Oldest Restaurants in the Philadelphia Area

[DonRocks]

Feeling a little misty-eyed and nostalgic about Chef Itoh's passing, I'd like to begin a group project to honor the oldest restaurants in the Philadelphia area, mirroring the one we've maintained for years in Washington, DC. Surrounding areas are included, and since our community was founded on Apr 15, 2005, anything that was open on that date is included as well - an asterisk means that the restaurant is now closed (and, by definition, closed after Apr 15, 2005).

I'll start with the oldest that I know of, and will then slowly build the list over time.

1860 - McGillin's Olde Ale House
1893*- Old Original Bookbinder's (moved to Old City in 1898, the 1865 date on the sign is untrue)
1900 - Ralph's Italian Restaurant (America's oldest family-owned Italian restaurant, changed locations in 1915)
1930 - Pat's King of Steaks
1938 - Nick's Old Original Roast Beef
1960 - Dalessandro's
1964 - Casselli's (Roxborough)
1966 - Geno's Steaks
1969 - Good and Plenty (Smoketown)
1976 - City Tavern (built for our nation's bicentennial as a replica of a 1773 tavern located on Second Street)
1979 - Ishkabibble's (Queen Village)

[DonRocks]

La Caridad 78 - 1968

Yo Philly, this is how it works.

dcs posts at 5:50 PM.

The list is updated at 6:04 PM.

BTW, sorry we're going to kick your asses tonight.

No, really, I do understand. You once had this QB named Randall Cunningham. Really, I do understand. Deal with it.

And our chefs are better than yours, too. But you do have "pleasant" roast pork sandwiches.

[monavano]

Nick's Old Original Roast Beef- 1938

I throw this out there because most people outside of Philly don't realize how beloved the roast beef sandwich* is. Everyone knows Philly has the cheesesteak, and recently, more and more people are aware of the Roast Pork Italian (which appeared on the scene about 20 years ago, I'd guess), but Philadelphians love their roast beef.

Ask anyone who grew up in Philly about "beef and beers".

Omnipresent at graduations and First Holy Communions.

*it's a hot roast beef au jus, served on a kaiser roll.

[DonRocks]

Geno's Steaks is celebrating its 47th birthday today.