Philadelphia Restaurants - The Good; The Bad; and the Ugly.
The GOOD:
In terms of quality, Philadelphia Restaurants are better than ever. This City has positioned itself in the upper tier of the National restaurant scene, and the list of young and talented chefs continues to grow. If anything, one could argue that there are too many outstanding restaurants to choose from (if such a thing is possible).
The BAD: (not necessarily in this order)
The Philadelphia Parking Authority - These folks do absolute wonders when it comes to killing the concept of hospitality in our City. They even earned the right to have their own TV Show which makes things even more embarrassing. Just ask the majority of folks in our own suburbs who simply avoid the aggravation of dining in our great Center City restaurants. I believe the following message should be on every Parking Authority vehicle - "Welcome to Philadelphia - We are here to make your visit as painful as humanly possible".
The 10% Drink Tax that was formulated to help our school system (and basically to hurt our restaurants).
The PLCB is high on my list because it's not a level playing field when the cost of alcoholic beverages are inflated to accommodate the depressing State Store system (and we are still paying for the 1889 Johnstown flood). There is a hidden 18% tax on all wine and liquor sales in the State of Pennsylvania which inevitably impacts negatively on our local restaurant community. And what a truly wonderful idea to sell wine in vending machines.
Do I dare mention the unions that dominate this City and make opening a restaurant infinitely more difficult, and infinitely more expensive. The Convention Center is one of our most important assets, and we continue to hold our breath that the various unions involved will actually behave themselves.
McDonald's on Walnut Street in Rittenhouse Square - Possibly the worst decision in Philadelphia restaurant history.
AND THE UGLY:
In the wake of yet another mob attack in Center City (lovingly known as "flash-mobs") - it certainly doesn't help when we get continued national exposure featuring a group of kids attacking innocent people on our streets in Downtown Philadelphia. I give credit to the Mayor for leading the charge against this insanity, and it absolutely must stop. If the flash-mobs continue, our restaurants (and everything else for that matter) will eventually make Philadelphia a very different destination - one to avoid! This is one problem that simply has to go away.
www.primephiladelphia.com
No comments:
Post a Comment