If you're in Philly and craving steak frites or escargot, you're in luck, because a brand new French bistro opens today, just in time to celebrate Bastille Day.
Parc is the latest endeavor from Philadelphia restaurant mogul Stephen Starr, the man behind hotspots like Buddakan, Moriomto and El Vez. If you're familiar with any of those places, you can probably guess that the ambiance at Parc is less Left Bank, more Champs-Élysées.
Philadelphia City Paper has a walk-through of the elegant new space, which includes details like a 50-foot hand-crafted solid zinc bar, vintage fans and intricate tile work. No word yet on whether the food will be as exciting as the décor, so if anyone stops by today, be sure to let us know.
After we told you about the Star Wars show opening in Philadelphia, we had to go check it out. We got to the Franklin Institute right about 10 am Saturday to watch this lightsaber duel and see a bunch of Imperial Stormtroopers march all over the place. And after navigating the crowd of kids and adults acting like kids, we finally managed to scope the show.
Now, with the disclaimer that we're Star Wars geeks, it was awesome. There were heaps of models from the movies, costumes and taped interviews with Lucasfilm artists. The token attempts at science--questions like could people really survive on Hoth--were also nice and good for the kids.
We skipped the $5 extra for the Millennium Falcon experience. We wish we would've skipped the Star Wars planetarium show. (The theater is nice; the show was bad.)
Your exhibit ticket gets you into the rest of the Franklin Institute, so if you're taking kids, you can make a full day of it. If you'd rather not, we'll have more geeky Philly recommendations this week including comic book shops and sneaker boutiques.
Speaking of space travel, if $200K is a bit steep for you, admission to the new Star Wars exhibit at Philly's Franklin Institute is a relatively cheap $20.50. The science center is hosting Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination from February 9 until May 4.
Some authentic props including Luke's landspeeder from Episode IV and Darth Vader's helmet from Episode III are part of the show. There will also be models and other Star Wars stuff to see, including a battalion of Imperial Stormtroopers the Institute has hired for the opening day celebration.
For an extra five bucks, you can even hop into a replica of the Millennium Falcon for a multimedia tour through space. Sadly, we hear its a trip through our galaxy, not one far, far away.
