Here’s an update on some local existing and upcoming restaurants.
• Work is at full steam to prepare Clarkville bar and restaurant for opening this Fall. The building at 43rd and Baltimore across from Clark Park, which used to house Best House Pizzeria, recently had some parts of the old facade stripped off to expose the red brick underneath. Check out these “before” and “after” photos:
And here’s what it looks like from 43rd Street. The building already has a large green “Clarkville” sign painted on it.
The opening date for the new bar and restaurant hasn’t been revealed yet. We’ll keep you posted. By the way, the owners, Leigh Maida, Brendan Kelly and Brendan Hartranft, who already own three restaurants in Philadelphia, including West Philly’s Local 44, are opening a Montreal-inspired bistro, called Coeur, on 8th and Christian on Sept. 15. More information about Clarkville is available here.
• Some local restaurants are closed during the summer months due to the lack of customers, many of whom are students. We checked on two of them, Rx The Farmacy on 45th and Spruce and Guacamole Mex-Grill at 4612 Woodland Ave., to see when they reopen. It’s good news for The Farmacy: The popular brunch spot will reopen after Labor Day, according to their Facebook page, and will serve brunch on Wednesday – Sunday and dinner on Thursday – Saturday. There is a concern though about Guacamole. The restaurant has been closed since early May, and there have been no updates from the owners on when it may reopen.
UPDATE: Guacamole Mex-Grill will open in the near future, according to a Facebook post by Rony De Luna (the De Luna family own the restaurant). “Our younger brother, Rudy, who managed and operated the restaurant is moving to California… However, our kitchen is still operational as we have a food truck, El Guaco Loco that services Temple University. We also send our food truck to events. We are not going to close. As a family, we have invested too much time and effort.”
September 4th, 2015 at 6:07 pm
yay. look forward to it.
September 4th, 2015 at 7:10 pm
What an improvement!
Best House was such a dump.
September 4th, 2015 at 10:40 pm
did ESPO do the lettering/font?
September 4th, 2015 at 10:57 pm
every time improvements are made to 43rd. & Baltimore the building seems to always end up looking worse.
September 5th, 2015 at 2:59 am
The storefront improvements look great. Additional enhancements should include removing the weeds growing in the tree pit and along the curb. Sidewalk seating would be wonderful as well.
September 6th, 2015 at 7:58 am
Streetcar, good thing you threw your two cents in here. Craig, I’m sure they’ll jump right on pulling those weeds out. Christ you people are disgusting. Just have something nice to say.. Wanks..
September 6th, 2015 at 9:48 am
The article referred to the Local 44 folks simply as the “owners.” As far as I can know, they are owners of the business but are leasing that building. Earlier article here explains that…
“The bar/restaurant became an option at 4301 Baltimore after the building was purchased by Best House Partners, a company whose principals include Omar Blaik and Tom Lussenhop. Both are neighborhood residents and their names may sound familiar because they are also the principals of U3Ventures, the development firm that has proposed the residential complex catty-corner at 4224 Baltimore Ave.”
September 6th, 2015 at 12:35 pm
Bruce, stay on topic, which is the Clarkville bar and restaurant.
September 7th, 2015 at 10:59 am
Glad to hear Guacamole is not closed for good. I love their food and was sad when they went to weekday only hours and was even more sad to see it looking permanently shut down.
Thanks for getting the additional info WPL
September 7th, 2015 at 11:35 am
I think the post was referring to them as owners of the business, not the building
September 8th, 2015 at 2:05 pm
I miss the old Wurst House and that crazy sequenced mural. Good ‘ol West Philadelphia.
September 8th, 2015 at 3:39 pm
I live right near this place. I’m kind of excited, but what happened to the proposed signage?:
https://www.westphillylocal.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Clarkville.jpg
^ I thought that looked classy. Not really feeling the lettering on the building.
September 8th, 2015 at 4:22 pm
@bad_boy_1979 It certainly has that look.
September 9th, 2015 at 10:03 am
Meh….the signage is weird. Maybe it will look better once the building is completed.
September 14th, 2015 at 9:45 am
RIP Best House.
September 14th, 2015 at 1:19 pm
Oh geez. here we go. The letters looks fine! It wasn’t like the beer ads, plastic banners, run down tables, and two sketchy ATM machines looked so classy before.
September 14th, 2015 at 2:46 pm
All depends on what one considers classy.
September 15th, 2015 at 3:28 pm
I wish we could get there earlier; I hate only being able to take the last train.