First of all I would like to say that if I lived closer to Derek's I would eat there every night. I only eat whole organic foods and Derek's is one of the only places around that serves up meals... More

First of all I would like to say that if I lived closer to Derek's I would eat there every night. I only eat whole organic foods and Derek's is one of the only places around that serves up meals that taste as good as they are for you. They are also one of the only places in Philly that will serve you a truly rare piece of meat. Other reviewers here that complain about the seating, food or the owner must be living in some other dimension than I am. Derek is probably one of coolest chefs in Philly. He is as down to earth as they come, he talks to every one that comes into his place. He is a gentle, kind person who actually listens to you when you talk to him. If you want to talk about food Derek is full of information and anecdotes. Every ingredient he uses is the freshest and best available. Most of the ingredients are from small local purveyors and you can taste the freshness. As far as the seating goes, the place is a bit cramped, yes. But this is Manyunk, the restaurants are all in row homes, same as Sansom St. in West Philly or Downtown. If you want to eat in a warehouse you can always head to a chain steakhouse in King of Prussia and spend twice as much money on meat and veggies that show up on an eighteen wheeler twice a week. Derek's beer selection is tremendous, wines are superb. The problem is Derek has taste, real taste. He is not a trend follower, he is not a poser, he is a Philly native who brings his own style and passion to his dishes. The food at Derek's is exactly the same food Derek serves to guests at his home. Its food that Derek loves himself, its not meant to impress reviewers. His menu varies from day to day but at its core its been very much the same for years -- because its truly good local cuisine, like Chez Panice in Berkeley. If you want to impress your date take her to some flashy new joint opened up by some restaurant developer. But if you want to eat good food, that's good for you, that's good for the community and that's prepared to perfection by one of Philly's own great chef's then eat at Derek's Pros: Food Is Great. Derek uses only the best local ingredients Cons: People in Philly are Clueless About Food
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Being new to Manayunk, a friend from school told me about this place. I ordered a burger, (I know, real classy) and it was divine! The bread they give out for starters was delish! I will def be back... More

Being new to Manayunk, a friend from school told me about this place. I ordered a burger, (I know, real classy) and it was divine! The bread they give out for starters was delish! I will def be back when family and friends visit! Pros: quick service... Cons: none!
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My husband, brother in law and sister in law and I went to Derek's for Valentines Day dinner and while I can say the food was just OK, we found the owner to be extremely rude. We were sat right... More

My husband, brother in law and sister in law and I went to Derek's for Valentines Day dinner and while I can say the food was just OK, we found the owner to be extremely rude. We were sat right next to the host stand and my husband and I were taking menu's to the back all night. The host kept banging, kicking and leaning on the the back of our booth. When our food came out mine was cold, so it was sent back and for a fine dining experience I wouldn't have expeced the food to be thrown in the microwave, but it was. The portions were very small, but the prices weren't bad (approximately $25 an entree). Before we left my husband walked up to the owner (who was talking to every table except for ours even though he knew we were unhappy) and told him that he might want to ask the host to stop leaning on the booth and banging menus into the customers so the next parties experience would be pleasant. The owners response... "Yeah, I hear ya"! I wasn't surprised at all by his response. We live in the area and will NEVER go to Derek's again, nor will we recommend it to ANYONE! Pros: Nice decor and large wine menu Cons: Owner is rude and only chatted to the customers that he knew.
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My boyfriend and I went here for dinner the other night and I was ready to walk out the door almost immediately. It was so cold in there, I could not even take off my coat and scarf! The tables are... More

My boyfriend and I went here for dinner the other night and I was ready to walk out the door almost immediately. It was so cold in there, I could not even take off my coat and scarf! The tables are so close together and there is no privacy. Another group of three came and sat at the table next to us and I could not believe it. Their coats and bags were all over our table as they were trying to get settled. They were literally sitting right on top of us. I had enough, but unfortunately we had brought our own wine which had already been opened. Our waiter wasn't much better. He was way overbearing and used inappropriate language. We asked to be moved, and we were brought upstairs. It was slightly better, only because we sat at a four top with only two people. The waitress at the table next to us had her rear end on our table as she was taking their order because there was not enough room to stand! The food was less than mediocre. My tomato soup was cold and I have made better Campbell's soup myself! The steak was okay, but again it was cold after a few minutes. I think it had to do with the room temp being so cold. I sat uncomfortable all night. I have had many steak dinners at Outback that were much better than this (and cheaper).! The chocolate cake I had was average, nothing to rave about at all. Overall, bad experience with overpriced food. We will not be going back and will not recommend it to anyone!! Cons: Tables on top of one another, too loud, lousy food
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The food was horrible, definitely not worth the $$. The seating was like sitting in a shoe box, at one point i thought the person next to me was going to ask for a bite. I basically felt like I was... More

The food was horrible, definitely not worth the $$. The seating was like sitting in a shoe box, at one point i thought the person next to me was going to ask for a bite. I basically felt like I was cheated and disappointed. I will never return to Derek's for dinner again and I will make sure I tell everyone I know what a sub par establishment this place is. If you read this, do yourself a favor, go somewhere else if you are looking to go out for dinner in Manayunk. Pros: Small portions made it faster to leave.
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My husband and I really enjoyed Sonoma so when it was changed to Derek's we thought we would try it out, expecting the same great food. The food was still good but the prices are a lot higher now... More

My husband and I really enjoyed Sonoma so when it was changed to Derek's we thought we would try it out, expecting the same great food. The food was still good but the prices are a lot higher now and the portions are so much smaller. The atmosphere is a lot better now. Very trendy. And of course we loved their candy infused vodka.
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We just left Derek's and we can't get over how great everything was. From the moment we made our reservation until the gorgeous hostess looked me right in the eye and thanked me for coming and made... More

We just left Derek's and we can't get over how great everything was. From the moment we made our reservation until the gorgeous hostess looked me right in the eye and thanked me for coming and made sure that we had a great time. First, our waiter Jim recommended some awesome martinis while he got us a platter of amazing local cheeses. My Lychee Martini was served perfectly chilled and garnished with a whole lychee, my date had the Ruby Zealander and thought it to be equally yummy. besides the cheeses all of the food was perfectly seasoned and came out timed just as we wanted it. The music here is always a treat. I'm told that one of the managers regularly programs the i-pods with a blend of progressive rock, cool jazz, indie and other timeless classics. I could sit for hours and just drink and listen to the cool sounds. What I like here is the ability to eat light or eat heavy. I usually get a melange of small plates and they are never really "too small" like at a lot of city joints. Anyway, if you find yourself in Manayunk you should check out Derek's, it's "way cool" and the food is great. Get the gnocchi and the hanger steak. My absolute favorite is the secret chicken, and the hostess! Pros: They are always happy to see you and will bend over backwards to make you happy Cons: Sometimes it gets too crowded and loud.
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From the girl who greeted us to the bartender to the wait staff to Derek himself are all wonderful & treat their customers with respect. The food is amazing & they always make you feel at home. This... More

From the girl who greeted us to the bartender to the wait staff to Derek himself are all wonderful & treat their customers with respect. The food is amazing & they always make you feel at home. This is an old favorite, but we decided to try Coopers. What a disappointment. From the awful food to the Owner Bruce Cooper & his man/boy who handles the place who were rude & disrespectful to the customers. We left & came running back to the comfort, great food, service & friendly atmosphere of Derek's. Pros: Wonderful atmosphere & food Cons: There can be a wait since they make you feel some comfortable & welcome
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Remembering the days of the fab 3 ? Arroyo, Kansas City Prime, and Sonoma ? I didn?t flinch when my girlfriend recommended Derek?s for Sunday brunch. After the name change, I had dinner there and it... More

Remembering the days of the fab 3 ? Arroyo, Kansas City Prime, and Sonoma ? I didn?t flinch when my girlfriend recommended Derek?s for Sunday brunch. After the name change, I had dinner there and it was OK but never brunch. We arrived and the air in the dining room was stale and humid. The brunch menu was short but all the items looked great. My boyfriend elected to order a burger from the regular menu. After hearing a bus boy drop what sounded to be an entire bin of place settings, a runner delivered our food. My omelet came accompanied with potatoes and fruit. The fruit was fresh but looked as though a child cut it with a plastic knife as it was mashed in the corner of my black square plate. The potatoes had enough grease underneath them, you could see the reflection of the skylight? The omelet was fair although very bland and un-colorful which complimented the very drab colors that surround. I would expect this at a greasy spoon diner but on Main St? To make a long story short, my boyfriend (a chef for many years) ended up horribly sick and in the bathroom for the next 15 hours (not an exaggeration). We don?t know if it was an undercooked burger or e-coli but something was not right. I spent the next day taking care of him and feeling awful I ever exposed him to Derek?s. We go out to restaurants all over Philadelphia often and this is the very first time in about 8 years I have ever had to write a bad review? Please proceed with caution going to Derek?s. Maybe they were just having a really bad day in the kitchen yesterday but it was enough that I will never patronize this place again. I used to love this place... never again... Pros: Parking, Bar Service Cons: Everything else
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Tonight my boyfriend and I decided to venture out of Center City to Manayunk for dinner. At the advice of a friend we decided to stop by Derek's... we should have turned around. As someone in... More

Tonight my boyfriend and I decided to venture out of Center City to Manayunk for dinner. At the advice of a friend we decided to stop by Derek's... we should have turned around. As someone in the industry I appreciate good service and give credit to the front of house. Service was prompt, friendly, and attentive. The food, on the other hand, was EXTREMELY disappointing and overpriced for the quality. To start I had the lobster bisque and he had the broccoli cheese soup. The bisque was great; it was flavorful, smooth, and the crab cake was a nice touch. The broccoli soup, however, was very mediocre (he commented how Campbell's does it better!). For the entree my boyfriend ordered the filet and I chose to go with the "surf and turf", which was one of the specials. I highly discourage anyone from ordering this. It is essentially a big pile of arugala greens with two dried out skewers of what I was told was beef tenderloin and marlin. The beef reminded me more of a discount piece of swiss steak that had been ignored and left to dry out on the grill. The marlin tasted like left over chicken, equally as dry and flavorless. I picked at the meat, gave up, and ate my $21 pile of greens. The filet was OK. The meat was cooked correctly. The mashed potatoes were bland. A third of the plate was covered with deep fried onion...stuff. We were going to get dessert but decided to avoid further disappointment. During the ride home I kept thinking "I wish we went there" ever time we passed a different restaurant. Pros: Service Cons: Food, Price, Quality, Parking,
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