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NFL star closes SOMO SoPhi and will replace it with a sports bar called Venu

Jahri and Takia Evans are turning their South Philadelphia restaurant into a sports bar.

First-floor bar at SOMO SoPhi, 3131 S. 13th St.
First-floor bar at SOMO SoPhi, 3131 S. 13th St.Read moreMICHAEL KLEIN / Staff

SOMO SoPhi, which replaced the sports complex-area institution Medora’s Mecca a year and a half ago, has closed.

Jahri Evans, a Frankford High grad who as a guard won the Super Bowl with the Saints. and his wife, Takia, who own the bricks at 13th Street and Packer Avenue, are planning Venu, a bar-restaurant that is due to open later this month, said Allison “Ming” Filkill, who is managing.

Cofounder James Morrissey apparently is out. Morrissey still owns SOMO in Manayunk. In 2019, he briefly operated the Village Tavern in North Wales, which is now closed.

SOMO SoPhi opened in October 2018 with ambitious airs, including a menu that topped out with rack of lamb and a 38-ounce porterhouse — positioning it about 180 degrees from the neighborhood-friendly Medora’s Mecca.