Please Touch Museum: Press Kit - Dining and Events

• Home >
• Newsroom >
• Press Kit >
• Dining and Events

Dining and Events

Please Taste Cafe

For the first time in its history, Please Touch Museum is able to offer families healthy, on-site dining options with the addition of the new Please Taste Cafe.

The Cafe is a welcoming daytime lunch spot featuring a healthful menu of kids’ favorite foods, including a variety of baked dishes, nutritious snacks and homemade pizzas cooked in a stone hearth pizza oven.

Offering sweeping views of Fairmont Park, the Cafe accommodates 60 seated guests and 100 people for receptions. The space is available during the evenings for events such as parties, dinners and meetings.

Distinctive Events

Memorial Hall offers 12 distinctive, versatile event settings within 156,000 square feet of potential space for events such as grand galas, weddings, birthday parties and extravagant corporate events. The historic building is among the largest event spaces in the region able to accommodate receptions of 3,000 guests. An exclusive partner of Please Touch Museum, Max & Me Catering, a premier catering company known for its chef-crafted cuisine, is leading the culinary, catering and event operations at this National Historic Landmark.

Bringing a restaurant-style approach to catering, Max & Me Catering offers extensive menus, from casual to formal, which fuse high quality ingredients, skillful preparations and artistic presentations. Menus can be tailored to accommodate dietary restrictions, cultural requests or culinary themes. Expert recommendations on décor, specialty linens, photographers, florists and entertainment are available.

Large events at Memorial Hall take place after 6 p.m. and smaller gatherings and meetings can be arranged during museum hours in two meeting rooms. A detailed list of preferred vendors is available. For more information about Max & Me Catering, please contact Bill Cook at 215.578.5186 or Bill@maxandmecatering.com. Please visit Max & Me Catering online at www.maxandmecatering.com.

EVENT SPACES

The Great Hall features classic Beaux-Arts architecture as well as soaring, 60-foot ceilings and a majestic dome. A colorful, 40-foot replica of the Statue of Liberty Arm and Torch, assembled from toys by Philadelphia artist Leo Sewell, serves as the highlighted focal point of The Great Hall. The South Foyer can be combined with The Great Hall, to serve elegant dinners for hundreds and receptions for groups as large as 1,100. The two spaces are ideal for grand galas and fundraisers, holiday parties and large gatherings.

In the 9,000 square-foot, glass-enclosed Carousel House sits the Woodside Park Dentzel Carousel, one of Philadelphia’s most beloved treasures. It’s the dazzling focal point of the pavilion, which can house events such as a sunset wedding ceremony or a grand evening of dinner and dancing.

In the Centennial Gallery, guests step back in time to the 1876 Centennial Exhibition, which is brought back to life in this gallery, and featuring a detailed scale model of the Centennial Fairgrounds.

An underground treasure created during excavation, the Theater features astounding acoustics and is an ideal space for lectures, seminars, presentations and performances.

Intriguing settings abound in the West Gallery, which includes the Flight Fantasy exhibit, where guests are enveloped in a star-filled dark blue sky. City Capers houses a hip, urban environment, complete with high-rises, shops and a front step - ideal for a modern-style cocktail party. The “moving” environment of the Roadside Attractions space houses a vibrant urban retreat.

The playful East Gallery is a wondrous place for Bar/Bat Mitzvahs and graduations. The whimsical Wonderland exhibit allows kids to go “down the rabbit hole” into a maze of greenery and a colossal tree that is the room’s central focus. The River Adventures exhibit finds a nature-inspired backdrop including lily ponds, fields of high grass, a flowing river and relaxing outdoor sounds. Rainforest Rhythm, a temporary exhibit space, embraces a jungle-like environment brimming with vibrant colors and sounds of the rainforest.

For more information, sample menus or to book an event, interested parties can contact Max & Me’s Facility Rental Sales Coordinator, Bill Cook at 215.578.5186 or Bill@maxandmecatering.com.