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You have until February 4 to submit a with-love line that could be featured on an I-95 billboard! (Photo by GPTMC)

USA Today’s Travel section tipped its hat to our Write-A-Billboard contest.

You still have time to enter! The contest runs through February 4th. Submit your very own “With Love” line; if it’s the very best, we’ll feature it on a billboard on I-95 along with YOUR name on it.

CLICK HERE to enter.

Yo! Get your name on a billboard near Philly [USA Today]

The RiverRink stays open through March 6.
(Photo by G. Widman for GPTMC)

As Pennsylvania’s legendary Punxsutawney Phil forecasts the weather for the remainder of the winter season, celebrate Groundhog Day on February 2nd from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Blue Cross RiverRink.

Throughout the day, visitors can dig for prizes during the “Groundhog Games” and watch the classic Bill Murray movie Groundhog Day. They will also learn about the diet, living habits and habitats of groundhogs during a special presentation by the Wissahickon and Pennypack Environmental Centers.

There will be photo opportunities, groundhog face painting and of course, ice-skating on the Blue Cross RiverRink Olympic-size rink.

To add to the Groundhog Day fun, if Phil sees his shadow, then free skating admission for boys all day. If he doesn’t, free skating admission for girls all day!

The Philadelphia School District will be closed. Special skate session times for February 2nd are 12:30-2:30 p.m., 3 p.m.-5 p.m. and 6 p.m.-9 p.m.

Groundhog Day Activities
When: February 2nd, 1-5 p.m. plus special extended skating hours (see above)
Where: Blue Cross RiverRink, Columbus Boulevard at Market Street
Cost: Rink admission is $8
More info: www.riverrink.com

Enjoy spirited music at the museum, January 29. (Photo courtesy NMAJH.)

This Saturday evening, January 29th, the National Museum of American Jewish History will be hosting a tribute to legendary American Jewish singer/songwriter Debbie Friedman, who died earlier this month.

The free program will feature numerous cantors and musicians from the Greater Philadelphia Area singing her songs, sharing stories and generally paying tribute to one of the seminal figures of American Jewish music in the late 20th century.

Friedman released more than 20 albums and performed in sold-out concerts at Carnegie Hall and in hundreds of cities around the world. She is credited with creating a whole new genre of contemporary, accessible Jewish music.

The doors open at 6:30 p.m. on a first come, first serve basis (and the Museum reports that they are expecting around 400-500 people, so plan accordingly).

Debbie Friedman Tribute
Where: National Museum of American Jewish History, 101 S. Independence Mall East
When: Saturday, January 29th, 6:30 p.m.
Cost: FREE
More info: www.nmajh.org

Spread the love to our soldiers and their beloved pets at Tavern 17’s pre-Valentine’s Day charity event, in the Radisson Plaza-Warwick Hotel, Saturday, February 12th from 7-11 p.m.

Dance the night away with music from Naylor Court, karaoke, drink specials, raffle prizes, complimentary appetizers and more. A $15 donation at the door will go directly to No Dog Gets Left Behind, an organization whose goal is to reunite military personnel with their pets upon returning from Iraq. The joy and financial support this program brings to soldiers is immeasurable.

Show your love of animals and appreciation for our military with your time and donation!

No Dog Gets Left Behind Pre-Valentine’s Charity Event
When: Saturday, February 12th, 7-11 p.m.
Where: Tavern 17, 220 South 17th Street
Cost: $15
More info: www.tavern17restaurant.com

Front window at Amada (photo courtesy of Garces Restaurant Group)

Here at Philly Homegrown, we’re committed to getting local food into your belly, whether you cook it yourself or you order it up at an area restaurant. In the hopes of highlighting some of the menus that are rife with homegrown ingredients, we’ve partnered with a series of Philly bloggers and have sent them out into the field, to report back on some of those locally sourced dishes.

Lauren St. Clair Lynch, our very first guest blogger, is back with a report from another local dining experience. During a recent meal at Amada, chef de cuisine MacGregor Mann gave her a few minutes of his time to talk about their sourcing.

During the summer, we source as much locally as possible. I go to the farmers markets at Headhouse Square and the Piazza for our bell peppers and Spanish onions, and the chicken comes from an Amish farm in Lancaster. And it does taste better. The produce is fresher because it hasn’t had to travel as far, and the meat has a…

Click here to read more of about where the food comes from at Amada.

Adsum is doing $2 canned beers for the snow day; pair one with their delicious burger and you're set. (Photo courtesy Adsum)

It’s snowing like crazy out there, and the forecasted inches keep increasing. Heading home early today, like we are? Don’t flee to your couch. We’ve got options for lunch, happy hour and other ways to spend the snow day.

Our snow day picks, below:

Lunch

Oyster House: Come in out of the snow and get the famed Lobster Roll for half price during lunch ($13).

Percy Street: Order the Restaurant Week menu and get your first beer on the house (available all day beginning at lunch).

All Day

Top Picks for Fireside Dining: By the time the temperatures dip even more later this evening, head to the hearth at one of our choices for restaurants that offer fireside dining.

McGillin’s Olde Ale House: Jaeger Barrels (shot of Jaeger and root beer) are $4 all day today, plus the first 100 people get to keep a Jaeger barrel-shaped mini mug.

London Grill: All Day, hot alcoholic drinks are just $5, including Hot Cider, Hot Toddy, Irish Coffee and Hot Dark Chocolate, Plus, you can pig out on $8 food specials: Chili Elizabeth Taylor, Wild Boar Chili, Sheppard’s pie and Cassoulet.

Marathon Grill: Get $4 Bloody Marys and $4 mimosas all day. Also notable: the $10 Burger + Beer Deal, your choice of beer and choice of beef, turkey or veggie burger.

Twenty Manning Grill: Twenty Manning is opening an hour early today at 4 p.m. for people getting out of work early and they’re promising lots of specials…

Cantina Dos Segundos: Get snowed in at Dos Segundos with $1 off Mimosas and Bloody Marys.

Dinner/Happy Hour

Adsum: From 5-7 p.m. and 9-11 p.m. in the bar and lounge, get all canned beers for $2 (add a shot of Heaven Hill for $1 more), plus half-priced fried oysters, tater tots, flatbread, mushroom pickles, pork sliders, duck fat fries and FREE boozy apple cider.

Sampan: Chef Michael Schulson will offer his awesome Happy Hour Menu all night ($2 Crispy Pork Belly Buns, General Tso’s Soup Dumplings, Kobe Hot Dogs and Hamburgers; $4 cocktail, wine and beer special).

Village Belle: From 5-9 p.m., pick up a $3 Miller, Peroni or Stella, half price glass of wine, or $4 Mexican Hot Chocolate with optional Patron Coffee Flavored Tequila ($8).

Xochitl: Order the Restaurant Week menu, and get your first margarita on the house.

The museum opened November 26. (Photo courtesy NMAJH)

We’ve waxed poetic about the newly opened National Museum of American Jewish History, but it’s nice to receive some validation from a national news source: the Wall Street Journal offered a favorable profile of the museum today.

An excerpt: “Overlooking the Liberty Bell and the President’s House, with views of both Independence Hall and the National Constitution Center, the museum explores how Jews both experienced and helped shape America’s progress toward its own ideals.”

Head to the National Museum of American Jewish History yourself to confirm the Journal’s praiseful findings.

American Jews’ Story Told in a New Home [Wall Street Journal]

Space 1026 creates one-of-a-kind prints for visitors. (Photo courtesy PAFA)

Get ready to charge up your creative side at RELOAD, the second installment of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Art’s After Dark program on Thursday, February 3rd, from 6 to 9 p.m.

Not only has PAFA restocked its galleries with new paintings and sculptures for guests to take in while nibbling on tasty food and sipping cocktails, but hometown drag diva Martha Graham Cracker will rock and roll the historic Rotunda, combining a quick wit, talented band and theatrical flair into what is sure to be one of Philly’s most dazzling cabaret performances yet.

Artist collective Space 1026 will also be on site, offering a hands-on workshop where guests can write up prose and design their own pages.

Whether it’s your first time at PAFA or you’re a member, RELOAD is a night you won’t want to miss out on. Grab a friend and get ready to beat the cold with an evening of great music, art and delicious cocktails.

Tickets are available online.

PAFA After Dark: RELOAD
When: Thursday, February 3rd, 6-9 p.m.
Where: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 118-128 N. Broad Street
Cost: Free for PAFA members, $10 advance tickets, $15 at-the-door
More info: www.pafa.org/afterdark

Square 1682’s executive chef Guillermo Tellez
(Photo courtesy Square 1682)

[This is the first of a new ¡Philly Te Ama! Videos Series that will spotlight noteworthy Latinos with a connection to Philadelphia in order to learn more about why they love it here.]

¡Philly Te Ama! — which, translated, means “Philly loves you” — is the message we like to get across to all our Hispanic visitors. And what better way to invite locals and visitors to enjoy Philadelphia’s offerings than through our very own Hispanic ambassadors.

That’s why starting today, uwishunu is launching an exclusive Philly Te Ama® video series highlighting different notable Latinos and their reasons for loving Philadelphia.

The series includes 10 three- to five-minute videos debuting over the course of 10 weeks, broadcasting each person’s thoughts on why the Philadelphia region is a great place to live, work and play.

In our first installment we’re talking to Square 1682’s executive chef Guillermo Tellez. At Square 1682, located inside the Hotel Palomar Philadelphia, Chef Tellez combines his global influences with sustainable and organic practices to create a forward-looking restaurant that’s abuzz with both locals and tourists.

Tellez doesn’t hide his pride in the city’s emergence as a true dining destination.

Below, watch a behind-the-scenes video interview with the chef inside his restaurant’s kitchen.

(more…)

The new LOVE Gift Shop is officially open, located in the Fairmount Park Welcome Center in LOVE Park, also known as JFK Plaza.

The store offers all things LOVE (as in, the infamous red stacked-block-letter LOVE statue) at every price point. Choose from mini LOVE sculptures, bags, journals, mugs, magnets, shirts, wall prints, note cubes, note cards and lapel pins. How better to declare your Philadelphia patriotism than by decking out your office, home and self with LOVE paraphernalia?

Bonus: The shop also offers free gift-wrapping.

The LOVE Gift Shop is open Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. You can also shop online.

LOVE Gift Shop [Official Site]