How Philly is eating now | Morning Newsletter

Good morning from the Inquirer newsroom.

First: Each year, our food team puts out an annual dining guide, but as we began to imagine what a 2020 guide could look like, one question kept coming up: How are Philadelphians eating now?

To answer that question, we have put together the 2020 dining guide — Let’s Eat, Philly! — celebrating the people who define Philadelphia’s world-class food scene and continue to need our support. It’s not just about eating out.

Then: News about the pandemic, the election, and unrest — for starters — is pressing in at every turn at a breakneck pace and burning people out. We talked to people who have felt tossed about emotionally.

And: Philadelphia’s new safety restrictions to help prevent the spread of coronavirus are expected at the city’s news conference this afternoon. Get the latest information on COVID-19 in Pennsylvania at inquirer.com/coronavirus.

— Ashley Hoffman (@_ashleyhoffman, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)

In a year of evolution, workers have put themselves on the front lines to help feed us. So at a time of frequently changing guidelines for the hospitality industry, we’ve curated a different kind of annual guide that’s not just about dining out. Consider it a guide to who’s doing what to help you navigate our “new abnormal.”

As Food editor Jamila Robinson puts it, these changes have helped us to have “deeper conversations about the financial struggles and inequities endemic to the restaurant business. But even as the Philly food scene evolves in real time, what has remained are the people: the community of farmers and chefs, butchers and servers, mixologists and bakers who help us get food to our tables.”

From such people as Omar Tate to the cheesecake lady, the Inquirer Food Team is bringing you a package that celebrates the ingenuity and resilience of the many people of the food and service scene keeping Philly’s restaurant landscape vibrant. And, yes, from restaurant critic Craig LaBan, who has seen it all, we have the best takeout.

Philly-area people who have lost sleep and patience during a tense election, upheaval and a global pandemic are just exhausted. We talked to some of them about how the pandemic has ushered in a time of unease.

We love nothing more than a stroll along the Schuylkill. Thanks for sharing @tikreeti.dmd.

Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and we’ll pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout-out!

“Trump’s campaign to overturn the popular vote would have Pennsylvania reach the opposite conclusion and instead not “We the People rule,” but we the politicians, or even we the (mostly unknown) members of the Electoral College. Nothing could be more offensive to our constitutional tradition.” — Supreme Court Elections Lawyer Jason Harrow writes about how there’s no reason to think the Electoral College would undermine the will of the people.

We find your lack of faith that “the one” is out there disturbing. (Reference!) These two pictured above just had a socially distanced autumn wedding outdoors. This story involves a chewie koozie at a party, a kiss at a Star Wars movie, and a Death Star disco ball.