What are some good places to party in Philadelphia?

I Want a Good Jazz, R&B, Soul, Neo-Soul Oriented Trip To Philadelphia -- HELP!?

• I am planning on visiting Philadelphia from New York City during the summer. I am looking for some fun places and clubs to hang out in. I am looking for Jazz, R&B, Soul, Neo-Soul oriented bars and clubs to hang out in and meet people; if they cater to an older (30s) crowd, the better. I am not looking for the expensive, exclusive, or pricey places, but the more local spots where the real people go to enjoy the music and party -- not the touristy glamorous spots. Restaurants or bars that have local bands/music/open mic are fine -- I want to truly experience the City of Brotherly Love! I would also appreciate a listing of nice local restaurants (not in the South Street/tourist areas) that I could visit as well, to get a real flavor of Philadelphia. If anyone could help with names and locations of local spots, or even websites to help with my search it would be greatly appreciated!

• Answer:

  www.ortliebsjazzhaus.com Give this place a shot. It's in a part of the city known as Northern Liberties. Judging by the bit you typed, you'll love this bar and the crowd in the neighborhood. There are some more music venues around there, but I'm out of that loop. If you were to stop into Ortliebs and ask though, I have no doubt you'd end up with a few new friends and a couple of more bars to hit. Ortliebs fits the 'dive bar' description, but in a good way. If you do hit NL and find yourself looking for more, you can also hit North 3rd (3rd & Brown), the Standard Tap (2nd & Poplar), Duece (2nd & Wildey) or Ministry of Information (5th & Poplar). They kind of go along with the whole...if they don't have the music you like, they will DEFINITELY know where to send you. Good folks in those places. North 3rd and Duece have some good food too, and the Tap has some of the greatest burgers I've ever tasted. There are a few new places to eat there too, like Brussola Trattoria (or something like that). I recently just had a RIDICULOUSLY good meal at Mercato, on like 12th & Spruce. It's a BYOB that may require reservations because the Kimmel Center is nearby and I think they get a good bit of people from there. Incredible italian food. There's Ralph's too, on 9th & Catherine. It's Italian food too, but more old school than Mercato.