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World Cafe Live
World Cafe Live, a multi-level venue, features a casual dining/listening space, a large concert venue and WXPN’s radio studios.
Guests can settle into The Lounge where, alongside late-night eats and drinks, they can enjoy live music and food in a city-chic setting.
On the lower level, the Music Hall serves as the main performance venue, hosting nationally known artists in a large room with varying seating arrangements that can accommodate up to 650 guests.
Go ahead and peek into the WXPN’s window downstairs to catch the namesake show being taped.
When a brainstorm hit a local entrepreneur/amateur musician simultaneously, he decided that adults needed a place to hear live music.
Turns out WXPN also needed new studios, especially for its nationally popular show, “World Cafe.”
Mutual interests merged, and six years later in 2004, World Cafe Live came to be.
There’s not a bad seat in the house, but the best place to see a show is from the bar.
Housed in a spacious renovated Art Deco factory, World Cafe Live can accommodate multiple shows on any given night.
The Lounge features a full-service cafe and bar, large windows, an intimate stage and room for more than 200 guests.
The Music Hall’s muted colors, contemporary design, top-notch sound system and good sight lines create a lively, sophisticated atmosphere. A three-tiered concert hall, the space can hold up to 300 seated guests and 650 standing. There’s not a bad seat in the house, but the best place to see a show may be from the bar on the mezzanine level.
Like the Upstairs venue, food and drink are readily available downstairs for all shows. Menu availability varies, so Guests can access both venues from Walnut Street or from downstairs off of 31st Street. Upstairs and Downstairs Live are also fully ADA accessible from all levels.
Be sure to check here for FAQs, parking information and the most up-to-date information about current shows.
A full calendar of events runs down the always-changing happenings at World Cafe Live.
Ongoing events include Viernes Calientes, a Latin dance party with a rotating guest DJ and live music; live music and rotating guest DJ (first Fridays); Philly Rising Open Mic presented in partnership with REC Philly (first Tuesdays); and Jazz Jam featuring an original performance plus an open jam session (second Thursdays).
For more information on World Cafe Live and for a full events calendar, click the button below.
The Visit Philly Overnight Package — booked more than 190,000 times since 2001 — comes with free hotel parking (worth up to $100 in Center City Philadelphia), overnight hotel accommodations and choose-your-own-adventure perks.