Laser Wolf Philadelphia

Laser Wolf is on North Howard Street. This Israeli grill focuses its menu on open-fire charcoal cooking and a rotation of salatim.

The restaurant is a five-minute walk from the galleries that define this stretch of Howard Street, but the elevation is the real draw. While the city's older stalwarts near Independence National Historical Park rely on history for their gravity, Laser Wolf makes a sharper argument for the current moment. The room runs smart and elegant, shifting the focus away from the standard white-tablecloth expectations of the city center. It works better than its neighbors because it manages to feel communal without sacrificing the polish of a grill-focused kitchen, providing a view that manages to be expansive without needing the weight of a landmark to justify its presence.