Skip to content
Link copied to clipboard
Link copied to clipboard

For brunch spot Miles Table’s third act, it’s joining the Port Richmond food scene

The burgeoning Port Richmond dining scene, which includes plenty of pierogi, is getting Michael Lynch's brunch spot.

2024: Michael Lynch with kids Molly, 11, and Miles, 16, at the Port Richmond location of Miles Table.
2024: Michael Lynch with kids Molly, 11, and Miles, 16, at the Port Richmond location of Miles Table.Read moreTyger Williams / Staff Photographer

Miles Lynch was nearly 5 years old when his father, Michael, opened a bruncherie on South Street West in February 2013 and named it after him.

It was Michael Lynch’s debut as a restaurateur. He had been the caterer at Lombard Swim Club and previously worked at Gallo’s Seafood, Buddakan, and Culinary Concepts catering.

Miles and Miles Table have since grown. In 2020, Lynch opened the second location in the Bok Building in South Philadelphia; by then, Miles was 11 and Michael and wife Marybeth’s daughter, Molly, a baby when the first location opened, was 7.

Now Miles is 16 and well over 6 feet tall. On Friday, the Lynches will open the third Miles Table, filling the spot left by Mercer Cafe at 2619 E. Westmoreland St. in Port Richmond. It’s a cozy former corner store near several local landmarks, such as Byrne’s Tavern and Polish food specialist Czerw’s.

All locations are open daily from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and offer such dishes as tres leches French toast; carnitas Benedict; short rib omelet; Thai chicken sandwich; the Molly kale salad with mixed greens, avocado, almonds, cranberries, apples, and Dijon; and the Miles Burger, topped with Cheddar and bacon.

Might the namesake want to get into the restaurant business himself someday?

Miles smiled. “Not a chance,” he said.

Miles Table is joining the solid food and drink scene of Port Richmond, just off the Allegheny Avenue exit of I-95.

What’s up in Port Richmond

Later this spring, beer and wine from Carbon Copy, the West Philadelphia winery and brewery, and Polish food from pierogi purveyor Mom-Mom’s will be together under one roof on Richmond Street. Mom-Mom’s calling card is the pierogi, and Port Richmond might be the pierogi capital of the region.

It’s down the block from the family magnet called Pizza Richmond — related to Pizza Shackamaxon — which opened a few month ago on Richmond Street in a century-old building whose facade bears the name “A.S. Smolczynski,” the eponymous furniture store that served the neighborhood.

The old-time eateries delight the locals:

  1. Bar staple Byrne’s on Richmond Street is known for wings and potato logs, but don’t miss the club sandwiches and a hunk of the butter cake from Ferry Good Treats for desserts.

  2. Hop on a counter stool at M&M, the no-frills diner on Allegheny run by a husband-wife team, for a budget breakfast.

  3. Donna’s Bar on Allegheny offers pierogis, Polish beers, and karaoke on Friday and Saturday nights and an outdoor table when it’s nice out.

  4. Dinner House on Allegheny feels like you’re stepping into a family’s kitchen for no-fuss Polish-Hungarian dishes (goulash, potato pancakes, even more pierogi) and specials on the whiteboard.

  5. The beers are cold and the wings and kielbasa sandwiches are well done at the cash-only Cheers Cafe on Westmoreland, where regulars hand out free-drink tokens to first-timers — who in turn pay it forward.

  6. On the last Sunday of the month, join the block party on Richmond Street from Clearfield to Allegheny. Richmond Street Flea has a changing batch of food vendors. Yes, even more pierogi.