Suraya partners to open Mexican restaurants near Rittenhouse Square
The main room at the new Pod Philly hotel will be called Condesa. There also will be a taqueria with city views on the 11th floor as well as an all-day cafe on the ground floor.
How about two major restaurant projects in the works about a block and a half apart north of Rittenhouse Square.
You already know about K’Far, the all-day Israeli-themer from Zahav’s Mike Solomonov and Steve Cook, due this summer next to the Target at 110 S. 19th St., just south of Chestnut.
The new project, at 1830 Ludlow St. (basically an alley off 19th Street behind 1818 Market and the Sonesta Hotel), will include two Mexican restaurants from the crew behind Fishtown’s Suraya, Pizzeria Beddia, and R&D cocktail bar.
It’s part of the Pod Philly hotel, due to open this fall, and it will be operated by Defined Hospitality, whose partners Nick Kennedy, Greg Root, and Al Lucas also run Fishtown’s Suraya, Pizzeria Beddia, and R&D cocktail bar.
The main room, a 140-seater on the ground floor, will be called Condesa. There also will be a still-unnamed 106-seat taqueria on the 11th-floor (with a retractable glass-topped roof) plus an all-day cafe on the ground floor.
Kennedy, also a chef, says Condesa’s dishes will focus on heirloom corn tortillas made with volcanic-stone ground masa done on premise.
Condesa will feature outdoor seating. The all-day cafe will feature a bakery counter from Suraya pastry chef James Matty and Stumptown Coffee.
They’ll bring in R&D’s Aaron Deary to set up the bar, which will focus on mezcal and tequila.