Two Philly Legends Move On: Southwark
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A little over a decade ago, the landscape of Philadelphia’s cocktail scene changed dramatically. Actually, it was created. The bar and restaurant known as Southwark opened in the Queen Village neighborhood, sending shockwaves through the Philadelphia drink scene.
Many of us have had specialty cocktails around town at places like The Franklin Mortgage & Investment Company, Emmanuelle, Village Whiskey, Hop Singh Laundromat, The Rannstead Room and countless others that have opened and closed shop. You may have sipped on an old fashion at Sassafras in Old City. None of this would have existed without Southwark.
The husband and wife team of Kip and Sheri Waide dreamed up a plan of opening a seasonal, local, farm-to-table restaurant that would have a small bar in front of the house. Sheri had recently cooked at the critically-acclaimed Django and Kip spent more than a decade bartending throughout town at spots such as The Five Spot and New Wave Café. They settled on a spot on the corner of 4th & Bainbridge.
The food was always stellar as Sheri is a master in the kitchen. Southwark had received Three Bells from Inquirer food critic Craig Laban. At the same time, Kip and the bar were cranking out delicious, classic cocktails like it was 1940. There was and is no better Manhattan in the city of Philadelphia. People took notice.
Word spread. Neighborhood and industry folks flocked to Southwark. The city’s best chefs dined there. They city’s best bartenders drank there. Within two years, Southwark was named one of Esquire Magazine’s Best Bars in America. Food and Wine also named Southwark as one of their Best Bars in America. That’s when the cocktail revolution of Philadelphia began. Cocktail places starting popping up around town with mixologists and trendy new cocktails.
Southwark doesn’t do fancy cocktails, they just do the classics and they do them perfectly. They did rye whiskey when no one was. They do cocktails that my grandparents raved about, all while dressed in Prohibition-style shirts, ties, and aprons.
Kip and Sheri Wade hold a special place in my heart. Just after their opening, I was in an intense car wreck that left me with a broken neck. I spent four months recuperating at my parents’ house in suburban South Jersey. My neck didn’t heal. I moved back to my place, a block from Southwark, hoping that a change of scenery would spur some bone healing.
I was scheduled for a surgery in eight weeks and decided to embark on some alternative therapies leading up to my surgeries. I spent many nights in a neck-collar drinking Manhattans and having amazing conversations about life, music, and philosophy with people from all walks of life such as chefs, physicians, tattoo artists, servers and musicians. They inspired me. They gave me hope. Southwark was my safe place away from worries about my inability to heal and my impending neck-fusion surgery.
In those eight weeks, my bone decided to heal. Maybe it was those Manhattans. They’re so damn good they have to be good for the body.
I was sad to read that Kip and Sheri recently decided to sell Southwark and move to Cape May to embark on the next journey of their lives together. I’m glad to hear that the new owners will be keeping with Southwark’s traditions and direction. The neighborhood and the city needs Southwark around. It’s the O.G. of cocktails bars without every trying to be a cocktail bar.
I am forever indebted to Kip and Sheri for their providing me with a safe-haven and community of hope when I was in a place of fear and anxiety. Philadelphia, on the other hand, is indebted to them for revolutionizing the local cocktail scene, putting it on par with New York City, Chicago and San Francisco. If you’ve sipped some new fangled version of a Gimlet, Old Fashion, Cosmo, or Manhattan in Philadelphia, you too owe them a debt of gratitude.
I say for all us, Thank you and good luck to Kip and Sheri on the next chapter of their lives.