Holly Jolly Holiday Bars serving up the spirit of the season
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Taqueria Amor on Main Street in Manayunk has transformed into Señor Christmas, with a theme described as nostalgic kitschiness.
Nearly every inch of space is a celebration of holiday classics like "A Charlie Brown Christmas," "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas," and "A Christmas Story."
If the decor doesn't get you into the holiday spirt, the spirits will, with options like The Jack Frost with vodka, yoo-hoo, heavy cream, and kailua.
Bad Santa is a blood orange margarita, served in a naughty tiki mug you can buy as a keepsake.
The Rudolph is a Pomegranate, cranberry, rosemary margarita mocktail, and for Hanukkah celebrants, there's a blue pineapple margarita.
You can sip while you savor Mexican favorites like the seafood chili relleno or the beef birria tacos, a seasonal favorite made with a short rib, chuck roll mix that's marinated for 24 hours then slow braised for another 5.
Chef and owner Tim Spinner is the Secret Santa behind Señor Christmas. He started the tradition in the first year of the pandemic, stringing loads of lights during what was a dark time.
Now, all of Main Street looks like a winter wonderland.
Taqueria Amor | Facebook | Instagram
4410 Main Street, Philadelphia, Pa. 19127
(267) 331-5874
Looking for elevated luxury? The mom and daughter team behind The Wine Garden have created a pop-up experience at Suburban Station they call Diamonds and Pearls.
There's a wall of gilded mirrors, many of them vintage, evoking the building's iconic facade along with a selfie moment. The first thing you see when you walk in is you.
There's a menu of light bites and a holiday bar serving curated wines, wine-based cocktails and spiked hot chocolate with toasted marshmallows.
The VIP experience includes a mini cake and champagne and there's a room overlooking Christmas Village in Love Park for private parties.
The Wine Bar holiday pop up is going out with a bang, with a big bash planned for New Year's Eve.
Wine Garden Holiday Popup: Diamonds & Pearls
Through New Year's Eve
Inside Suburban Station (street level at the corner of 16th & JFK)
The Wine Garden | Instagram | Diamonds & Pearls Pop-up Reservations
For a truly classic Christmas, head to McGillin's Old Ale House. Philadelphia's oldest bar has a decidedly traditional vibe with red bows and balls and white lights.
The decorations go up right after Halloween and stay through mid-January and there are festive cocktails like the Partridge in a Pear Tree, the holiday version of a vodka cranberry.
The eggnog martini is a perennial favorite, and there's a build your own poinsettia punch with champagne and cranberry juice.
Holiday food specials include Santa's Mussels, the Christmas Cobb, and Chicken Pot Pie, which is an old school favorite at McGillin's that is rarely on the menu.
Holiday shoppers can hit the McGillin's shop right around the corner.
It's filled with Christmas items, all kinds of Irish imports, Philly souvenirs, McGillin's merch and a new coffee table book that tells the story of Philadelphia's oldest bar.
For 3rd generation co-owner and manager Christopher Mullins, Jr, the goal is to make McGillin's feel like home.
New Years Day is the bar's busiest day of the year, with hundreds of people lined up waiting for the doors to open at 10am (an hour earlier than usual) for people to watch the Mummers Parade and the Bowl games.
McGillin's Old Ale House | Facebook | Instagram
1310 Drury Street, Philadelphia, Pa. 19107
215-735-5562 | MCGILLINS@AOL.COM
