Unfortunately, it wasn’t rave reviews that brought us to Hikari (though it should have been). Once we decided we wanted to check out the Northern Liberties area and that we were hungry for sushi, Hikari was our only choice. Luckily for us, there were plenty of seats(we were even able to get a table outside on such a gorgeous night), and our waitress promptly greeted us and took care of our bottle of wine. The menu was pretty standard, although quite extensive including a section of Korean entrees and a long list of specialty rolls. We decided to go with the Polar Bear Maki(salmon & avocado topped w/ white tuna), Palm Spring Maki(tuna, salmon, mango wrapped in cucumber), and a Spicy Yellowtail Maki. When the rolls came out they were not only beautiful but plentiful – and they certainly tasted as good as they looked! So good, in fact, that we ordered a second plate of the Polar Bear & Spicy Yellowtail (left of photo). This place has already beat out some of our Chicago favorites so needless to say, we’ll be making the drive back to Hikari for the mouth-watering Miso and scrumptious sushi, not to mention the wonderful hospitality.

Rating: 5 forks
Location: 1040 N American St
Price: $7-$15

As the home of our favorite slogan thus far, “Coffee in the A.M. Sushi in the P.M.”, this little spot was a great neighborhood find on our first day here. We’ve been twice for coffee and were finally able to try the sushi last night. Without a terribly extensive menu, they certainly cover all of the basics and their specials menu has some pretty unique rolls (Shaggy Dog, anyone?) We only wanted a little bite, so we decided to go with the Tiger Eye Roll (special) and a simple Spicy Tuna, for easy comparison’s sake. In the 15 minutes it took to wait for our order to be ready, we were able to run down the street & pick up some wine, getting back just in time to pick up the sushi and head home. After trying each of the rolls, we were oddly enough more impressed by the Spicy Tuna. Though nothing was extra-ordinary about it, the generous portions of fish made it more than worth the $6 and oh-so-yummy! As for the Tiger Eye, it was quite frankly one of the best rolls we’ve had, but $12 for 6 pieces is a bit on the excessive side. We will most definitely be returning (for both the coffee and the sushi), but are looking forward to seeing how this new corner shop matures over the coming months.

Rating: 3.5 forks

Location: 735 N 26th St

Price: $5-$15

If you love or at least enjoy chocolate and don’t mind spending a premium on some one-of-a-kind menu items, Max Brenner is the place for you. We found ourselves wanting to see what the crazy chocolate fuss was about when we saw Max Brenner’s restaurant on the list of participating Center City Sips venues. It definitely gave us a good glimpse of downtown, was just a touch on the touristy side, but let’s face it – it was fun. After a round of some local Phil. Brewing Co. Kenzinger beers, we stepped it up a notch and tried both CCS cocktails. The Psychedelic Punch was your typical summer rum mix (albeit not overly sweet, which was nice) and the Mocha Madness martini was quite luxurious, however, I’m pretty sure we never would have ordered them at their regular price of $11.95 a piece. Similarly, our app of Spinach Dip was pretty tasty with its chili-dusted tortilla chips, but also not worth it’s full price. We had a great time and will most likely be visiting again when we have out-of-town guests to sample some good old Hot Chocolate, which at $5-7 is a price I can live with!

Rating: 3 forks

Location: 1500 Walnut St

Price: food – $10-18, drinks – $5-15

We found this little spot in our Not For Tourists Guide to Philadelphia, when we arrived in Philly on Monday and realized our movers wouldn’t be here until Tuesday and thus we would not be able to cook, not that we would have anyway It was easy to get to with a little help from the GPS and while there were plenty of other diners, we had no problem getting seated right away. I had the Pad Khee Mao and was pleasantly surprised with the large amount of vegetables in the dish, although overall would have liked (and was expecting) a bit more heat behind the flavor. Brett ordered the Pad Thai and aside from the too-large pieces of tofu that incidentally showed up in the dish next to the chicken, it was a great plate. The portions were pretty in-line with the prices, both a bit more than was necessary, and if we lived closer we would consider going back, but will opt for trying other places instead.

Rating: 3 forks

Location: 123 S 23rd St

Price: $10-15 per plate

Our first neighborhood outing took us to this local bar/grill just a few blocks from our house. It was a nice night out and we were lucky enough to grab the last open table on the patio, but the inside surely looked nice enough as well. We ended up sort of being waited on by 2 different girls, both of whom were very friendly and seemed pretty knowledgeable about both the food and beer lists. $4 pints of Yuengling kept me happy all night but Brett also tried a Boom Shaka Lager (double-hopped IPA similar to Breckenridge’s 471) followed by a Victory Prima Pils (light & crisp, but easily forgettable). For food, we tried the Chicken Tacos and Chipotle Chicken Sandwich, which both proved to be better-than-your-average bar food. 6 beers and 2 plates came to just over $50 w/ tip and it’s in a great location for sitting back and relaxing, but a combination of mosquitoes and the frat table next to us sent us home pretty quick. Overall, this is sure to be the 1st visit of many to Bishop’s Collar.

Rating: 4 forks

Location: 2349 Fairmont Ave

Price: beers – $4-7, food – $5-15