Here's a first look at G Lounge, which opened Thursday (12/6) for a VIP party and starts rolling tonight.
Mark Marek's subterranean, 400-capacity lounge -- no relation to the New York nightspot -- is beneath Davio's (17th and Chestnut), which provides the food. It's surprisingly not claustrophobia-inducing. Features: two DJ booths; many rooms, including a $500-a-table-minimum VIP area; much wood, porcelain, glass and stone (the requisite water wall); and the largest video wall outside of a sports stadium (seen in the photo).
The door to the old vault -- remember that this was a Provident Bank years ago -- has been cemented open (insurance requirement). Inside is a swank, members-only lounge called the Mogul Room.
Intended as an after-work hang (though I can see it as a killer party space because of the movable wall panels that can tailor the space to various specs), it's open Tuesdays through Saturdays, starting at 5 p.m. (215-564-1515).
Photo: (c) 2007 HughE Dillon, http://phillychitchat.blogspot.com/