📽️ Our picks for the Philadelphia Film Festival | Things to Do

It’s hard to believe we’re already halfway through October — I haven’t even carved a pumpkin yet! Despite the chill this week, over the weekend we’ll get back into some warmer weather (fitting, for a confusing Philly fall) so it might be the best time to visit a local farm for pumpkin or apple picking, or getting lost in a corn maze. What’s on your fall bucket list? Let me know!

Speaking of bucket lists, we at The Inquirer have been psyched about The 76, our revamped dining guide spotlighting the region’s essential eats. It’s your new resource for navigating Philly’s food scene.

What’s coming up this weekend:

— Rosa Cartagena (@_RosaCartagena, Email me at thingstodo@inquirer.com)

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Today kicks off 11 days of film screenings for the city’s annual film fest. It’s your ticket to see the new and buzzy titles that everyone will be talking about throughout the upcoming awards season, from the Angelina Jolie opera flick Maria, to Pedro Almodovar’s first English-language film The Room Next Door, to the tense romance of Anora. Two film critics tell us what not to miss.

🦇 PG frights: Find Halloween fun that the whole family can enjoy. From Boo at the Zoo to Dinos After Dark, here are 19 spooky (not scary) events in the Philly area.

☕ Roast Philly: Sip your way through the first-ever Philly Coffee Festival celebrating more than 30 local roasters from La Colombe to Black Turtle Coffee at the 23rd Street Armory.

🚲 Gear up: Roads will close across Center City this Saturday to make room for the 2024 Philly Bike Ride, when cyclists of all ages will take over the streets for a 20-mile car-free ride across town.

🎨 A look behind the canvas: Over the course of two weekends, Philadelphia artists are opening their studio doors to invite visitors into their workshops for free, self-guided tours this weekend and next. It’s part of the 25th annual Philadelphia Open Studio Tours across more than 26 neighborhoods.

🪘 Don your dancing shoes: The massive multi-instrumental Afro Cuban All Stars band brings the sound of salsa, rumba, and other Cuban genres to Broad Street this Saturday. Whether you go solo or with a partner, the show will be irresistibly danceable.

📅 My calendar picks this week: Rocky Horror Drag Show, Pops on the Plaza, Spooky Mini Golf

It’s time to dig in. By now you might’ve already seen The 76 charting the most vital restaurants in and around Philly, from Tierra Colombiana to Kalaya and beyond. There are legends, splurge-worthy spots, and walk-in friendly restaurants across the region (along with a helpful map). Still, like any good list, it has critics — including Inquirer staffers who participated in the painstaking process and had their own favorites cut from the list, like Lazeez Indian Cuisine (one of my regulars!), Meetinghouse, and even Parc (gasp). These are the 15 noteworthy contenders.

🎃 Farm fun: Pumpkin picking season is in full swing at farms all around Philadelphia, which means it’s also a perfect time for corn mazes, hayrides, go-carts, pumpkin bowling, and other fall activities outdoors. Here’s your definitive guide to the best of fall.

🩰 Turning 60: Philadelphia Ballet celebrates its 60th anniversary this season and there are several shows to ring in the big number, as well as a slate of world premieres from BalletX and Complexions (that turns 30 this year, too). Catch up on must-see ballet this fall.

🎤 Dedicated to Philly: A new documentary focuses on Gerad Argeros’ one-man show about his experiences growing up in Northeast Philadelphia, where he was abused by a priest. His performances balance powerful truth-telling with disarming humor — and now he’s taking his story around the world.

🥘 Hot ticket: An underground supper club in Philly delivers a big Lebanese feast in intimate settings around the city. Chef Miled Finianos calls food the “love language for Arabs.” Take a look inside his Habibi Supper Club dinner parties.

Pop music critic Dan DeLuca breaks down the best shows coming up.

🪕 Friday: Orville Peck has been taking on country music gatekeepers since 2019, when he came out with his queer country debut Pony. The masked man, whose identity has been revealed to be South African singer Daniel Pitout, keeps it up on Stampede, his new album of duets with partners like Willie Nelson, Elton John, Kylie Minogue, Diplo, and Margo Price who unfortunately will not be with him at the Met Friday.

🎸 Saturday: Drive-By Truckers, the Athens, Ga. band led by songwriters Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley, first demonstrated the scope of their ambition on the 2001 double album Southern Rock Opera. On their “Southern Rock Opera Revisited” tour at the TLA on Saturday, they’ll play the album in its entirety, plus other fan favorites, while also celebrating the release of the deluxe edition of their 2016 politically minded album American Band.

🎸 Sunday: One of the world’s most electrifying live bands — Irish post-punk quintet Fontaines D.C. — shows how much they’ve progressed on their arty but still emphatic new album Romance at the Fillmore Philly.

Read more music picks.

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This week I picked up a big read for the cozy season: Honorée Fanonne Jeffers’ epic novel, The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois. What are you excited to read as the weather gets colder? I’d love to hear your recs.