Chestnut Hill lost a bunch of restaurant staples. Will they be replaced anytime soon?

Chestnut Hill is one of Philly s bulk charming neighborhoods with cobblestone streets lining Germantown Ave and neighborhood stores that have stood the test of time like Kilian Hardware and Robertson s Flowers Yet in recent months multiple restaurants in the area have faced closures including Fiesta Pizza Campbell s Place Iron Hill Brewery and Jansen in nearby Mount Airy What s more what used to be Roller s Express-O and Flying Fish have remained vacant storefronts for years now Residents are starting to pay attention Gregg Weinberg a statistics analyst who lives in Mount Airy has been dismayed by the lack of restaurant options on Germantown Avenue When I first moved here there was Micah which was a great restaurant which got lost to Covid Weinberg commented And then Jansen opened a inadequate years ago which then of late closed In Center City Philly the restaurant scene is really nice he added It just seems like up here there s a good population density and so it doesn t make sense Margot Stern a hospitality entrepreneur who lives in Chestnut Hill agrees Iron Hill Brewery closed in September Julia Binswanger Billy Penn It s really frustrating she noted I have specific friends who are restaurateurs in the city and I ve begged them I ve been like Listen come to Chestnut Hill trust me you will be full every single night of the week Weinberg noted that while Chestnut Hill has plenty of good tavern options McNally s Cider Belly Chestnut Hill Brewing Company the neighborhood is missing a dinner spot where you can just bring your family and have a nice meal and not totally break the bank As for Stern when she goes out to eat she hopes for a place that will truly wow her None of the Philadelphia restaurants that in the last few days received a Michelin award including Bib Gourmands and Michelin selected spots were in Chestnut Hill When I get a babysitter I m going to go downtown she revealed Good neighborhood good restaurants This sentiment that Chestnut Hill lacks exciting food options is a bit surprising considering it is one of the city s the bulk affluent neighborhoods According to a description from the Pew Center Research Chestnut Hill s zip code has the highest property taxes in the city with a median tax bill of Stern believes that part of the issue is that rental properties in the neighborhood are pricing restaurateurs out One of the biggest problems is the landlords in Chestnut Hill she stated If you re a young up-and-comer in the city you can t afford a restaurant space here right It s really expensive and so that s going to dissuade you Julia Binswanger Billy Penn Ann Nevel from the Chestnut Hill Business District acknowledged concerns around the neighborhood s restaurant scene noting the closures this fall She declared the modern closures do not represent a systemic neighborhood pattern but were particular to each property Iron Hill Brewery was a regional chain and it closed all of its locations that have filed for bankruptcy she reported Campbell s Place on the other hand shut down for the owner s personal reasons rather than because of a decline in revenue She believes the restaurants in the neighborhood deserve to be celebrated We ve got our beloved mainstays We ve got McNally s We ve got Chestnut Grill We ve got CinCin for example she announced And then we have several popular newer arrivals like Adelinas Cider Belly Hard Cider Chestnut Hill Brewing Company and Char Stave But everybody wants more choices As for Roller s Express-O and Flying Fish once neighborhood staples they are empty in part because their owner Paul Roller had knee replacement surgery Roller is sentimental for the restaurants that he ran for four decades I love food I love restaurants I love the restaurant business he revealed However he notes that his body isn t up to it anymore and he is waiting for the right tenant for the space he invested in We put in k and you know did the marble counters up front and the tile and this and that he noted And I ve explained this to people It s got a wonderful pressed tin ceiling When I redid the back room we determined a press tin place out in the Bronx Everything in the world is about money he noted You know it s got to be worth doing While there was the possibility of a Kismet Bagels opening at the Roller s Express-O location earlier this year Roller stated that deal fell through due to irreconcilable differences As for spaces like Campbell s and Iron Hill Nevel does not think they will be shuttered for too long Already she commented there has been lots of action and an abundance of tours New restaurants on the block The timeline for opening a new restaurant is consistently uncertain but Nevel stated she s seen places open within a year of first contacting the business district while other spots have taken three or four The neighborhood she disclosed is filled with buildings that have inherent visual appeal and historic significance However that historic charm can be a double-edged sword Because buildings are quirky and sometimes too small in the eyes of the more commercial developers and restaurateurs these spaces can also pose challenges as commercial rental properties Nevel announced For a restaurateur to choose to open in one of these kinds of spaces in Chestnut Hill they have to be confident financially professionally creatively There are a sparse new restaurants preparing to open in Chestnut Hill One of the first in line is The Blue Warbler set to open in Winter A view of Germantown Avenue Julia Binswanger Billy Penn It should be really fun and casual commented its owner Fred Mogul A lively Happy Hour scene but also a lively family scene We re trying to push the envelope of what constitutes comfort food We re going for something very unfancy and unfussy and very hearty In addition to the Blue Warbler Lovat Square is scheduled to open just off Germantown Avenue at the top of the hill The space will include a wine store a bar and a fine dining restaurant according to Nevel Its owner Damien Graef worked as the sommelier for Jean-Georges at the Four Seasons What s more Matines a Parisian cafe has in the past few days opened a new larger location and turned its old location into a kid s cafe called Petite Matines Arthur de Bruc who co-owns Matines with his wife Amanda has two kids and years old The couple got the idea for revamping the spot after their children complained about their long work hours We re like Well you know what guys we re gonna do something for you We re gonna do a cafe for you and you re gonna help us to create that place De Bruc explained So they did the menu with us We re like What would you like I like mac and cheese So we ll do mac and cheese The idea is a cafe with food for kids and adults that will have games books art and exercises and might be a little loud and noisy You can just relax and just breathe and say it s fine he added They re in a safe place It s made for them You have to love it For his part The Blue Warbler s Mogul is excited to join the Chestnut Hill restaurant family scene He is a Chestnut Hill resident and former WNYC reporter turned restaurateur I looked all over Philly and nearly leased a couple cool spots in cool neighborhoods several of which fell through after multiple months of negotiations at the th hour he revealed Then he revealed the rental at Germantown Ave The space in Chestnut Hill really is very Goldilocks Mogul noted It s not too small It s not too large It s got a lot of historic character The landlord Bowman Properties has been a phenomenal partner and has inevitably wished a restaurant in this space the former Foster s Drugstore that dates back to the s and so the landlord has put in an immense amount of materials and I m putting in an immense amount of support De Bruc s restaurant is also owned by Bowman Properties which owns multiple storefront properties in Chestnut Hill Matines Cafe Julia Binswanger Billy Penn Mogul lived in Brooklyn and later in Center City in Philly He commented that before he lived in Chestnut Hill he had a certain misconception about the neighborhood I reliably kind of pictured it as this very posh place up on the hill he declared comparing it to tony spots like Greenwich Conn or the Hamptons When you get here the reality is really much more eclectic he added There are indeed multi-generational mansion dwellers You know the latter-day Gilded Age But there s a lot that goes well beyond that There s a lot of great apartments There s a lot of modest row houses that promotion a much more eclectic group in Chestnut Hill De Bruc an expat from Paris also moved to Chestnut Hill and chose to open his cafe there due to the neighborhood s cozy vibes We fell thoroughly in love with Chestnut Hill a lot of green areas lots of parks he announced It s a very charming neighborhood plenty of history and we re very sensitive to all of that coming from France so that really speaks to us Nevel believes that anyone can open a productive restaurant in Chestnut Hill However they have to have the right passion for it Anne McNally owner of McNally s Tavern which her family has run for more than a century has seen a lot of restaurants come and go in the neighborhood Lots of people listen to the negative McNally reported It s part of our society but Chestnut Hill has blended the region and the business to work productively It s perpetually sad when a restaurant or business loses but it gives opportunities for new businesses to come and thrive She explained that new restaurateurs looking to thrive in the neighborhood needed to come in with passion Restaurants are really a lot of work McNally commented My sister is here at o clock in the morning Our staff does seven or eight hours of work a day It takes a lot of time to get it up and running You have to love it she added You have to like talking to people and serving them great food It s hard work If you enjoy all those things and long hours then a restaurant is a good place The post Chestnut Hill lost a bunch of restaurant staples Will they be replaced anytime soon appeared first on Billy Penn at WHYY