{"id":275306,"date":"2026-08-30T15:48:15","date_gmt":"2026-08-30T15:48:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/275306\/"},"modified":"2026-08-30T15:48:15","modified_gmt":"2026-08-30T15:48:15","slug":"how-to-have-a-perfect-philly-day-according-to-state-senator-nikil-saval","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/275306\/","title":{"rendered":"How to have a perfect Philly day, according to State Senator Nikil Saval"},"content":{"rendered":"

State Sen. Nikil Saval\u2019s favorite glimpse of Philadelphia comes at dawn, on the return leg of his run across the Ben Franklin bridge. Lately, he\u2019s been listening to Lizabeth Cohen\u2019s 2019 book Saving America\u2019s Cities along the way.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels like you\u2019re experiencing the city at a moment of total possibility,\u201d Saval, 43, said. <\/p>\n

Saval was a journalist before he was a politician, writing about architecture and design for the New York Times and the New Yorker and publishing Cubed: The Secret History of the Workplace<\/a>, a book about the evolution of white-collar work. When he first ran for state Senate in 2020, the New York Times dubbed him the \u201cN+1 candidate<\/a>,\u201d a reference to his time as co-editor of the Brooklyn-based literary magazine. (He remains on its board). <\/p>\n

Now, the Democratic Socialist represents Pennsylvania\u2019s first senatorial district, stretching from the Philadelphia International Airport<\/a> across South Philly up to Port Richmond<\/a>. He is perhaps best known for sponsoring the state\u2019s Whole-Home Repairs program, which funds homeowners to repair and adapt their homes and served as a model for a federal pilot program that became law last month<\/a>. <\/p>\n

He lives in the Italian Market with his wife and two young children. On his perfect Philly day, he buys fresh tortillas, strolls down Fabric Row, and plays a game at the Philadelphia Museum of Art<\/a> inspired by the Surrealists. <\/p>\n

\"StateState Sen. Nikil Saval lives in the Italian Market with his wife and two young children. Erin Blewett \/ For The Inquirer<\/p>\n

I\u2019m up slightly before my children. It\u2019s a magic hour and I try to go for a run. My favorite route at that hour is to go up Fifth Street to the Ben Franklin Bridge, and then over the bridge to Camden and back. You get the best view of the city on the way back. <\/p>\n

My kids are up. We\u2019ll make coffee and put breakfast together at home. We\u2019re usually supplementing that with another coffee at some point. I\u2019m a partisan supporter of Shot Tower Coffee<\/a> in Queen Village. I feel like everyone gathers there \u2014 there have been times when it\u2019s so populated that we will defect to Gleaners Cafe<\/a> in the Italian Market, which is warm and friendly.<\/p>\n

My son has been taking golf lessons through First Tee<\/a> at the Walnut Lane Golf Club<\/a>, which is a public course in East Falls<\/a>. I\u2019m not a golfer, I have no interest. But he\u2019s gotten into it. First Tee is really diverse. <\/p>\n

It turns out to be this nice morning ritual. He\u2019s chipping balls with a bunch of kids, we sit at the snack bar with our younger son while he colors. We read the newspaper, and he eats a pretzel, because that\u2019s naturally what you have for breakfast. <\/p>\n

\"NikilNikil Saval buys tortilla chips and beans at Tortilleria San Roman in the Italian Market. Erin Blewett \/ For The Inquirer<\/p>\n

Then we\u2019ll go to Headhouse Farmers Market<\/a>. We\u2019ll get the lonsa from Aaji\u2019s<\/a>, a local brand. It\u2019s Indian tomato relish<\/a>, and it\u2019s amazing. I give those out as Christmas gifts to my colleagues in the Senate. <\/p>\n

We\u2019ll get chips and pico de gallo from Tortilleria San Roman<\/a>, tortillas from Casa Mexico<\/a>. We\u2019ll get other produce from Charlie\u2019s<\/a> and pasta from Claudio Specialty Foods<\/a>. <\/p>\n

We travel by SEPTA<\/a> to the Art Museum. They have an Art Kids program<\/a>, where we drop off our younger son to do an art project. <\/p>\n

Then we\u2019ll spend an hour and a half with my older son in the galleries. We\u2019ve developed this game that came out of the Surrealism exhibit<\/a>. We\u2019ll do an \u201cexquisite corpse,\u201d where someone draws the top third of a drawing, and then someone does the middle third, but you don\u2019t look. Then you unfold the paper at the end and see what you come up with. <\/p>\n

Each of us will choose a sculpture or a painting to draw as one section.<\/p>\n

\"NikilNikil Saval buying produce in the Italian Market. Erin Blewett \/ For The Inquirer<\/p>\n

Next we go to South Kensington<\/a>. There\u2019s a really good vegan Puerto Rican place there, Casa Borinque\u00f1a<\/a>. We also love the falafel from the Al Amana Grocery store<\/a> that\u2019s attached to the Al Aqsa mosque. They\u2019re the best in the city. <\/p>\n

We take a post-lunch stroll on Frankford Avenue. We visit the Philadelphia Record Exchange<\/a>, and Lot 49 Books<\/a> on Girard Avenue, which is awesome. <\/p>\n

Then we take the 57 down to Fourth Street, Fabric Row. It\u2019s one of these great commercial corridors because it maintains everything that\u2019s historic, but over time it has integrated new businesses that are of a piece, like Approved Textiles<\/a>. They sell really amazing products, especially this brand of Palestinian soap that we buy there. Yowie<\/a> has awesome designers for goods as well as clothes. Brickbat Books<\/a> has great records and an extraordinary selection of books. <\/p>\n

\"NikilNikil Saval leaves Tortilleria San Roman in the Italian Market with his groceries. The state senator loves to cook. Erin Blewett \/ For The Inquirer<\/p>\n

We get a babysitter and order from Tamalex<\/a>, a Mexican restaurant in our neighborhood. We have a go-to order of nachos that the kids like. <\/p>\n

We love Mish Mish<\/a>. It\u2019s a good place to go with friends and get lots of things. I\u2019m vegan, and there\u2019s always something exciting there. <\/p>\n

Then we go see performing arts, anything that\u2019s unexpected. We\u2019re members of the Film Society, so we\u2019ll go to a \u201cSurprise 35<\/a>!\u2033 showing. Once a month, they\u2019ll show a movie on 35 mm film; you don\u2019t know what it is until it starts. We\u2019re in a good age of repertory film in the region \u2014 the Philm Club newsletter<\/a> is a good resource. <\/p>\n

We go to shows at Solar Myth<\/a>, where they have free jazz. We also have an Opera Philadelphia<\/a> subscription. That\u2019s always novel and shocking. They\u2019re frequently new productions. You pay $11<\/a>. The audiences are totally transformed. <\/p>\n

If we had the energy for a post-all-of-this drink, I would go to Southwark<\/a>. It feels boisterous, but private in this way where you can have a conversation. The bartenders are incredibly welcoming. <\/p>\n

The conversation has been edited for clarity and brevity.<\/p>\n

Correction: The spellings of Al Aqsa mosque and Yowie have been corrected.<\/p>\n