WM. MULHERIN’S SONS RESTAURANT

I’ve been meaning to take a trip to our neighbors down in Philadelphia, and when I do, WM Mulherin’s Sons is definitely going to be on my must-do list! The stylish new restaurant and boutique hotel has brought a fresh take on classic Italian fare, along with ultra-cool style to one of Philly’s most exciting new neighborhoods for food and design: Fishtown. You all know by now that I love old school dining scenes with a sense of history and good food. I think this spot does both of those things.

All Photos Courtesy of Matthew Williams.

But even though owners Method Hospitality are new on the scene, they take inspiration from their building’s namesake, William Mulherin, whose legacy in Philadelphia goes back as far as the 1880s when he first began apprenticing in the whiskey trade before going on to create a lasting mark with his US patented rye whisky. Mulherin eventually set up shop in Fishtown where he opened his prominent 3-story building in 1900. Here the brand continued to fully operate as a distillery, producing it’s famous “Winner Whiskey” until it was shut down in 1924 due prohibition. 

The building sat in disrepair for some time, until 2013, when it was bought by Method Hospitality and restored with the help of Stokes Architecture, who worked with all of the details present, while adding new ones to match, including a custom fit wood-fire pizza oven that takes its visual cues from an existing steel vault from the building.

As for the restaurant, taking cues from the Italian heritage in the neighborhood, it offers home-style Italian food, brick oven pizza, and warm interiors, and yes—plenty of whisky cocktails, all of which almost takes you back in time to those pre-prohibition days.

But the restaurant is not the only attraction here. The hotel’s four rooms are boutique to the max, with each one feeling almost more like your own apartment than hotel. And while there isn’t 24-hour concierge, or room service, these rooms are more for the independent traveler, outfitted with full kitchens, bathrooms, and comfortable sitting areas. Their unique approach to hospitality includes hi-fi and wi-fi, a record collection and cocktail kit. Oh and of course, Aesop toiletries. All in all, I would come for the brick oven-pizza, and stay for the cozy in-room cocktails!