"Fishtown’s R&D cocktail bar is a great place to pass time while you’re waiting to get into Kalaya, or if you just want to unload your airport pat down story over a crème brûlée and black cherry vodka cocktail. Outside of the eight rotating specialty cocktails (that can range from Paloma Milk Punch to smoky and lemony Oaxacan Penicillin), they also have a small beer list with drafts from local breweries and bar snacks like hummus, whipped ricotta, and a charred longshot labne. It’s a dark, mid-century modern space filled with two-tops, candles, and a lot of velvet—making it one of the better places to take someone if you’re on a romantic weekend away." - candis mclean, alison kessler