Many local stores and cafes will be closed or will have special hours tomorrow and this weekend:

Coffee Market (45th and Pine): Thursday, Nov, 24: 7 a.m. – 1 p.m.; Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Nov. 25-27: 7 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Mariposa Food Co-op (49th and Baltimore): Thu, Nov. 24: 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Green Line Cafe: All locations will be closed this Thursday and Friday. Wednesday, Nov. 23: 43rd and Baltimore – closes at Noon; 40th St. and Powelton Village shops will close at 3 p.m.; Locust Street – Closes at 5 p.m.

Milk and Honey Market (45th and Baltimore): Thursday, Nov. 24: Closed

Renata’s Kitchen (46th and Baltimore): Thursday, Nov. 24: Closed

Fine Wine and Spirits stores (44th and Chestnut, 49th and Baltimore): Closed on Thanksgiving Day.

Supreme Shop-N-Bag (43rd and Walnut): Special hours on Thanksgiving Day: 7 a.m. – 6 p.m.

The Fresh Grocer – Open 24 hours

From left to right: Noah’s Pizza owner Mekonen Hailu, executive chef Sal Traina, and co-owner Chris (Photo by Rana Fayez)

Pizza lovers of the west rejoice, we now have more options. Noah’s Pizza just opened next to Lil’ Pop Shop at 4602 Woodland Ave. Now we’re quite aware of the shortage of quality pizza on our side of the river, but this is exactly why owner Mekonen Hailu decided to transition his previous business, Noah’s Market, into what is now Noah’s Pizza.

The pizza shop opened about a couple of weeks ago, with the idea to provide quality pizza to the neighborhood. “There is more need for pizza than a mini market here,” said Hailu.

The pizza chef? Sal Traina, he’s the executive chef at Chestnut Hill Hospital. He’s really good friends with Hailu and well, he loves making pizza, so he decided to add a side gig to his work week. “I wanted to help out a friend,” said Traina.  Continue Reading

On Tuesday, Nov. 1, Milk and Honey Market (45th and Baltimore) will host a meet and greet for Baltimore Avenue business owners and neighbors. This is an opportunity to meet owners of some of the recently opened Baltimore Avenue businesses, including Eight Limbs Academy, Greensgrow West, The Nesting House, Hair Vyce, and more. There will be some food, fun and opportunities for networking. The event will be held from 5 – 7 p.m.

The event is organized by Baltimore Avenue Business Association (BABA).

West Philly entrepreneurial sisters Kelly (right) and Jorrae Beard will appear on “Shark Tank” tonight.

Shark Tank keeps casting Philly entrepreneurs, and it’s especially nice to see West Philly-based teams presenting their products on the show. This Friday, Oct. 28, tune in to watch sisters Kelly and Jorrae Beard pitch “Lulu Bang” BBQ Sauce to the “sharks.” There will also be the show watch party tonight at the Enterprise Center (4548 Market St.), beginning at 7:30 p.m. (this event has been sold out).

Kelly and Jorrae are co-owners of Joyce’s Soulful Cuisine, a restaurant and catering business located at 59th and Chestnut that was named in memory of their mother, Joyce A. Beard. The sisters are also manufacturers of  “Lulu Bang” BBQ Sauce, which comes in four flavors – Asian Persuasion, BBQ Fusion, Bourbon Baby, and It’s Just HOT.  It’s now available in local shops throughout the Northeast region.

The name of the sauce is a tribute to Kelly and Jorrae’s brother, Michael “Lulu Bang” Beard, a National Guard veteran, who was murdered at the age of 32 in West Philadelphia, according to an article by Philly Mag.  Continue Reading

We all know how much we love food in West Philly – lots of folks like eating and making quality food. Restaurants like Dottie’s Donuts, the expansion of Mood Cafe and Ice Cave have cropped up just in the past year. But what about homemade cooking? That’s what Silverfork Club is all about. It’s for the cooks in the neighborhood who want to share some of their signature dishes and make a little bit of extra money on the side. I mean, wouldn’t you want to share your batch of spicy seitan instead of leaving it to go bad in the fridge?

Here’s how it works: You can join either as a cook or a customer. If you’re a cook you can add your specialties to the “menu” and if you’re a customer, you can browse the list of available tasty home-cooked dishes in your neighborhood.  Continue Reading

The first floor of the residential building connected to the left side of Clarkville at 43rd and Baltimore would be converted into a restaurant under a proposal considered last night by the Spruce Hill Zoning Association (Photo from Google Street View).

The Spruce Hill Community Association considered a proposal last night to convert the first floor of the row home adjacent to Clarkville at 43rd and Baltimore into a small restaurant amid concerns from some neighbors of commercial encroachment in residential areas.

Brought by the owners of the Clarkville building (not the business itself), the proposal for 4303 Baltimore includes an 1,100-square-foot restaurant on the first floor and renovated, high-end apartments on the second and third floors. In the past, the building housed three apartments, but is in rough shape, said Tom Lussenhop of Best House Partners, the building owners since May.

The proposal requires a variance for the first-floor restaurant, which has yet to be decided on (they’re open to suggestions). It will not have a liquor license.  Continue Reading