I talk a lot about things you can do with groups in Philly. But for the years I’ve lived in Philly, there was one event that had been ~on my list~ for ages but I never had the chance to go to… until this summer! My friend Kelly chose the Di Bruno Bros After Hours event for her birthday this year, and my girlfriends and were v excited to be a part of it.
To give you the basic gist: the Di Bruno After Hours events give you and your friends the opportunity to rent out a Di Bruno store for the night. It’s currently available at two of their locations, the Italian Market shop (930 S. 9th Street) and the Franklin shop (834 Chestnut Street). The Italian Market can hold 8-16 people, and the Franklin is better for bigger parties, holding 14-24. It costs $60-$70 a person (+ gratuity) for a two hour party, depending on the location and the day of the week.
We went to the Italian Market (cause, obviously), and, in addition to our two mongers, Dan and Keeth, there were 12 of us to take on the experience.
So now, the fun! The store is fully closed to the public except for you! It’s BYOB, so we each brought our own bottle of wine because, again, obviously. When you arrive, there are some bites out for everyone to try. From there, your cheesemongers start bringing out crazy fun and unique pairings featuring various accoutrement (cheese, charcuterie, oil, antipasto, vinegar, condiments). Everything we had was really good, and it was fun to learn the stories behind products you never knew existed in the store. But the best thing? You can try… ANYTHING. IN. THE. ENTIRE. SHOP.
That brie you’ve been eyeing? Correct. The special sauce on a high shelf? Get it out. The pistachio Nutella like spread? They will open it all and let you and the group taste. It’s so cool.
When you’re done trying everything in site, it’s time to shop. In addition to a free gift (we each got a baguette and a cool chocolate bar), you get 20% off everything in store. Each attendee gets rung up and paid for their own ticket/hauls, and they do ask you if you want to add gratuity – so keep that in mind! We all went home with tons of delicious things (and I’m sure all the wine we drank had nothing to do with that! 😉 ).
If you are looking for a fun event with some friends that screams Philadelphia – this is it! You can get more info and book your Di Bruno Bros After Hours event online.
