Just seven months after opening at 40th and Baltimore, Trolley Car Station restaurant has closed its doors. A new operator is currently being sought for the 125-seat restaurant, according to a report by Philly.com.
The highly anticipated restaurant opened in a new two-story building next to the remodeled 40th Street Trolley Portal in September 2018, but things didn’t go as well as the owner, developer and restaurateur Ken Weinstein, who had reportedly invested $2.5 million in the new restaurant, had expected. The restaurant concept, which included hiring 20 staff members with the neighborhood’s diversity in mind, didn’t turn out to be financially viable, according to Weinstein. “We opened with a concept that I thought would work and it just didn’t resonate,” Weinstein told Philly.com’s Michael Klein.
The new restaurant ran into problems soon after opening when their well-known executive chef Barbie Marshall quit.
Weinstein, who holds a 45-year lease on the building, is currently looking for a new, “right operator” with the “right concept”, according to Philly.com.
April 17th, 2019 at 10:02 am
When it first open I wanted to sit down on a couch soft seat I can say but seen the dig laying there I’m like nooo I’m good
April 17th, 2019 at 10:05 am
ken – take my free advice or leave it, but the lighting is terrible. you have no idea the restaurant is open when you pass by. plus how about a BBQ place with an outdoor grill/smoker so you smell it
April 17th, 2019 at 10:06 am
2 things. 1 – lighting is terrible, you have no idea the place is even open. 2 – maybe a BBQ place with an outdoor grill/smoker to draw the crowd in with delicious meat smell
April 17th, 2019 at 10:08 am
also hope UCD isn’t taking a bath on this!
April 17th, 2019 at 11:03 am
Seriously, it needs to be family friendly. I wanted to take my kid there to obsess over trolley and tracks, but it was not a kid place. I think an actual diner would work wonders. Go to the Enterprise Center and get someone from their restaraunt incubator program, put some comfy kid sized couches by the picture window, and like the person above sugessted, a smoker outside. And nix the expensive crap. Burgers and fries. Maybe veggie burgers for variety.
April 17th, 2019 at 11:31 am
the kid-oriented idea is great. parents need a break, kids love to watch trains.
April 17th, 2019 at 3:42 pm
I wanted a cafe where I could go and get a bagel and a caffeinated beverage and sit and watch the trolleys. Both of those things were on the menu, but it requires sending a courier pigeon upstairs and waiting half an hour for them to start making my order. But I could have gotten a beer in no time.
Just give me a cute little cafe!
April 17th, 2019 at 4:39 pm
No more kid friendly places please. We don’t need a chucky cheese vibe in another place with a liquor license. Just give the first floor a solid bar, with domestics and crafts on draft. A simple food menu. Low lights and no TVs. Use the upstairs for private events.
April 17th, 2019 at 5:30 pm
How about a grocery store with fresh fruits and vegetables OR something useful for all community members?
April 17th, 2019 at 6:27 pm
You mean like the fruit and veg stand literally 3 blocks away or the grocery store at 40th and Walnut?
There’s literally no such thing as something for everyone outside of toilet paper. And even then, some people wouldn’t use it.
April 17th, 2019 at 9:21 pm
This needs to be a cafe 100% with fast and professional service for commuters during peak times than can shift to a bar scene after hours.
April 17th, 2019 at 10:23 pm
Service was terrible. Food took forever to come out and they were trying too hard with the menu. Breakfast options need to be quick and affordable for commuters, burgers and fries, some veggie options for variety – and so on. But you need QUICK turnaround in getting the food out. I get that people want kid friendly places too because kids like to look at the trolleys but businesses don’t make money with tables that don’t turn over. Sitting there too long just to entertain your kid could lose money for the business. So they have to keep that in mind. Maybe a taco shop that uses meat could open there (I’m half kidding).
April 17th, 2019 at 10:26 pm
I also hoped for a space my kid and I could watch trolleys, but the restaurant doesn’t really face the tracks. Also, think a quick place to grab breakfast for commuters, but still entrance is a little too far from trolley stops. And switch to bar at night.
April 18th, 2019 at 3:07 am
It’s got to be fast and affordable — it’s at the trolley stop for goodness sake! It’s got to be food and beverage you can grab before the next train comes by!
April 18th, 2019 at 8:40 am
You’re not supposed to take food and drink on trolleys. You see plenty of people doing so though.
April 18th, 2019 at 9:07 am
Place was great food was good concept was all wrong. And to make it worst the staff was slow as hell and not well trained. They need more professional servers and seating that makes since in a place that has fast service with btr food for in the go.
April 18th, 2019 at 11:16 am
I agree with No More Kid Friendly places. This is west phil please take your kid friendly requests out to the burbs. A good bar and pizza place wouldnt hurt and maybe would force Wurst House I mean Clarkville to lower their prices.
April 18th, 2019 at 8:48 pm
Don’t worry: you’ll be priced out of here soon enough. Or maybe you can move out into the hood and be a “pioneer”.
April 18th, 2019 at 9:11 pm
I’m an older resident of W Pha (mid-60’s) so I’m looking for a nice place to dine, not a fast food place. Not an expensive place, but a modest place with comfortable chairs, not too much noise (don’t ever need TV’s in my restaurants or bars; stay at home to watch TV), and a menu with something other than hamburgers and pizzas. I enjoyed the Trolley, had no complaints about the staff or the menu, just wished it could be a little more cozy. Good luck. I love the concept and will continue to go there as soon as it reopens.
April 19th, 2019 at 9:33 am
Anytime you have a restaurant on the second story of a building you are going to have a tough go of it. It is also set back so far from everything around it. It doesn’t really engage with the surroundings very well nor make me want to go in there. I hope someone is able to come up with something that works better.
April 24th, 2019 at 8:22 pm
Wawa is the best operator of the site. They will have a well trained staff make hoagies,egg muffins and your fav coffee ready to go. Second floor will host offices gotten is storage space. Plenty of indoor seating and outdoor bench seating. This will be very popular with everybody!