Food trends come and go. So how can you tell which tastes are trending right now?
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp and SafeGraph, a dataset of commercial points of interest and their visitor patterns, to analyze which local businesses have been most discussed this month.
To find out who made the list, we first looked at Philadelphia businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance. Then we analyzed foot traffic data from SafeGraph to validate the trends.
Read on to see which spots are getting plenty of attention this winter.
United By Blue
Open since 2017, this popular breakfast and brunch spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Breakfast & Brunch" on Yelp.
Citywide, breakfast and brunch spots saw a median 1.4% increase in new reviews over the past month, but United By Blue saw a 1.9% increase, maintaining a convincing 4.5-star rating throughout. According to SafeGraph foot traffic data, the number of visitors to United By Blue more than tripled over the past month.
The spot, which is located at 205 Race St. in Old City, offers oatmeal with raisins and brown sugar, build-your-own egg dishes, a hummus sandwich with tomato and cucumber and a seasonal grain bowl, among more. It also serves organic pour-over coffee and espresso beverages.
It's not the only trending outlier in the breakfast and brunch category: Lucha Cartel has seen a 0.6% increase in reviews.
United By Blue is open from 7 a.m.–7 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m.–7 p.m. on weekends. According to SafeGraph, it's usually busiest at 1 p.m., 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., and people visit United By Blue most on Sundays and Fridays, so go on Tuesdays if you want to avoid the rush.
Jean-Georges
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Logan Square's Jean-Georges, the New American spot is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "American (New)" on Yelp saw a median 1.3% increase in new reviews over the past month, Jean-Georges bagged a 30.9% increase in new reviews within that time frame, maintaining a healthy four-star rating. It significantly outperformed the previous month by gaining 1.7 times more reviews than expected based on its past performance.
There's more that's trending on Philadelphia's New American scene: Mac's Tavern has seen a 0.5% increase in reviews.
Jean-Georges, which opened in 2019, offers egg caviar on toast, parmesan-crusted chicken and roasted salmon, as well as a marinated duck breast with glazed turnips, sauteed lobster and sweet corn dumplings.
The spot is open now at 1 N. 19th St., so stop on by to check it out.
Wawa
And finally, Upper Roxborough's Wawa, an outpost of the well-known chain, is also making waves. Open since 2010 at 6701 Ridge Ave., the spot to score coffee and sandwiches has seen a 1.5% increase in new reviews over the last month — matching that of all businesses tagged "Sandwiches" on Yelp — but the number of visitors to Wawa almost doubled over the same time frame, according to SafeGraph's foot traffic data
There's more than one hot spot trending in Philadelphia's sandwich category: Angelo's Pizzeria has seen a 9.6% increase in reviews, and Campo's Philly Cheesesteaks has seen a 0.5% bump.
Wawa offers a variety of cold and hot hoagies and sandwiches, including a roasted veggie with provolone, a barbecue chicken cheesesteak and a honey smoked turkey. Patrons can also choose to build-their-own sandwiches. Coffee and pastries are on offer as well. Over the past month, it's maintained a superior four-star rating among Yelpers.
Wawa is open 24 hours a day. According to SafeGraph, foot traffic is heaviest at 8 a.m., 9 a.m. and 10 a.m., and on Fridays and Saturdays, so go on Sundays if you want to avoid the rush.
This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
