a day of sight seeing in Philly.  

Eggs and hashbrowns just fine, and I tried the Scrapple just because...

Strolled by Parc on late Saturday afternoon in May and decided we must have some refreshment on the sidewalk patio seating overlooking Rittenhouse Square on such a beautiful day.  We were lucky enough to get a table that had just vacated as it was pretty crowded outside.  

I felt in the mood for a Mojito - the sunny afternoon and the fact that we had passed a Cuban place a block or so back maybe had something to do with it.  

The Mojito was decent, not the best I have had, but definitely good. We had a Shrimp Cocktail to tide us over until dinner and that was fine too.  

The service was a little iffy at first, as we sat for some time before our drink order was taken until we caught the eye of a server, who was not ours, but at least she tracked down ours.  Our server was not super-attentive, but to be fair, it seemed like they might have been a bit short-handed, as we saw the manager running back and forth quite a bit too.  

Would definitely love to try Parc again for a full meal next time we're in Philly.

It appears the fashion is to show a lot of ennui about this place based on many of  the reviews...but I really enjoyed the dinner my boyfriend and I had here.  

I didn't even go up to the roof top bar so was not subjected to the oft lamented lame plastic glasses.  By the way folks - though we may find plastic glasses ridiculous with Grey Goose, the harsh reality is that rooftop restaurants all have to comply with regulations these days - we have the same thing in San Diego, so it's not really fair to slam the restaurant for plastic glasses -ok, done with my rant now :)

I had a couple of vodka martinis that were just right.  We enjoyed the tapa type dishes most of which were quite delicious, particularly the ahi tuna tartare, lump crab cake and pan-seared hanger steak.  

We also tried - on a whim - the cheesesteak eggroll, which is a bit much.  It's tasty enough but a little too much of a good thing and a bit gimmicky, but still a fun thing to order.  

Our server was a bit rushed, but it was a busy night, and I have to say the dishes came out fairly quickly and one at a time which worked well since we were never quite done with one when the next one came out.  

Had I known about the Olde City location, I would have liked to try that one since other reviewers seemed to like it better, but I enjoyed myself just fine at the Continental Midtown.

A delightful and thoroughly delicious experience!  We were dining with a group of 15 but it still felt like an intimate dinner.  

The atmosphere is cozy but open, and the menu is wonderful.  We tried the mussels and pan seared scallops as appetizers and the Berkshire pork chop for the entree - everything was cooked to perfection!  

A great bottle of wine and congenial company made the evening!

Guess I'll review this twice since it has two listings and is worth knowing about!  

Melt in your mouth cheesesteaks!

Yummy!  I had mine with white american cheese as recommended by the girl at the counter as her favorite.  Wash it down with a local brew - a perfect lunch for a day of walking around olde city Philadelphia.  

Family owned and the whole family seems to work here - great food, fun atmosphere - loved it.

Good location for food, drink and sightseeting in Philly!

I was happily surprised with my stay here!  I chose the location for a conference that I was hosting - I tend to go a bit higher end for this purpose, but the location was good and the price was reasonable for my meeting which was helpful in this economy!  

The good stuff:
Sleeping rooms were a nice size, numerous elevators were convenient, the Elephant & Castle Restaurant attached was a good spot for end of the evening chats and reasonably priced (and decent) drinks.  The customer service was great - especially for meeting functions - both the sales team and catering team and AV crew were super helpful and responsive!  Great location close to Rittenhouse Square, lots of great dining, and within decent walking distance of Independence Hall etc.  

The not-so-good stuff -
The bathrooms are abysmally small - be careful to move your foot closing the door so as not to take off a toenail!  
Beds - meh....initially comfortable....get harder as the night goes on, but not terrible...I tend to have aches here and there (since I am over 30 by some margin),  so may be a bit more critical than others on this.  Our room had terrible internet access, but others who were staying here seemed to be fine...all I can say is I had a problem, but not sure if it was just my room.  

Overall, though, I was quite happy with the hotel and location.  

Functional info:  
Internet is free, parking is $33 per day, Shuttle is $10 PP and a cab ride is about $25-$30 from PHL.

Joao's Tin Fish is another good reason to go to Liberty Station!  

We ate in becuase it was a touch chilly, but would love to eat on the patio sometime soon, since I will be back!  

I had the 400 Margarita - so good!  $12 but way worth it!  

We had the seared Ahi appetizer and split the Tin Fish fried seafood combo which had fish, and really good scallops, shrimp and calamari. The coleslaw was super good too - kind of vinegary, in a good way.  

I think I will be spending more time at Liberty Station with good places to eat like Joao's Tin Fish around!

You must have the Frittura Mista appetizer!  Too yummy for words: Calamari, Shrimp, Salmon and Zucchini in a dynamite light, crispy and perfectly seasoned tempura

They have a fabulous menu - we could hardly decide what to eat, but the Frittura Mista was a no-brainer.  After deliberating at length about the entree, we chose the Tagliata di Manzo - Rib-Eye Steak in a Chocolate and Chianti sauce.  The sauce was interesting and delicious - the rib eye was cooked just right and the flavor was great, but the cut we had was disappointingly fatty.  Otherwise everything was great.  

We thought the service was just fine - I must say I was perplexed by many of the negative reviews I saw about the service.  

The wine selection is good, and the bar drinks were quite reasonable I thought.  We did go on "Martini Wednesday" so got an Absolute Martini for I think it was $6.  But even their regular prices on good brands of liquor were better than many places that don't have as good a menu.

I was pleasantly surprised by the whole experience - and will be back!