Stuck between New York and Washington, D.C. and too established to be considered an "up-and-comer" like Minneapolis or Charleston, South Carolina, Philadelphia’s food scene too often gets overlooked by the national dining intelligentsia. Though Philly does earn its share of accolades – recent nods have included best U.S. pizza and coffee shop rankings as well as James Beard Foundation outstanding chef, outstanding restaurateur and Rising Star Chef of the Year awards – overall, Philadelphians feel somewhat (unfairly) snubbed.
So the city is celebrating mightily this month after being named as home to both James Beard’s outstanding restaurant of 2019 (Zahav) and Food & Wine magazine’s best new restaurant (Cadence). The Beard Foundation doesn’t explain its selections but Food & Wine wrote four lengthy paragraphs of love to Cadence, a BYOB opened last year by three veterans of High Street Hospitality, a powerhouse restaurant group in its own right.
Likely on F&W’s radar because of an earlier online story contributed by a local writer, Cadence charmed Restaurant Editor at Large Jordana Rothman with its "simple pleasures and serious food."
"Where did the feel-good restaurants go?" she writes. "The ones that restore the spirit, the ones that make us feel fed in ways that transcend the obvious, the ones where the hospitality isn’t an algorithmic triple axel but human, heartfelt—'How’s the family?’ You know the type: Hearth in New York City; Rustic Canyon in Los Angeles. To that list, add Cadence in Philadelphia."
