Many of our favorite Center City restaurants have limited seating. Since we don’t have an office or apartment nearby, we’ve had to track down other places to enjoy our food. There are plenty of benches around Independence Mall for picnicking in Old City, and there are beautiful gardens around the art museum. But, there are no real parks near many of our favorite Center City restaurants. Luckily, we’ve found some hidden areas where we can picnic on a nice day – and an indoor area for bad weather.

Our favorite is the hidden park off 17th (between Ranstead & Chestnut – entrances on both). This one is tucked away – shade, flowers and an adorable turkey head spout on the fountain):

Cox Park (Cherry Street between 21st and 22nd) – this small neighborhood park, with an attached playground, is on a shady side street just a block from the Franklin Institute:

Cox Park/playground Philadelphia

The courtyard behind the Logan Hotel on 18th:5944

The park on the corner of Cherry & 18th (shade, flowers and a fountain):9E462DE7-5840-4348-BA79-BCE3810B37F7

Indoors (for a cold/rainy day) – the basement shopping mall of the Comcast Center (1701 entrances off JFK and Arch) – not the most scenic, but convenient and dry (below). There is another indoor food court on the second floor at Liberty Place (Chestnut St. & 17th)Screenshot_20180513-213848

Rittenhouse Square – Lots of benches, flowers, statuary and great people/dog watching:

The courtyard of City Hall and out in front in Dillworth Park:

Louis Kahn Park – Small park with tables and benches at the corner of 11th & Pine:

Cira Green – Philly’s rooftop garden. On the 11th floor of the parking garage at Chestnut & 30th (good for Drexel food cart picnics):

Outside the Convention Center on Arch Street between 12th & 14th (convenient to China Town and Reading Terminal Market):Philadelphia picnic spot