Food : Development News

If you're jonesing for a hamburger, you may soon have a new fix nearby. Jake's Wayback Burgers, which started in 1991 as a few ultra-popular burger shacks in Northern Delaware, recently opened locations in Delaware, Chester, and Montgomery Counties, and plans to open its first location in Philadelphia soon.

These locations include Northeast Philadelphia, West Chester, and Chadds Ford. Northeast Philadelphia will be the business' first foray into the city, and will be located at Welsh Rd. and Roosevelt Boulevard. According to Jake's the target opening for the Northeast location will be in two to three weeks.

Jake's Burgers has been a staple in New Castle County, Delaware, consistently garnering local awards. As Gillian Maffeo, the marketing director at Jake's, puts it, the restaurant has a "cult following" in the First State. The original location in Newark hasn't changed very much, as it still has just four tables inside, picnic tables outside, and the original hand-made burgers and milkshakes. These burgers and milkshakes have attracted the accolades of Delawareans, as they have repeatedly been voted the "best burger" and  "best milkshake" in the state by Delaware Today and Delaware News Journal readers. This is despite stiff competition from another old-fashioned burger joint, The Charcoal Pit.  

The restaurant is currently flipping burgers in Wayne, Willow Grove, Springfield (Delaware County), Exton, Kennett Square, and Pottstown. Some of these locations have only been open a few months, while others have been open for a couple of years. With this in mind, there are a number of locations that will be opening in the coming months.

Maffeo is most enthusiastic about the role Jake's plays in the surrounding communities. Individual restaurants do everything from "fundraising events to cancer and diabetes walks," said Maffeo. The marketing director added that some Jake's locations will be serving turkey burger dinners at local homeless shelters for Thanksgiving. She was also especially proud of the diabetes walk that employees at the Exton location participated in.

To emphasize the popularity of Jake's burgers and milkshakes, the restaurant has begun to feature a "burger of the month" and a "milkshake of the month." While hamburgers and milkshakes will always be Jake's most notable offerings, the restaurant has expanded its menu beyond just those. The burger joint now sells all-beef hotdogs, turkey burgers, various sandwiches, and salads.

Source: Gillian Maffeo, Jake's Wayback Burgers
Writer: Andy Sharpe

If Temple University students, faculty, staff, or neighbors are looking for a local java alternative to Starbucks and Saxby’s, they are about to get it. In just a few weeks, Mugshots Coffeehouse and Café will open its third location, in the lobby of the Beech Interplex at 1520 Cecil B. Moore Ave.

Mugshots’ owner, Angie Vendetti, is thrilled to be opening up a location on Temple’s campus.

“I’m super excited to be at Temple, and so are a lot of the staff who are either recent grads, or still at Temple studying,” says Vendetti. She is especially proud to be moving into the recently built Beech Interplex. She touts the building, which is used as an international student dormitory, as a success story for improving the campus and the neighborhood around it without displacing residents.

Vendetti compares the incoming Mugshots to the existing location in Brewerytown. This means "all the food preparation and baking is done off-site at the Fairmount location and brought in fresh daily," beamed Vendetti. She added that the same menu items, including sandwiches, wraps, salads, gluten-free and vegan deserts, and of course coffee, will be available at both the Temple and Brewerytown shops. Mugshots' Manayunk location was closed last month.

Speaking of coffee, Mugshots will be featuring its recently debuted Counter Culture Coffee (CCC) at the Cecil B. Moore location. As part of this change, the coffeehouse will include a “pour-over” coffee area at Temple, which should mean a fresher brew for patrons. On a sophisticated note, "staff has gone through espresso training at CCC's training center in New York City, and quite a few of them are on their way to becoming certified baristas," said the owner. 

Vendetti is also looking at creative payment methods for the Temple coffeehouse. For one thing, she is intrigued by Temple’s alternative currency, Diamond Dollars. She hopes to accept Diamond Dollars, although is not quite sure how compatible it will be with her equipment. Before, or possibly instead of, accepting Diamond Dollars, this location will allow Temple parents to unload money onto their students’ Mugshots cards, which imitate debit cards and give users credit toward free beverages.

It looks like Mugshots is pumped to be opening a location at Temple University. Vendetti says the success of the Temple location might spur her to launch additional locations at other area colleges or universities. As for Temple students and others, it will only be a few weeks until they can begin to kill time in a brand new coffee shop.

Source: Angie Vendetti, Mugshots Coffeehouse and Cafe
Writer: Andy Sharpe

How perfect is a summer night at a cafe on the bank of the river? "It's a dream come true," says Peg Botto of her newly opened Cosmic Cafe at Lloyd Hall. Located at the beginning of Kelly Drive just across from the Azalea Garden, Cosmic Cafe opened this spring, thanks to a collaborative effort by Botto and Fairmount Park, and it's set to continue operation year round.

"There's always been a cafe at Lloyd Hall," explains Mark Focht, Executive Director of the Fairmount Park Commission. "Peg Botto's sustainable approach to business meshed very well with the Parks and Recreation mission." Botto, whose previous retail outlet was at the Chestnut Hill Farmers Market, also runs Cosmic Catering. With the fully outfitted new kitchen at Lloyd Hall, Botto can run both the cafe and catering operation on site. Botto saw right away that the space would be great for catering, with lower and upper outdoor decks, plus an upstairs room. In all, Cosmic Cafe can hold up to 250 people for private events.

Open seven days a week from 8 to 8, Cosmic Cafe offers the kind of healthy food athletes crave, including organic produce, eggs and poultry, nitrate free bacon and locally baked bread. On a recent visit, smoothies, watermelon gazpacho, baked goods and a full range of sandwiches were on the menu. Several nights a week, there's live music, and Botto also barbecues several times a month out on the deck. "It's right on the river. You can't get any closer than that."

Botto says that she worked on the Lloyd Hall RFP for about 4 months, and she won the contract from a pool of ten applicants. After an $85,000 kitchen makeover and the hiring of about a dozen staffers, business is good. "We pay rent to the city plus a percentage of the gross," says Botto, who adds that these costs are in line with what she would pay for a similar space elsewhere. But nowhere else offers a constant stream of bikers, walkers, joggers, rollerbladers and tourists, whose stars are cosmically aligned for an alternative to the hot dog and ice cream carts of Kelly Drive.

Source: Peg Botto, Cosmic Cafe
Writer: Sue Spolan

You can't argue with this one: Real estate agents have it tough these days. Buyers do too, of course. But when your very livelihood is dependent upon the whims of a mortgage broker and the all-around insecurity of banks these days, making an honest buck isn't easy.

Consider, as an example, the precarious situation of MM Partners, a small real estate development firm whose business involves the construction, the design, and the sale of modern apartments in Brewerytown, of all places.

"Something we talk about a lot," says Jacob Roller, MM Partners' co-founder, "is that the neighborhood needs more exposure, and in a positive way. People may not know about Brewerytown, or they may have just heard its name in a negative way, and that's not really the case. But perception is reality. So you have to work on that."

And work on that he did. Along with his partner, David Waxman, Roller came up with the idea for BrewerytownLiving.com, a well-designed blog that advertises the free cultural events that Roller and his co-workers are organizing in Brewerytown. Recent events have included a Doggie Yappy Hour, during which dogs and their humans meet in a park for socialization and snacks. There are also jazz concerts, clothing swaps, art shows, and food festivals.

"We'd been doing a little bit of this on our own," says Roller. "So we said, 'Let's do it in a more comprehensive way, and in a more organized way.' And that led us to Brewerytown Living."

Roller, by the way, is insistent that Brewerytown Living isn't a mere marketing ploy. "We don't want to use (the website) to try and sell people a house," he adds. 'It's really all about community building, you know? Getting people together, and having a good time."

Writer: Dan Eldridge
Source: Jacob Roller, MM Partners LLC

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Pop-up retail is a trend that doesn't seem to be losing any steam whatsoever, but recently, in a formerly vacant lot at the corner of 20th and Market streets, the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS) unveiled a temporary pop-up concept of its own: PHS is referring to it as a pop-up garden, and although it was a year in the making, the garden is already slated to close with a celebration on October 24, which is also this year's National Food Day.

Thanks to the enthusiasm of partners like the William Penn Foundation and Independence Blue Cross, the 32,000-square-foot garden has become an example of the reuse of urban green space at its finest. PHS hopes the garden will raise awareness of its City Harvest program, which grows fresh produce for neighborhoods that don't have much access to fresh vegetables, as Alan Jaffe of the PHS puts it.

In addition to providing locals with a serene environment in which to enjoy a quiet respite from city life, the new garden offers workshops on topics ranging from organic pest control to container gardening, as well as scientific programming by the Franklin Institute, outdoor fitness classes, and more. Visitors to the temporary garden will also have a final chance to experience "�colibrium," Temple University-Ambler's sustainable building and gardening exhibit that was created for the Philadelphia International Flower Show.

What's more, PHS has big plans for all those veggies grown in the new garden: They've partnered with six well-known local chefs of popular nearby restaurants, who are "going to be getting the vegetables and herbs from the garden and creating signature dishes with them," says Jaffe. Proceeds from those dishes will benefit the City Harvest program.

Open to visitors every Wednesday and Thursday from noon to 2 p.m., a complete listing of all pop-up garden happenings is available online. 

Source: Alan Jaffe, Pennsylvania Horticultural Society
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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Regardless of the fact that the Metro Commercial Real Estate organization -- which bills itself as "the Philadelphia region's leading full-service real estate company" -- has been doing business in the area out of its Conshohocken and Mount Laurel, N.J., offices for more than two decades, it was nevertheless considered big news in the commercial development community when Metro recently announced the arrival of a third office, this one in Center City.

Located in the historic Wachovia Building (now the Wells Fargo Building) at 123 South Broad Street, Metro president Steven H. Gartner says the company's new location is intended to "bring our experience to the heart of Philadelphia. We have been a significant player here for the past 25 years," he adds, "and now we will have the team on the ground to more capably serve our growing client base."

Over the past few weeks, in fact, Metro has been responsible for inking deals that have resulted in three new Center City retail shops. A fourth, much larger deal is currently in the works on the southeast corner of 15th and Walnut streets, where Metro is leasing multi-level properties with 45,000 square feet of potential retail; that project is expected to be complete in mid-2013.

The store that will almost certainly generate the most excitement locally, however, is the one that's scheduled to open at the end of this year. Jack Wills is the name of the retailer -- it offers preppy, British-influenced men's and women's apparel (think Vampire Weekend-meets-J.Crew) -- and it currently operates just four other U.S. locations, one each in Boston, Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, and New Haven, Conn.

Metro was also responsible for the new Krispy Kreme shop that's now open at 1535 Chestnut Street, as well as the nearby new flagship location of The Children's Place.

Source: Amy H. Orons, Metro Commercial Real Estate
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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When Philadelphians Paul and Nichole Badger were going through the process of planning their wedding in 2008, they "decided that we just didn't believe in the typical one-day splurge that everybody does for their wedding," Nichole explained, during a recent telephone interview.

Nichole is a corporate entertainment attorney who has long been involved with charitable work, and at the time, she and Paul had been tossing around the idea of starting a nonprofit of their own. "And then," she said, "it suddenly occurred to us: Why not do it now? And so instead of having this full-blown, crazy wedding, we decided to take a portion of our wedding budget, and to use it to start Stars Within Reach."

Today, Stars Within Reach partners with various entertainers, pro athletes and businesses on what Badger refers to as twelve different platforms; the group works on everything from housing issues to greening and nonviolence initiatives. (Their motto: Changing the world one cause at a time.) Their latest project, A Healthy Future Within Reach, aims to battle childhood obesity, and SWR plans to focus its local efforts in the South Philly neighborhood of Point Breeze, a so-called 'food desert' where healthy eating options are scarce.

On Monday (May 2), they kicked off a 30-day multimedia campaign to raise awareness of childhood obesity. At the month's end they'll join with Mayor Nutter, Congressman Chaka Fattah, 76er Lou Williams, and other area notables to create two community gardens and a fruit orchard in Point Breeze. "We definitely believe that eating healthy and healthy living is at the core of everything you do," Badger says. "And Point Breeze is an area where the kids really are impacted by the lack of healthy eating options."

Source: Nichole Badger, Stars Within Reach
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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When the locally-adored Kensington restaurant and craft-brew bar known as the Memphis Taproom was last in the news, back in March 2010, it was due to a truly unfortunate circumstance involving restrictive state alcohol laws and the perennially unpopular Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board. Responding to an anonymous tipster, the PLCB raided the Taproom--along with West Philly bar Local 44, and the Resurrection Ale House in Graduate Hospital, all of which are owned by Brendan Hartranft and his wife, Leigh Maida--for serving beers that hadn't been officially registered with the commonwealth.

And while the Memphis Taproom is once again finding itself the subject of media attention, this time the news is considerably happier: In an attempt to build its local profile by providing a bar experience that's unique to the neighborhood, the Taproom has constructed an outdoor beer garden in its next-door lot. The garden features white oak tables and an atmosphere that Hartranft describes as "a mini block party." Outdoor stereo speakers will soon be added to the mix, and eventually a projection TV will show sports at night.

But the garden's best feature is almost certainly the food truck that will be permanently parked in the lot. According to Hartranft, the truck will do double duty as both a gourmet hot dog cart (all dogs cost $5.00) and a bar serving nothing but craft beers in aluminum cans (Sly Fox; 21st Amendment; Oskar Blues).

And while the Taproom's new addition didn't exactly come cheap (the total cost was around $135,000), "we're adding another anchor to a neighborhood that desperately needs as many anchors as it can get," Hartranft says.

The beer garden's grand opening took place this past weekend, and it's currently open for business Mon-Thu 4-10pm, Fri 4pm-midnight, Sat noon-midnight, and Sun noon-10pm.

Source: Brendan Hartranft, Memphis Taproom
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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When the Spectrum met its final match last November--a bright orange wrecking ball that transformed the storied South Philadelphia sports and entertainment arena into a sad pile of brick and ash--public reactions were understandably mixed. The Spectrum, after all, is one of Philly's most beloved and historic attractions; performers and athletes who've plied their trade at the arena range from Michael Jackson to Michael Jordan.

But there will be a second act on the land on which the Spectrum stood: In a matter of months, The Cordish Company, a Baltimore-based developer, will begin the construction phase of new retail, dining and entertainment complex. The name of the soon-to-be-built complex, Philly Live!, is intended to evoke its purpose of being "an inviting center of community for Philadelphia sports fans, where enthusiasts (can) share their common experiences in supporting the home team," according to the Cordish Company's Megan Slattery.

And although Comcast-Spectator--the firm that also owns the Wells Fargo Center--hasn't yet finalized every detail of the complex, it's probably safe to say that the 350,000-square-foot Philly Live! will likely prove to be nearly as popular as the live entertainment on offer at the Stadium Complex's other facilities.

According to Slattery, Philly Live! will be constructed in phases. Groundbreaking for phase one, during which a 42,000-square-foot building will be constructed at the southwest corner of Pattison Avenue and South 11th Street, is anticipated to happen this summer. The building will be home to "multiple dining and entertainment venues," Slattery says, as well as "at least one private dining area and an outdoor event space." Slattery didn't comment on whether or not a rumored ice skating rink project will be going forward at the site.

Source: Megan Slattery, The Cordish Company
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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When the Tasty Baking Company finally closed its historic Hunting Park facility in June 2010, and completed the transition of its headquarters into a LEED-certified building at the Navy Yard, the Nicetown and Hunting Park communities had one less area landmark to be proud of. But this past Friday, March 25, the Metro Development Company broke ground on a new project at the site, which is now being referred to as Bakers Square.

Metro is developing the site into a 220,000-square-foot shopping center that will soon be packed with retail stores and restaurants. And while the majority of the spaces have yet to be rented, Metro's leasing agent, US Realty Associates, has already inked a deal with Brown's ShopRite, which is building a 71,000-square-foot supermarket that will act as the shopping center's anchor tenant. "We're one of the only grocery-anchored shopping centers that's currently under construction in the metro Philadelphia market," says US Realty's Greg Bianchi. "And that's pretty compelling in today's economic environment."

Indeed. And perhaps equally compelling is the fact that the original six-story Tasty Baking plant won't be demolished to make way for new construction. Instead, says Bianchi, the building will be retained and retrofitted; US Realty hopes to see it used as office, institutional, or retail space.

Job creation, however, may very well become the biggest story surrounding Bakers Square, which is scheduled for completion in the fall of 2012. After all, 250 new jobs will be created for the ShopRite alone, says Bianchi. "We're also going to have 500 construction jobs," he adds. "And when we're done leasing the center, there will probably be upwards of 600 or 700 (permanent) jobs. And that's what things are about today. It's all about job creation."

Source: Greg Bianchi, US Realty Associates, Inc.
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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Nearly six months have passed since we last reported on 1200 Bank, the decidedly swish billiards club being designed by DAS Architects, and which local developer Paul Giegerich plans to construct inside the once-grand Beneficial Bank building at 1200 Chestnut Street, the exterior of which has "become kind of a prime attraction for homeless people," as architect David Schultz puts it.

In the interim, residents of a condominium building located across the street objected to the club's plans to add a rooftop bar, citing the potential for excess noise. But last week, the project went before the City Council's Rules Committee and passed; it was also unanimously approved by the Historical Commission and the Planning Commission. That may have had something to do with the fact that the construction of the 1200 Bank project, according to Schultz, won't require any serious alterations to the historic building, which was designed by the noted Philadelphia architect Horace Trumbauer. "We're not going to alter the space," Schultz explains. "We're going to embellish the space."

Of course, 1200 Bank will involve some modern-day concessions, including an elevator, a minimalist staircase, and the aforementioned rooftop bar, which will be glass-enclosed and sporting a retractable roof. "If you can imagine what a turn-of-the-century billiards club might look like," says Schultz, "that's what we'd like to achieve. The branding and imagery of the project is high-end, old world luxury."

Currently, 1200 Bank's price tag is somewhere around the $6 million mark. And assuming the project passes its final City Council vote, Schultz estimates that the club's doors could open in as little as 12 to 16 months after that.

"This is not the concept that some people have of a pool hall," Schultz adds. "Nothing like this exists in Philadelphia now, and I don't even know if there's anything in the country that's quite like this."

Source: David Schultz, DAS Architects
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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A coffee shop isn't widely used as a tactic in the battle against poverty.  The nonprofit People for People, an organization whose mission is "to break the generational cycle of poverty in the lives of (North Central Philadelphia) residents" is poised to do just that. The organization's project, a coffee shop known as PFP Cafe, is scheduled to open this September near the intersection of North Broad Street and Fairmount Avenue.

Frank Robinson, PFP's Director of Development, says: "We wanted to do something that would continue to promote economic development for our area. And we wanted something we could use to train people in our jobs programs. (The PFP Cafe) will be like a live training ground."

People for People was designated in 2006 as an EARN Center by the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare; one of its major goals involves helping the unemployed and underemployed with hands-on job readiness training. The cafe, which will serve coffee and bakery items, will give PFP's welfare-to-work clients a chance to practice their work skills in a real-life environment. What's more, the cafe will provide two or three full-time jobs, as well as dozens of rotating part-time positions. The ultimate goal, says Robinson, is for those workers to eventually transition into full-time positions in the service, retail or hospitality industries.

"We're changing lives," Robinson adds. "(PFP Cafe) is just another way to make sure people get the training they need to get jobs, and to help the economy. That's what we're doing."

Source: Frank Robinson, People for People
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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It's nearly impossible these days to walk through downtown Philadelphia without passing by at least one outpost of the local Marathon restaurant group, which now has six separate eateries in the city. Marathon is currently in the process of constructing its seventh location, although this particular site, which is being built atop a vacant lot in Brewerytown, won't have four walls or a ceiling, or even a proper kitchen or a dining room. That's because Marathon's newest location will actually be an urban farm. The company is building it with the dual intentions of providing fresh food to the community and the various Marathon restaurants.

The idea for the farm was initially planted about nine months ago, when Marathon's owner, Cary Borish, was looking for new ways to make his restaurants more environmentally friendly. At the time, says Borish, "I didn't really understand what the spirit of urban farming was." But after Borish became reacquainted with a former employee, Patrick Dunn, who runs an urban farm in East Kensington, "I really bought into it, and a light went off," he says.

Dunn laid down the basic tenets of the urban farming philosophy--food security, nutrition, the fostering of community--and the two men realized they could use the restaurant not only as a vehicle to raise money for the project, but also to help build awareness of the urban farming movement in general. What's more, Borish says that while roughly half of the food grown will be served in his restaurants, the remaining half will be sold at reasonable rates at at an on-site food stand.

The 15,750 square-foot farm is scheduled to be up and running by March 21. A fundraising 'Hoedown' event will happen March 20 at Marathon's 929 Walnut Street location, while on March 26, a candlelit 'Farmraiser Dinner' will take place at the restaurant's 1339 Chestnut Street location.

Source: Cary Borish, Marathon
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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On Valentine's Day last week, Mayor Michael Nutter appeared at Esperanza College in North Philadelphia to introduce the recipients of the 2011 Neighborhood Economic Development grants. The purpose of the long-running and hugely popular program, which receives $1 million in funding from the federal Community Development Block Grant program, is to "support the completion of neighborhood economic predevelopment, planning, and development projects," according to a Philadelphia Department of Commerce press release distributed at Esperanza.

Mayor Nutter, however, described the program in significantly more passionate and straightforward terms: "When we talk about this program, it's not just about affordable housing," he offered. "It's not just about shelter for the homeless. It's not just about investing. It's also about jobs, which is all we really want to talk about. You ask me what time it is?" he continued. "It's time to help people get a job. You ask me what the weather's like? It's nice enough to go out and look for a job. Anything you ask me, we're going to talk about jobs."

And although some might argue that the Neighborhood Economic Development grants are about much more than simple job creation--at their core, they're about helping community groups foster serious economic growth--the reality is that a total of 368 permanent jobs will eventually be created as a result of the grant monies being awarded to this year's recipients.

Esperanza, in fact, was one of this year's nine grant recipients, as was the Center for Culinary Enterprises, a food business incubator which plans to break ground on March 23. Other recipients include Community Legal Services, which is constructing a four-story building; Mt. Airy USA, which is building the Mt. Airy Transit Village; and People for People (PFP), which will offer job training in a soon-to-be-renovated two-story building. Click here to read about the remaining grant recipients and their plans for future development.

Source: Esperanza College
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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