On November 6, 2023, the JGL Team met in Philadelphia for the 2nd Annual JGL Retreat! The formula for the few days together is simple; eat some delicious food, talk about industry trends, develop new ways to do more for our clients and most importantly, have fun! 2023 did not disappoint! Here’s a look at JGL’s 2023 Philadelphia Story. 😊
Sunday, November 6, 2023
Everyone (except Colleen who had some travel delays), met for dinner at Laser Wolf. Dinner was delicious! CookNSolo hit the nail on the head with this outstanding Israeli shipudiya, a skewer house concept. We had a blast!!
Monday, November 7, 2023
JGL client Franklin Institute generously let us use their beautiful Conference Center. Levy is the exclusive operator at TFI – the staff was friendly and attentive, and the food was yummy!
The team talked for hours about all things food service and retail. It is so inspiring when we all get together in one place and share our thoughts about what we are all passionate about.
After a full day of meeting, it was time for dinner! We decided to hit Mexico as the next stop on our culinary adventure; what better way to do that than try James Beard nominee Cristina Martinez’s, Casa Mexico. The food was delicious, but the margaritas were out of this world!!
Tuesday, November 8, 2023
Tuesday was designated as the Fun Day!! We started the day with a food tour around Philadelphia’s Italian Market. We stopped at legendary staples such as Isgro Pastries for Italian cookies, Sarcone’s for tomato pie, and Di Bruno Bros. for cheese. We were rolling down South 9th Street by the time we made it to the last stop at Anthony’s Italian Coffee and Chocolate House for gelato! Shout out to Craig at WeVenture for making our tour extra sweet!!
Next stop – a scavenger hunt around Old City with Watson Adventures. We broke out into two teams; “Above the Lawlers” (David, Colleen and Brooke) and the “Freemasons” (Hollie, Tracy and Connor). For 90 minutes, Team JGL raced around historic Philadelphia in search of historic landmarks and clues. Ultimately, “Above the Lawlers” were victorious, but after a spirited game full of laughter and healthy competition, we all felt like winners.
Before heading off to yet another meal, our clients at The Franklin Institute had invited us to stop by an event for their new Wondrous Space exhibition. Our visit serendipitously coincided with a showcase/exhibit opening for event planners and industry vendors! Such a beautiful venue! Such an unexpected and added bonus to our trip!
It was then time for the team’s farewell dinner; Vietnamese at Gabriella’s Vietnam. Delicious. The service was fantastic, the food was excellent, and the vibe was very cool. The team really enjoyed taking the time to recap our time together and celebrate our successes over this last year.
Team JGL feels so lucky to do what we love and to work with such amazing colleagues and clients. We hope you enjoyed reading about our 2023 retreat and can’t wait to share all of our new energy and ideas!!