The restaurant openings to know this month: A chic lounge, a Jewish deli, and Stephen Starr’s Borromini

If you think this month’s roster of new restaurants is rich — what with Stephen Starr’s multimillion-dollar Borromini in Rittenhouse Square leading the pack — wait till next month. For now, I’ll tell you about a casual steakhouse, a Jewish deli, a Euro cafe, and the early days of a luxe lounge in Center City, among other newcomers.

Borromini (1805 Walnut St.): With 100-layer lasagna and two floors of splashy Italian dining on Rittenhouse Square, Stephen Starr’s latest restaurant — his largest, most ambitious in Philadelphia since Parc’s debut in 2008 — opens later this month.

The Borscht Belt (8221 Germantown Ave.): The Jewish deli from Newtown, Bucks County, opened the other day inside Chestnut Hill’s Market at the Fareway, serving a slice of the regular menu including corned beef, pastrami, brisket — in other words, it’s a gustatory 180-degree turn for the space, which previously was the vegan Hosers Central Kitchen.

By Zena (41 E. Main St., Moorestown): Pastry chef Zena Demirceviren has a home for her European goods, including cheesecakes and pastries as well as Turkish breakfast, spanakopita, croissants, plus coffees and drinks in a space previously occupied by a Starbucks and Harmony Juice. It’s due to open later this month.

Celine (1224 Walnut St.): Nightlife veteran Justin Jordan is soft-opening this luxe cocktail lounge on the third floor of this four-story building in Washington Square West, with service and DJs from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday. Celine’s restaurant will occupy the fourth floor, while this fall, his Korean barbecue restaurant, Hyo, will take the first for dining and the second for karaoke and events.

Cormorant (2301 Frankford Ave.): The former Bob’s Happy Hour Tavern at Frankford Avenue and Dauphin Street in Kensington is getting a makeover as a chill corner bar from the Vintage Syndicate (Garage, Vintage, etc.) with frosted mugs of beer, a solid cocktail list, a few TVs, and a dartboard room. It should be open by the end of the month.

Darnel’s Cakes (990 Spring Garden St.): Kyle Cuffie-Scott’s popular bake shop and cafe in Northern Liberties expects to open soon at the former Kaiseki sushi counter in the 990 Spring Garden office building for breakfast, brunch, and lunch.

Dig Inn (76 Coulter Ave., Ardmore): The healthy fast-casual eatery just opened in Suburban Square, where it has taken the former HipCityVeg storefront.

Gouldsburger’s (685 Berlin-Cross Keys Rd., Sicklerville): Partner David Murray expects this growing chain of cheesesteak/burger/hot dog shops — perhaps surprisingly, one of our favorites — to open its latest branch in a former Chinese restaurant on Aug. 18. He and partners are planning an October opening for a location at 4 Station Rd. in Ardmore.

Medium Rare (1540 Frankford Ave.): On Aug. 8, Cherry Hill native Mark Bucher opens the ninth location of his casual restaurant-bar specializing in prix-fixe steak frites. For $32.95, you get green salad, rustic bread, and two servings of culotte steak (or grilled portobello mushroom) and fries. Fun vibe: Rock-and-roll soundtrack, orders scribbled in crayon on paper-covered tables, and Pepé Le Pew-style French lessons in the restroom. Weekend brunch ($39.95) will start Aug. 16.

The Slider Co. (2211 Frankford Ave.): It’s been quite a trip for William Johnson and Anesha Garrett, whose burger shop launched a three-month residency at the Luxe (1705 N. American St.) in South Kensington last month. On Aug. 15, they will start another three-month collaboration, this time with BOTLD at the New Kensington Community Development Corp.’s Meadow at 2211 Frankford Ave. Their signature slider is called Mother of All Meats, featuring beef brisket, applewood smoked bacon, chipotle lime coleslaw, tarragon Russian dressing, baby arugula, house-made pickles, and crispy onions atop a Delmonico patty, all of which is tucked into a brioche bun.

Sonny’s Cocktail Joint (1508 South St.): The bar/pizzeria is coming back from a flood last month, with a target of the third week of August. Owners Chris Fetfatzes and Heather Annechiarico say they took out a home equity line of credit to pay staff its tipped wages during the shutdown to keep the team together. “Some people say it’s foolish,” Fetfatzes said. “I’m just trying to hit the ground sprinting when we come out of it and hope that karma can repay me back somehow.” Three years ago, water damage from a fire in an apartment upstairs closed Sonny’s and what was Wine Dive next door, and scuttled the opening of their planned underground bar, the Rabbit. Sonny’s reopened earlier this year, and the couple plans to open Wine Dive Rittenhouse soon at 1534 Sansom St., followed by a bar upstairs called Liquorette following.

Tacoria Mexican Street Kitchen (801 Haddonfield Rd., Cherry Hill): The New Jersey-based fast-casual chain just opened its 12th location, taking space in the Shoppes at Garden State Park. First responders get a 50% discount every day.

Sushi Boss (2135 Route 38, Cherry Hill): Sushi and hibachi, together in Hillview Shopping Center. All-you-can-eat specials sell for about $17 during lunch and about $26 at dinner. The menu also includes à la carte appetizers, salads, soups, noodle and rice dishes.

Among the significant newcomers that I’ve been tracking are the Bread Room (Ellen Yin’s bakery in Washington Square West); the Brew Room (a Euro-style coffee shop in Ardmore); Dancerobot (chef Jesse Ito’s Rittenhouse izakaya); Gloria Sports & Spirits (the pizza bar in Warrington from Tresini chef Brad Daniels); the restart of Grace Tavern in Southwest Center City; the Fishtown location of Haraz Coffee House on Girard Avenue just off Front; LeoFigs (a winery, bar, and restaurant in Fishtown); Mama Chang (an outpost in Colmar from the team behind the new Peter Chang in King of Prussia); Sao (the Southeast Asian oyster bar from Mawn’s Phila and Rachel Lorn); Tesiny (the cozy oyster bar/small-plater in South Philadelphia from Lauren Biederman and Devon Reyes); and two locations of the “food hall” Wonder — one at 3925 Walnut St. in University City and the other at Broad Street and Washington Avenue.