Visitors coming to Xfinity Live, Philadelphia's new 60,000-square-foot entertainment venue, "will be drawn to the centerpiece" at the NBC Sports Arena restaurant -- a "custom-built, 37-foot HD TV with a sports ticker," according to Frank Seravalli of the PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS. Seravalli notes the restaurant's huge TV is "flanked by nine 65-inch flat panels on the left, another nine on the right, and eight more 65-inchers below" -- all of which serve as the "backdrop to a room-length granite bar." The price tag on Xfinity Live's "high-def audio and visual equipment alone is a staggering" $3M. While the "hook" at the venue will be NBC Sports Arena's technology, it is "just the main welcoming hall for fans looking for a drink or a bite to eat before or after a game or concert." There are four "anchor restaurants that branch out from the NBC Sports Arena: Broad Street Bullies Pub, the Spectrum Grill, PBR Bar and Grill and Victory Beer Hall." The wait staff at the Broad Street Bullies Pub is "actually required to have a working knowledge of one of the toughest teams in hockey history." Near one of the Xfinity Live entrances is located Mitchell & Ness' small retail outlet, which "features the Sixers' original center court and actual hockey dasher boards from the Spectrum." The complex will also be "dedicated to family-friendly activities during the day before switching over to an adult-oriented theme park of booze and eats." There will be a turf recreation field "outside for youngsters and video games for play on some televisions." Parking will also be "free on days when there are not events." The parking fees also will be "waived once an event is more than half over, to make it a postgame hangout." The venue opens with a "free, outdoor concert performed by Third Eye Blind just" three weeks from Friday (PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS, 3/9).
