Peer closely at the row of glossy bar stools at Palizzi Social Club, the Eater Award-winningmembers-only restaurant tucked away in a South Philly rowhome, and you might notice a taped-up rip or two. But owner Joey Baldino has no intention of replacing them. He’s keeping up a tradition, which includes the normal wear and tear of a spot that’s been feeding members for 100 years.
When it opened in 1918, Palizzi was one of several social clubs in Philly formed for immigrants from a specific area. At Palizzi, it was residents of the town of Vasto in the Abruzzo region of Italy meeting at the club to talk politics over a drink or share a meal. As the years went by, the membership was expanded to include Italian-Americans from other parts of the boot, like Baldino’s family from Calabria and Sicily.
