Philly is a festive city and welcomes the Holiday Season 2025, buzzing with warmth, generosity, and culinary magic. This short list offers a number of options for where and how you can spice up your 2025 holiday experiences with food, libations, shopping, and fun.
Holiday Season 2025 Celebrations: Festive Feasts and Seasonal Libations
One of the most heartwarming celebrations takes place at Bolo, Chef Yun Fuentes’ Latin American dining room and rum bar in Rittenhouse Square. On Christmas Eve, Bolo will host its annual Noche Buena dinner — a traditional Puerto Rican celebration centered on family, food, and giving. This year, they’ve partnered with Taller Puertorriqueño: bring a toy donation on December 24, and you’ll receive Bolo’s signature Suckling Pig Dinner for just $45 (regularly $65). This soulful meal kicks off with a Verde Salad with coconut vinaigrette and moves into a bold, garlicky Lechón slow-roasted to perfection. The sides — fried sweet plantains, mofongo with coco garlic sauce, pigeon peas in ham broth stew, and white rice — reflect a culinary tribute to Puerto Rico’s cherished holiday flavors.
Not to be forgotten, Bolo’s festive Coquito is available by the quart through January 6, letting you spike the holidays your way at home. It’s creamy, coconut-forward, and everything a Puerto Rican Christmas cocktail should be.
Assembly Rooftop Lounge is serving Chalet Have Another? with tequila and prosecco (benefiting Hungry to Help), and winter warmers like the Velvet Skyline made with mezcal and chocolate. Flight Club is leaning in with cocktails crafted using It’s Always Sunny’s Four Walls Whiskey, while Patchwork presents sippers like Santa on South (vodka, candy cane syrup) and the Broad Street Toddy with hot cider and maple.
At Red Owl Tavern, you can enjoy a festive brunch on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, from 8 AM to 3 PM. Indulge in comfort dishes like Chicken and Waffles with spicy chile butter, Avocado Toast with feta and harissa chili crisp, and Tiramisu Waffles topped with mascarpone and white chocolate cream. Red Owl Tavern sweetens the season further with its Owlidays Bake Shop. Through December 24, this charitable bake sale benefits Philabundance and features handcrafted croissants, holiday pies like Sweet Potato and Apple Crisp, and savory favorites like Chicken and Mushroom Pie. For dessert-driven gifting or holiday hosting, these pastries offer meaning beyond flavor.
Not far away, Square 1682 inside the Kimpton Hotel Palomar, is offering both brunch and a Christmas Dinner Menu through December 27. Highlights include Baked Camembert with pecan honey, Prime Rib with crispy onions, and a decadent Lobster Risotto with saffron and melted leeks — all served in a cozy, contemporary setting that balances sophistication with holiday spirit.
For a Christmas Eve dinner in one of the most picturesque spaces around, Rat’s Restaurant at Grounds for Sculpture offers a special menu in its Monet-inspired setting. The culinary centerpiece is a salt-baked roast beef served with horseradish cream and cheesy mashed potatoes, ending on a high note with an apple tartine and chantilly.
Over at Dolce Italian, celebrate the season Italian-style with their luxe take on the Feast of the Seven Fishes, a 5-course prix fixe dinner featuring Lobster Tagliatelle and Baccalà Mantecato — paired with wines that sing with every bite.
Urban Farmer at the Logan Hotel leans into comfort with a locally sourced à la carte menu and holiday specials. Their Maple-Glazed Ham and Pennsylvania Angus Ribeye headline the Christmas Eve and Day offerings, rounded out with sides like cider honey Brussels sprouts, and sweet potato pie. For those celebrating at home, Urban Farmer’s Christmas To-Go Package feeds 4 to 6 with a choice of ham or ribeye, festive sides, and a pie of your choosing — available for pre-order now.
Front Street Café and The Bakery both introduced new holiday lattes and martinis — from the peppermint-forward Dirty Eggnog and Sugar Cookie Latte to the whimsical Grinch Matcha with heart jimmies. Shake Shack brings the nostalgia with Peppermint Bark and Christmas Cookie shakes, while Spread Bagelry adds chili yam molasses and cinnamon vanilla cream cheese spreads to round out their seasonal lineup. Additionally, Spread Bagelry is offering its French Toast Bagel and Gingerbread Latte through December 31. Their South Street, 16th Street, and Rittenhouse locations will also open from 7 AM to noon on Christmas Day — great for bagel brunches or last-minute bites.
Holiday Season 2025: Take Home Delights
For Holiday Season 2025, Little Walter’s in Kensington reintroduces its sought-after Polish Christmas to-go menu, available for pickup December 20 and 21. Choose from handmade kiełbasa (smoked or fresh), festive breads like Babka and Pierogi Bread, and pantry staples including whipped lard with pork cracklings. The star? Frozen pierogi by the dozen, featuring potato and cheese, brisket, mushroom, or cabbage.
For a meatless tradition, Little Walter’s is also reviving the Wigilia Dinner on December 23, an all-star collaboration between Philly’s Polish culinary talents. Held in true community spirit, this 12-course, meat-free feast honors Polish Christmas Eve customs with seatings at 5 and 8 PM, priced at $100 per person.
At Amada in both Philadelphia and Radnor, guests can indulge in Spanish-inspired holiday feasts for Holiday Season 2025. Their Cochinillo Take-Home package includes a whole suckling pig for pickup on Christmas Eve. Dine-in guests can experience a Feast of the Seven Fishes on December 24 or toast the New Year with a $90 multi-course menu featuring 12 lucky grapes and cava. Pair your meal with Amada’s gift card promotion, where spending $100–$200 gets you up to three $20 bonus cards — a little something extra for your holiday wallet.
Holiday Season 2025: Festive Drinks & Cozy Escapes
At AKA University City, immerse yourself in a Suite Winter Wonderland, styled by design duo Alex & Mike. The overnight package includes festive cookies, holiday films in a private cinema, and hot cocoa delivered to your suite — a luxe staycation wrapped in nostalgia.
For a swimmingly fun outing this Holiday Season 2025, visit Adventure Aquarium on Christmas Eve, where Scuba Santa will swim with sharks, stingrays, and sea turtles during his final dive before delivering gifts. First dive is at 10:30 AM, last splash at 2:30 PM.
Holiday Season 2025 Gifting Ideas
If shopping is on your list for Holiday Season 2025, head to Gather Food Hall at Schuylkill Yards for its final holiday market on December 20, featuring vendors like Elby Originals and Velvet Razor. While there, treat yourself to eats from El Mictlan, Federal Donuts, and more.
Bird Gang Spirits, in a proper collaboration with the Philadelphia Eagles, delivers premium game-day bottles that every fan and collector must have. Among the standout offerings is the limited-edition Artist Series, showcasing custom labels designed by notable Philadelphia artists Heavyslime, Jordan Spector, and Paul Carpenter, all celebrating the Eagles’ 60th anniversary. This collection features Vodka, Bourbon, Tequila, and Habanero Tequila, and makes a wonderful gift.
NextFab’s annual Holiday Gift Guide features unique, handcrafted items from Philadelphia’s talented makers, promoting support for local businesses over mass-produced goods. The guide includes categories such as Jewelry, Home Accents, and Fashion, showcasing over 40 vendors. Notable highlights include Shelisha Harper’s NOSHADE lifestyle brand, environmentally friendly furniture from Andrew Moreau’s Chachi Studios, and Trebor Adam’s I’m Good clothing brand, which focuses on mental health through humor and hope.
If you have a budding mixologist, bourbon aficionado, or coffee enthusiast on your list, then explore Art in the Age’s exceptional spirits, such as the Siege of Wolves Spiced Rum, with sweet birch and star anise. For an easy-drinking option, enjoy the Dunce Bourbon Whiskey. Savor the unique Graverobber Unholy Rye Whiskey with charred oak flavors. Indulge in the comforting Old Baldy Spiced Apple Whiskey, perfect for cozy cocktails.
From Bluebird Distilling, there is the Sportsman Bourbon – Art of the Fly, which is ideal for adventurers, while the Four Grain Bourbon Whiskey offers a unique blend. Char & Stave’s coffee liqueurs offer something for coffee lovers. The Classic Coffee Liqueur is perfect for Espresso Martinis, while the Café Amaro Coffee Liqueur adds a twist to Coffee Negronis. Don’t miss their Four Grain Bourbon Barrel-Aged Beans.
The “IN SESSION: Low-Proof Cocktails for High-Quality Occasions” book makes for a wonderful gift, featuring 36 refreshing cocktail recipes, culinary ideas, and curated playlists by Grammy winner Charlie Hall, perfect for hosting any gathering.
Whatever and wherever you choose to spend time Holiday Season 2025, remember to surround yourself with positive and festive vibes, great company, and to enjoy yourself.
Happy holidays!
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