the continental restaurant and martini bar

great!! one of my favorite places for lunch and dinner!! the food is tasty and offers new flavors for your palate. not too pricey, within reason for the area!! great service!!

it's my all-time favorite because its always consistently wonderful!!

we stopped for lunch but just had a beer and moved on. the prices were higher than most other restaurants. seemed old decor. the food we saw come out all looked good. our waiter was friendly even though we didn’t order only a beer.

a diverse and eclectic menu await you in this "diner" restaurant with a fusion twist. the staff are friendly and the prices are reasonable. a beer and steak frites for $25 is a good deal in any city. check it out when you are in philly. don't forget the franklin fountain ice cream shop just down the street.

for brunch, the gf and i decided to go to the continental martini bar, a stephen starr joint that offers an eclectic menu, set in an even more eclectic jetson's-esque atmosphere. is it a diner? is it a bar? why not both?
 
there are actually two locations for the continental - the martini bar is in old city on 2nd and market. the other, which we've also been to, is the continental midtown, on 18th and chestnut.

crispy calamari salad ($13)
beer battered calamari, chopped greens, carrots, tomatoes, sprouts & sesame-soy dressing

the start to our meal came with crispy calamari sprinkled with black and white sesame seeds, which added a toasted sweetness to the dish. fresh romaine lettuce was tossed with a perfect amount of asian sesame dressing. sprouts added a bitter freshness, and strips of tomato and carrots added respective sweetness and crunch to the salad as well. kudos to the kitchen for not firing the mains until later, since this hefty salad took awhile to down. stephen starr at his best - the service is simple unparalleled.

lobster mac n' cheese ($18)
orzo, gruyère, fontina cheese

case in point - they changed our settings between courses. and we're talking about brunch in a casual diner setting. this lobster mac n cheese was a nice change of pace. they used orzo, which was cooked to a perfect al dente. there was a nice crunch on top, along with a sprinkling of scallions.

the creamy gruyère and fontina melded together nicely. but it wasn't overly cheesy, which seems to be perfect for all the naysayers who are against seafood and cheese being in the same dish.

korean pork tacos ($8.75)
berkshire farms pork with korean bbq sauce

for two tacos, the dish seemed a bit pricey. three would offer a better price point. being that we are talking about berkshire pork though, i suppose you are paying for quality. unfortunately, the unadulterated marbling of the pig was overwhelmed by a sweetness that was perhaps attempting to assuage the power of the kochujang korean paste. too sweet for my taste in any case. there was a nice heat on the finish, which was complemented by the countervailing fresh kimchi and cucumbers.

overall, the continental martini bar offers an interesting take on various every-day dishes such as salad, mac n cheese, and tacos, with quite a few asian fusion dishes tossed in between. and of course, when you're talking about a stephen starr establishment, you know that service will be friendly, courteous, and accommodating. in fact, they were able to get us out of there within the requested 45 minutes, without rushing us. perfectly timed.

i love midtown continental....so good, and so fun!!!. the sister restaurant to the mega-hit is absolutely a place out of the ordinary. great service, friendly bar-staff, and the hippest vibe without being tragically hip. the decor is uniquely fun, families as well as couples of all ages, and singles find this place to be a mecca for satisfying breakfast, or good for you apps, nothing too heavy or extra cheesy here - not in the patrons or the menu. love it.

great memories. when i first moved to philly this place was my initial dining destination. the atmosphere is awesome and the food keeps pace as well.

continental’s menu is a mash-up of different cuisines. from american burgers to thai noodles, and korean tacos to mexican pizza, continental has something from everyone. i like restaurants that serve a variety of global flavors the best because you don’t have to settle for just one type of cuisine! the food also comes in snacks (small appetizers), smalls (tapas-sized plates) and bigs, which are big enough to feed two people if accompanied by a side.

consistently good. love the calamari and hanger steak.
sometimes they offer very reasonably priced drink specials. i really hope this place keeps rocking it because it's one of my favs in philly.

tasty brunch!!

favourite.. a martini bar that serves tapas style gourmet foood?! i've been eating there since 2007. i have yet to be disappointed by anything.

the atmosphere of the multi-floored continental is what i would describe as modern 60′s retro. the martini bar, which opens out to a heated open-air deck, felt like something out of an old james bond movie, and the decor was decidedly 60′s inspired (a shag rug hung from the ceiling near another bar). however, it didn’t feel nostalgic, kitschy or outdated. the lighting and the rest of the decor made for a hip atmosphere and the place was bustling the whole time we were there.

i love this restaurant!!! i've been here at least 20 times and every time it's awesome! my personal favorites are the continental salad, rad na chicken, and lobster mac an cheese. the service is great, the atmosphere is fun, and the food is always delicious!!!! definitely come here for brunch or any other meal you want!

great place to dine and relax! the food, atmosphere, and service are great. will come back. rooftop was a great chill place to have a nice dinner

overpriced food and sub-par service. after reading favorable reviews about the continental's "famous" burger, i decided to give it a try, but i was disappointed. the burger is $11, which is too expensive for what you get, both in quality and portion. my girlfriend was not pleased with their chicken wrap. the only redeeming quality was their drink menu. all in all, the continental is a hipster martini bar with overpriced food.