The GEL-NYC 2.0 has been a steady pick for anyone who wants a chunky retro runner without paying the top price. This version isn’t that. Philadelphia boutique Lapstone & Hammer renamed it “GEL-PHL” and dressed it in the city’s colours.
Cream base, Eagles green on top
The base is cream and grey in mesh and leather, with dark green suede — “everglade”, the shade that nods straight at the Eagles — on the toe, the eyestay and the heel. Silver-metallic accents run over it, the sole is white with grey details and a black outsole, and the classic GEL window sits in the side panel. It’s still a big, layered sole, but the quiet cream keeps the whole thing looking tidier than your average dad shoe.
It’s a grateful shoe to build an outfit around. Straight or lightly tapered indigo denim, a cream or grey hoodie, and the green picks up a calm top on its own — an olive overshirt or a dark green knit finishes it without forcing anything. The chunky sole lifts everything a touch, so keep the trouser at length to show the shape. If you want a neutral base with one colour accent, this is exactly enough.
One market has it at retail, the other doesn’t
Here’s where the two sides of the Atlantic split. In the US the GEL-PHL carries a $155 retail price, and on Solezilla.com there’s a US listing from ASICS America at exactly that — $155. In Europe it’s a different story: the only euro listing right now is a single marketplace pair at €380 euros, well above that US retail, so EU buyers are looking at a resale premium rather than a regular shop. The broader release runs on 9 October through ASICS and SNIPES, so proper European retail may still land — worth waiting for if €380 feels steep, which it should.
The first pair dropped on 3 October as an in-store exclusive at Lapstone & Hammer, complete with a gold cornicello charm, and sold out quickly. More colours of this model are on the ASICS GEL-NYC page, and the brand sits under ASICS. Line up the prices per size and shop before you buy. A city story in suede, or just a tidy runner that happens to be green? Grail or Bail — let us know.