In recent weeks, five new taverns with extensive beer lists have either started pouring or announced launch plans. A huge beer distributor is set to open this weekend. There is word that two premium six-pack shops - something the city desperately needs - could open by next spring. And, perhaps most astonishingly, there's now an Italian restaurant on Passyunk Avenue that serves something other than Chianti and Moretti.
"I think people looked at the South Philadelphia Tap Room, saw how much success they were having and decided to copy it," said Jordan Fetfatzes, who operates Bella Vista Beer (11th and Fitzwater streets), a high-end beer distributor and importer that supplies many of the new joints. "Finally, people are starting to see beer as more than just 'product.' It's living art in a bottle."
SPTR, as it's known in beer circles, has been a remarkable success story. It opened three years ago as an outpost for urban pioneers, revitalizing a seedy section behind St. Agnes Hospital, and immediately began filling up with thirsty patrons from throughout the region. For a while, it had the area south of Washington Avenue to itself when it came to specialty imports and unusual microbrews.
Now it's getting company. The Station Bar & Grill, a couple of blocks away, at 16th and McKean streets, opened in August with 16 good taps.
Meanwhile, on the other side of Broad, East Passyunk Avenue has evolved into a bona fide barhop bonanza, with enough craft beer to keep even the snobbiest Center City dweller happy.
Business has picked up so much that Fetfatzes is moving across the street to a new facility that is four times the size of his current location. The new place, which opens Sunday, will boast about 1,000 beers spread over 40,000 square feet.
Fetfatzes attributes some of the growth to that hipster movement, as twentysomething workers migrate south from Center City in search of cheaper apartments.
