Philadelphia ATOTers - Need restaurant recommendation for pre-marathon

[WhiteKnight]

I'll be running my first half marathon in Philadelphia next Sunday, November 23. I'm staying near the Philly Convention Center and I need some restaurant recommendations for the night before the race. I'll be attending with about seven people in their late 20s, and possibly two small children. I'm looking for something that is fairly inexpensive and where we can get some good, not too heavy food. Obviously pasta is a plus.

On a side note, is the area around the convention center fairly safe? i.e. Assuming it's close enough can we walk to/from dinner without problems?

 

[xanis]

If you like Chinese food you should check out Chinatown, which is very close to the Convention Center and starts at 10th & Arch. You can't really go wrong with any of the restaurants there so just pick one and go in. I forget the exact hours, but if it's open, you might want to check out Reading Terminal Market. Lots of variety... you should definitely be able to find something you like there. There's also a Hard Rock Cafe right next door to the Convention Center and you can't go wrong with that. If you feel like taking a subway or cab ride at all, there are some good places down around where I am. There's Lascala's at 6th & Chestnut which serves awesome Italian food, El Azteca at 7th & Chestnut which serves fantastic Mexican food, Ted's Montana Grill at Broad & Spruce which has great beef and bison burgers, and finally, there's a Ruth's Chris Steakhouse right next door to Ted's.

If there's anything else that you want to know about the city let me know and I'll do my best to help.

 

[SoulAssassin]

It's a chain but Maggiano's is walking distance. If you want to load up on protein go to Fogo de Chao. Victor Cafe is a cab ride to south Philly, good italian...it's where they filmed the restaurant scenes in Rocky Balboa. Tangerine is walking distance down Market St, I recommended that to someone else here who really enjoyed it. They close before dinner time but if you are staying near the convention center make sure you eat at Reading Terminal Market at least once.

 

[Blieb]

My pre-race was always Olive Garden.

Not the best, but consistent.

 

[BrokenVisage]

Maggiano's or Reading Terminal like SoulAssassin said, can't go wrong either way really. I'd prefer Maggiano's for the aesthetics but if you're by yourself and social-conscious then maybe you'd like Reading Terminal more. The places are right near each other anyway so you can see for yourself.

 

[WhiteKnight]

Thanks for the tips. Anyone else?

 

[Inspector Jihad]

Reading Terminal r0x

 

[evident]

You are right by Chinatown. order up some fried rice for some carb goodness

Tangerine is good like soul assassin said, but it's a pricey restaurant and i dont think thats the kind of food you wanna eat before a marathon. you may want to check it out later though!

 

[Deeko]

There's some good cheesesteak places in reading terminal. And yes, that area is very safe.