Point Breeze Just Got a New Cocktail Bar
Philadelphia has plenty of places to grab a cocktail, but what it doesn’t have enough of are bars with a story.Recently opened at the corner of 19th and Mifflin Streets in Point Breeze, Lillian’s is a cozy new South Philly bar and bistro built around inventive drinks and a food program that isn’t meant to stay the same forever. Instead of locking itself into one permanent restaurant identity, the new neighborhood spot plans to regularly welcome chefs for residencies and special dinners, giving Philadelphians a reason to keep coming back to see what’s happening next.
Sourced via Lillian’s
Meet Diamond Lil
Lillian’s is named after owner Sam Ahern’s great-great-grandmother, Lillian, better known as “Diamond Lil.”
According to the bar, Lillian ran a speakeasy in North Jersey during Prohibition and earned her nickname by accepting jewelry as payment when customers were short, similar to a pawn shop.
That history gives the place a little more personality than your typical new cocktail bar. Lillian’s isn’t trying to recreate a Prohibition-era speakeasy with secret passwords and hidden doors. Instead, it takes the spirit of gathering, indulging, and lingering with good company and gives it a modern South Philly home.
The Cocktails Are Not Playing It Safe
If you like your cocktail menus a little weird, Lillian’s should immediately move up your list.
The menu goes well beyond the usual espresso martini and spicy margarita typical lineup. Desert Heat #5 combines reposado, Cointreau, lime, date syrup, sesame oil, grilled pineapple, cilantro, spicy tincture, and a dukkah-salt rim. Persephone’s Garden brings together gin, Lillet, lemon, pickle juice, Greek yogurt, toasted black pepper, coriander, and celery seed in a clarified cocktail.
Then there’s Prima Donna, a savory martini-style drink made with tomato-infused vodka, dry vermouth, white balsamic, Kalamata olive brine, and an anchovy “stuffed” olive.
Even the rum and Coke gets the Lillian’s treatment. A Very Good Rum & Coke combines banana-infused rum with house-made cola syrup and molasses bitters.
There’s Plenty to Eat, Too
The bistro-style menu includes warm olives, panzanella salad, shrimp cocktail, tinned fish, brioche toasts, sandwiches, and a charcuterie and cheese board. The brioche toast options alone move in several directions, including anchovies with butter and lemon, boquerones with balsamic tomato jam, and enoki mushrooms with salsa verde and yuzu mayo.
For something sweet, there’s dark chocolate mousse with Marsala and pretzel streusel, olive oil cake with orange syrup and house-made fig jam, and a selection of shortbreads.
The Food Won’t Always Stay the Same
One of the most interesting things about Lillian’s is that the bar isn’t designed to be a completely predictable experience.
The space will regularly host chef residencies, pop-ups, dinner parties, and other special events, allowing different culinary voices to take over the kitchen and give guests something new to experience.
That evolving format could make Lillian’s especially interesting for Philly diners who are constantly looking for the next interesting or unusual thing. Rather than visiting once and checking it off the list, the idea is to keep an eye on the calendar and come back when something new takes over the kitchen.
Put Lillian’s on Your South Philly List
Philly’s bar scene is at its best when a new opening gives you something you can’t find everywhere else, and Lillian’s is doing exactly that.
The bar is open Tuesday through Thursday from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 5 p.m. to midnight, with the kitchen open until 10 p.m.
After you’ve added Lillian’s to your list, don’t forget that one of the biggest fight nights of the year is happening tonight.
Check out our guide to Where to Watch UFC 329: McGregor vs. Holloway 2 in Philadelphia This Saturday to find out which local bars are showing the fight and where you should stake out a seat before the action begins.
