Philadelphia’s Essential Cozy Locales

Every visit to River Twice is unique, as the wife-and-husband team of Amanda and Randy Rucker continues to create one of the city’s most unique tasting menu experiences. The offerings are constantly changing, but the Ruckers’ signature style melds a warming, welcoming environment with a celebration of the season’s most exciting ingredients, translated through a dedicated four-course menu ($75).

With its glowing chandeliers and dark wood furnishings, Rex at the Royal is a theatrical setting for chef Scott Dalesandro’s Southern-inspired cuisine, which will warm your soul at this time of year: Nashville hot fried oysters, crab fondue, pimento mac-and-cheese, and pot pie. The list of comfort food goes on.

At its core, a tavern is the epitome of cozy, and we love Middle Child Clubhouse as a casual yet chef-driven neighborhood hangout in Fishtown. Opt for a $12 cheeseburger, broiled oysters, or a brick chicken that’s easy to share. Or all three. Just don’t miss the cocktails.

When the snow is falling, is there anything better than sitting in a buzzy bistro with a bowl of French onion soup? What if the French onion soup includes foie gras and duck confit? That’s the kind of thing that makes chef Christopher Kearse’s modern French spot so special, especially at this time of year.

Gabriella’s Vietnam is where you can eat the foods that owners Chris and Thanh Nguyen grew up with in Vietnam. Start off with the tapioca dumplings, steamed inside banana leaves, and then move to the chile-roasted chicken and lẩu lá giang (hot pot soup).

Wm. Mulherin’s Sons might be the perfect weekend night restaurant, especially once the temperature drops. Its industrial aesthetic — dark wood, exposed brick, and gold accents — is decidedly sexy, and the kitchen is still serving some of the best pizza and pasta in town.

We in Philly already knew why Friday Saturday Sunday is one of the best restaurants in the country but we’re thrilled the James Beard Foundation agreed. Especially upstairs with the tasting menu format, the atmosphere is always alive and romantic.

If the name doesn’t give it away, there’s a lot of fire in this kitchen. Open flames kiss and char just about everything, from vegetables to a massive beef shin — a hunk of meat slathered in green curry sauce that you shred off the bone and eat in lettuce leaves. Even the old fashioned is made with coal-infused bourbon, and we’re not mad at it. It is cozy season, after all.

A nice glass of wine. A nice plate of pasta. A lovely night out on the town in one of the city’s most buzzworthy spots right now. Any questions?

There’s a reason it’s called Bar Hygge, after all. This is a place that embodies the spirit of Danish coziness, serving upscale bar food in a laid-back atmosphere.

Pasta does indeed shine at Cry Baby Pasta, where simple yet exquisite bowls of the house-made stuff are sauced up with everything from decadent vodka sauce to classic ragout. It’s red sauce season.

This clubby, recently revived South Philly institution is members only — but you can join online or in person. High among the privileges of belonging, though, is the chance to enjoy Top Chef alum Eddie Konrad’s small but well-focused menu of ever-changing specialties. Another advantage: your membership fee will help support charitable causes in the community.