Picnic — Restaurant in Philadelphia

My wife and I visited in the first few days that they were open. There's definitely things to like about Picnic, but ultimately, we were a little disappointed.

The first thing to say is that the place looks amazing. They really did an excellent job and there are a lot of cool and unique features. It really is a beautiful room. The other positive is that the food we had was very good. The chicken is really excellent, and we like the overall style of the menu. They also had a nice selection of wine by the glass, and other drinks, if you don't want to commit to a whole bottle. It wasn't cheap, but it wasn't bad either. Prices were comparable to similar places

Unfortunately, the rest of our experience left something to be desired. The wine shop in the front is a cool idea, but when we visited on a hot day, it was quite warm in there and there was a lot of direct sunlight. It didn't seem to me to be the best way to store wine. I'm sure they turn stuff over, but I'd be hesitant to pay for an expensive bottle stored in that way.

As I mentioned before, the room is great, but most of the two tops where crammed around the outside edge, along the wall. What this meant was that if you had a larger party, you where in the middle of the light and airy room, but my wife and I were seated literally in a corner by the bar pass, squeezed in between tables. It's very strange to be in such a huge space, yet to still feel cramped, with people right on top of us on either side. Also, it's strange that there are no stools at the bar when it seems to be that they essentially 'seat' people there. It's not like you can just walk up to the bar, at least it didn't seem that way on our visit.

By far the worst thing, and what would keep me from going back, was that they have you do all of your ordering through an app on your phone. I also did not find the app particularly easy to navigate, which meant that a lot of time was spent staring at my phone instead enjoying our time . We then noticed that the table next to us was able to order with a waitstaff, which i would have greatly preferred. I'm not sure how they decide who gets to order regularly, and who has to use the app. This was a huge negative in my eyes, as the last thing I want to do in a restaurant is to have to be constantly staring at my phone every time someone wants another drink or something. It's really a bad system.

There were a few other kinks during our visit, but those seemed associated with them having just opened, so i can't knock them for that. Overall, it seems like they spent a lot of time thinking about the vibe, but some of the basic little things have fallen through the cracks. I'd probably give it another try, but I'm not really in a rush...

First, I love that this restaurant/Defined Hospitality has committed to re-invigorating this building in the neighborhood. The design and commitment to re-hab has to be commended. The oysters/sauces are very good, the fries are some of the best in the city, and the small plates we've had are all flavorful.

There are a few things I am hoping can change so that this can be an establishment worth visiting every few weeks:

(1) Wine by the glass selection: to be a restaurant focused on wines and only have 1-2 selections of red/white/orange by the glass is disappointing. If I'm coming here on a weekday with my partner, I'm not about to split an entire bottle of wine, but I'd love to explore more options beyond one skin contact by the glass on the menu. Rebel Rebel can do it in Cambridge, Ruffian can do it in NYC, there is no reason Picnic can't offer better wine selection by the glass, especially given the options by the bottle out front.

(2) Wine by the bottle price points: to open in East Kensington and only have a single bottle of wine below $45 is a huge missed opportunity. We asked about take-out discount (10%) which is still so steep for this area. There is such a market in the neighborhood for a natural wine storefront (their only competitors are the IGA and Fishtown Social) and this could be our go to place for wine if a few more bottles were offered in the 25-40 dollar range to go. But I'd wager less than 10% of people who walk in are buying a wine to go because most are marked at $60+. Provide 4-5 more bottles at accessible price points, and I guarantee more people would be taking away wine. Picnic is missing so many wine sales because of the price points!

(3) Staff Training: I don't expect staff members to have the menu memorized, but the basics could be improved. We've been to Picnic twice, and each time we asked some basic questions like, "which oysters are the largest?", "is the wine on the drier side?" and staff could not tell us/did not offer to ask someone else to answer those questions. If we're tipping for service when there's a QR code system, the primary function of service should be guiding folks through the menu. I don't put the onus on those staff members themselves, but there is a need to have some training to enhance staff's competence in helping guests navigate the menu. I'm hopeful as things progress this improves!

Really want this spot to work out! With these small tweaks I can see it becoming a spot that more folks from the...

It pains me to leave this review because I was really truly excited about this place opening and occupying one of the most distinctive properties in Fishtown. However, this place is middling right now and needs some serious improvement to be worthy of it's architecture.

The food is fine, if a little lackluster for the price. We had a lot of oysters, the chicken (which came recommended), the watermelon salad, and a smattering of other small places. All were fine, but about 10 to 25% more expensive than felt reasonable. It ended up being about $75 per person with a drink each, which compared to lots of places in Philly is pretty expensive. But, let's assume you don't mind that for a moment...

The real problem with this place is the very thing that makes it awesome: the space. The room is cavernous, which is cool, but it also makes the room feel like a big cafeteria. The sound is boomy, the ambient noise is very high while dining, and you feel very exposed to foot traffic. In a city with so many well done restaurants, it is uniquely uncozy and without a vibe.

The furniture they'd chosen, IKEA-like plastic modernism, highlighted this lack of coziness. The place is named picnic, why not have wooden picnic tables or some thematic continuity? Why not some greenery or plants to make the space feel more intimate or picnic-like? They took no creative chances here, with any of that.

Compounding all this, the music that was playing when we were there was completely bargain basement pop music. Again no thought or detail. The attempt at visual "coolness" with really lame music felt disjointed and confusing. Who exactly is this place for?

In the end, I guess it's kind of emblematic. A Fishtown "hip" facade with none of the detail or texture that actually makes a dining experience an enduring success that engenders loyalty. Maybe the Temple kids won't notice or care, but I won't go back until they put a lot more effort into making Picnic someplace really fun to eat.

Also, ordering off QR codes for a $200 meal?...