When I read that Cadence was closing this summer I immediately made a reservation since this spot has been on my list for a while. Boy, am I glad we got in... this was an excellent dinner. I won't go long here reviewing every dish since they are closing but each and every dish we had was delicious. The star of the show, however, is their duck which was SO good my husband ordered an extra plate for just himself. We jokingly told our waitress that the owners should sell their duck recipe to another Philly area restaurant but we were kind of serious, that's how good it is. I'm really sad to see this place go...
Christina V.
When I read about this place causing after august, I immediately texted my closest foodie friends and made plans to go ASAP! Soo sad that we didn't do this sooner! The husband and wife owners have been involved in some of the most notable restaurants in Philly like Will, fork, high street, etc. we all ordered from their 4 course prix fixe menu for $58 pp, I don't think there was any other option to order from. Lol. One of our friends was vegetarian, and they were able to accommodate and honestly some of her dishes tasted better than the meat version. I ordered the steelhead trout crudo, amazingly fresh and light with such a balance of flavors, the seared scallops (must get!) so naturally sweet and decadent with the creme fraiche, the Black Sea bass was my least favorite dish (it didn't taste as fresh or it was frozen too long), which was unfortunate. For Dessert I selected the berry sorbet since my friends had ordered the other selections. I thought mine was the best even though it was the "simplest" dessert but it definitely didn't taste like it with a cashew streusel and horchata! My vegetarian friend's sub for the dumplings tasted better than the regular dumplings on the menu! And it's a BYOB, with outdoor seating and the sweetest servers. Foodies, make your way over to this restaurant before it closes for good!
Charlie Chen
Went to Cadence before the chef owners head off. Had a lovely and great experience. Sadly we found this gem too late to get more
Cat N.
Had a special birthday dinner at Cadence, and it was honestly very good... but not fabulous, rockin' my mind, can't wait to go back good. Service: Great! Pleasant, attentive (although we did have to ask for more water at one point), courses were well-paced. 5 Atmosphere: Nice. Minimalist. 4.5? Food: Ah... everything was... good. At the very least. Let me break it down for you: Must gets (5): * Cauliflower (Course 1): SO GOOD. Really. Perfect balance of flavors and textures. We ate it all! Made me wish the chef did more vegetarian dishes! * Scallops (Course 2): Cooked perfectly, fresh, delicious. Beets with scallops always FEELS like sweet-on-sweet, but it was really well done! Good (4): * Crudo (Course 1): Fresh. Nice. * Head-on prawns (Course 3): A little messy to eat, but they were tasty! And I liked everything else on the plate, very summery. * Both the strawberry sorbet and chocolate sesame ice cream (Course 4) were nice, and just a taste was perfect for ending the meal. Meh... (3): * Dumplings (Course 2): We had been reading the menu for a few weeks and were excited to try these with the seafood sauce/approach! But the dish had been changed to a pork ragu. Which was... fine. * Duck leg confit (Course 3): Ah. Also had been hoping to try their famous duck dish, but only duck leg was on the menu. It lacked some flavor, and the texture wasn't quite what we were hoping for. Didn't finish. Honestly, it may just be that we were hoping for a few of the dishes we've read about that were removed? The dinner over all was pleasant, but we won't be planning on returning to Cadence soon.
Jason Zimmerman
Loved the evening at this place. First, it was so intimate and cozy. The waitress was so friendly and explained the prix fixe menu. Every item was delicious, beautifully plated and worth the price. It was BYOB, so that was nice. My favorite dish was the seared tuna main course. This is a must visit! The even had a candle on my boyfriend’s dessert for his birthday!
Marc Lowenstein
Cadence's 4-course tasting menu is wonderful. Their food is inventive and delicious. This was the second time we've celebrated our anniversary there, and not the last!
Kyle Blackwell
Great little BYO spot. Phenomenal food, great service. I'm usually left still hungry at many of these sort of prix fixe, fancy-ish places, but was definitely satisfied after dinner here. Will return.
WorldTrvl831
What a find. This looks like a little local corner spot, but it offers the most wonderful food! We loved everything, especially the confit and the pork collar. Great service too. It is BYOB. You will love it.
Cheryl S.
Food mediocre and overpriced. Had to pull bad tomatoes out of my very small sandwich which came with chips, not a side. Fries came after everyone else was done eating. Friend got an au jus sandwich and had to wait 20 minutes for the au jus. Sides extra but should be included for the price . Poor service. Place not busy but waitress not attentive. Water never refilled. The one positive was being outdoors with friends on a beautiful evening.
Elizabeth T B.
Seriously one of the best meals I have had in my life, and I have had a lot of wonderful meals in many parts of the world. Look at the menu before you go and bring the appropriate wines. The place is not pretentious, so if you expect to be fawned over because you have a lot of money, go to a different place. But if you appreciate very well executed food served by knowledgeable folk, go there.
Arguably one of the best restaurants in Philadelphia. Even though their pre-fix menu is limited, you really can't go wrong with whatever you pick. A strong recommend to anyone looking for a nice night out.
Gabe S
The food is phenomenal. Nice quaint little date spot, with curtains up between the tables for privacy and to keep a barrier. Plus BYO is always a plus!
E W.
We had weekend special stuffed porcheta take out. It's very good. Will go back to try their full menu.
Jordan B.
So we went here once before with the Tasting Collective, which was a good time but a few dishes felt off. But as this was big group event this wasn't a fair evaluation. Tonight, however, was fantastic. The prix-fix menu was a great deal, with a very good price for four courses and the perfect portion sizes. We ordered literally everything on the (admittedly limited) menu and everything was fantastic. Plus BYOB! So happy to have this place close to home!
TORI KING
Love this place before quarantine and the new menu did not disappoint. You must make reservations but it is worth it.
When I read that Cadence was closing this summer I immediately made a reservation since this spot has been on my list for a while. Boy, am I glad we got in... this was an excellent dinner. I won't go long here reviewing every dish since they are closing but each and every dish we had was delicious. The star of the show, however, is their duck which was SO good my husband ordered an extra plate for just himself. We jokingly told our waitress that the owners should sell their duck recipe to another Philly area restaurant but we were kind of serious, that's how good it is. I'm really sad to see this place go...
When I read about this place causing after august, I immediately texted my closest foodie friends and made plans to go ASAP! Soo sad that we didn't do this sooner! The husband and wife owners have been involved in some of the most notable restaurants in Philly like Will, fork, high street, etc. we all ordered from their 4 course prix fixe menu for $58 pp, I don't think there was any other option to order from. Lol. One of our friends was vegetarian, and they were able to accommodate and honestly some of her dishes tasted better than the meat version. I ordered the steelhead trout crudo, amazingly fresh and light with such a balance of flavors, the seared scallops (must get!) so naturally sweet and decadent with the creme fraiche, the Black Sea bass was my least favorite dish (it didn't taste as fresh or it was frozen too long), which was unfortunate. For Dessert I selected the berry sorbet since my friends had ordered the other selections. I thought mine was the best even though it was the "simplest" dessert but it definitely didn't taste like it with a cashew streusel and horchata! My vegetarian friend's sub for the dumplings tasted better than the regular dumplings on the menu! And it's a BYOB, with outdoor seating and the sweetest servers. Foodies, make your way over to this restaurant before it closes for good!
Went to Cadence before the chef owners head off. Had a lovely and great experience. Sadly we found this gem too late to get more
Had a special birthday dinner at Cadence, and it was honestly very good... but not fabulous, rockin' my mind, can't wait to go back good. Service: Great! Pleasant, attentive (although we did have to ask for more water at one point), courses were well-paced. 5 Atmosphere: Nice. Minimalist. 4.5? Food: Ah... everything was... good. At the very least. Let me break it down for you: Must gets (5): * Cauliflower (Course 1): SO GOOD. Really. Perfect balance of flavors and textures. We ate it all! Made me wish the chef did more vegetarian dishes! * Scallops (Course 2): Cooked perfectly, fresh, delicious. Beets with scallops always FEELS like sweet-on-sweet, but it was really well done! Good (4): * Crudo (Course 1): Fresh. Nice. * Head-on prawns (Course 3): A little messy to eat, but they were tasty! And I liked everything else on the plate, very summery. * Both the strawberry sorbet and chocolate sesame ice cream (Course 4) were nice, and just a taste was perfect for ending the meal. Meh... (3): * Dumplings (Course 2): We had been reading the menu for a few weeks and were excited to try these with the seafood sauce/approach! But the dish had been changed to a pork ragu. Which was... fine. * Duck leg confit (Course 3): Ah. Also had been hoping to try their famous duck dish, but only duck leg was on the menu. It lacked some flavor, and the texture wasn't quite what we were hoping for. Didn't finish. Honestly, it may just be that we were hoping for a few of the dishes we've read about that were removed? The dinner over all was pleasant, but we won't be planning on returning to Cadence soon.
Loved the evening at this place. First, it was so intimate and cozy. The waitress was so friendly and explained the prix fixe menu. Every item was delicious, beautifully plated and worth the price. It was BYOB, so that was nice. My favorite dish was the seared tuna main course. This is a must visit! The even had a candle on my boyfriend’s dessert for his birthday!
Cadence's 4-course tasting menu is wonderful. Their food is inventive and delicious. This was the second time we've celebrated our anniversary there, and not the last!
Great little BYO spot. Phenomenal food, great service. I'm usually left still hungry at many of these sort of prix fixe, fancy-ish places, but was definitely satisfied after dinner here. Will return.
What a find. This looks like a little local corner spot, but it offers the most wonderful food! We loved everything, especially the confit and the pork collar. Great service too. It is BYOB. You will love it.
Food mediocre and overpriced. Had to pull bad tomatoes out of my very small sandwich which came with chips, not a side. Fries came after everyone else was done eating. Friend got an au jus sandwich and had to wait 20 minutes for the au jus. Sides extra but should be included for the price . Poor service. Place not busy but waitress not attentive. Water never refilled. The one positive was being outdoors with friends on a beautiful evening.
Seriously one of the best meals I have had in my life, and I have had a lot of wonderful meals in many parts of the world. Look at the menu before you go and bring the appropriate wines. The place is not pretentious, so if you expect to be fawned over because you have a lot of money, go to a different place. But if you appreciate very well executed food served by knowledgeable folk, go there.
Restaurantji Recommends
Arguably one of the best restaurants in Philadelphia. Even though their pre-fix menu is limited, you really can't go wrong with whatever you pick. A strong recommend to anyone looking for a nice night out.
The food is phenomenal. Nice quaint little date spot, with curtains up between the tables for privacy and to keep a barrier. Plus BYO is always a plus!
We had weekend special stuffed porcheta take out. It's very good. Will go back to try their full menu.
So we went here once before with the Tasting Collective, which was a good time but a few dishes felt off. But as this was big group event this wasn't a fair evaluation. Tonight, however, was fantastic. The prix-fix menu was a great deal, with a very good price for four courses and the perfect portion sizes. We ordered literally everything on the (admittedly limited) menu and everything was fantastic. Plus BYOB! So happy to have this place close to home!
Love this place before quarantine and the new menu did not disappoint. You must make reservations but it is worth it.