Philadelphia's Penn's View Hotel

About the Penn's View Hotel

North Front St.- circa 1959

The building that makes up the hotel was built in 1828. It was originally built as a shipping warehouse to serve the needs of the Delaware River port during the 19th century. Around the turn of the century, it became a hardware store, and later a coffeehouse in the 1950s. The building sat vacant until the Sena family bought and renovated the hotel in 1989. The hotel and restaurant opened in 1990. The hotel originally had 27 rooms and one dining room and bar. The purchase and renovations of the two buildings adjacent to the hotel occurred in 1994 and 2002. The hotel now consists of the three buildings, on 14-18 North Front Street. The hotel is on the National Register of Historic Places, and won an architectural award from the city in 1995 for its renovations.

The Penn's View Hotel and Ristorante Panorama are privately owned and operated by Luca Sena. Luca Sena is a native of Napoli, Italy. He arrived in the U.S. with his father, Master Chef Carlo Sena, in 1967. In 1976, Luca and his father opened La Famiglia, a fine dining restaurant, which is still located at 8 South Front Street. La Famiglia is owned and operated by Luca's brothers, Gino and Guiseppe. The Sena Family has been in the hospitality business in Philadelphia for over 30 years. The hotel is managed by Luca's son, Carlo A. Sena, who was named after his grandfather. The Penn's View Hotel is a family business and continues the tradition of treating their guests as family.

The Penn's View Hotel is a non-smoking establishment.