Philadelphia's cheesecake lady, kombucha guy and more inspiring entrepreneurs
Meet Philadelphia's Cheesecake Lady and her amazing desserts
It's hard to believe that someone known as 'The Cheesecake Lady' didn't even try cheesecake until she was in her thirties, but Vanessa Jackson has been making and selling miniature cheesecakes for going on twenty years now.
People line up around the block outside her Elkins Park outpost to try any of the 40 flavors she and her daughters make fresh and sell until they're gone.
With COVID-19 precautions, there's a limit of three customers in the store at a time and a limit of three cakes for each customer. She posts to Instagram when they're all sold out, so check out their page before you head over.
The Cheesecake Lady | Facebook Instagram
910 Township Line Road, Elkins Park, PA 19027
215-575-3952
Philly's Jerk Chicken Man wants to transport your tastebuds to the islands
James Leggett went from corporate sales to cooking side of the road jerk chicken and the idea all started from business trips to Jamaica. The man known as "The Jerk Chicken Man" has crafted his own personal recipe incorporating the traditions of Jamaican Jerk with his own twist as a seasoned barbecue man.
He smokes all his meats and serves everything with a side of his engaging personality.
Side of the road Jerk Chicken | Facebook | Instagram
The Bee Man is your guy for hive removal, honey and beeswax candles
Allan Lattanzi is known as The Bee Man.
A general contractor, he's the guy you call if bees have nested in your home.
He'll cut them out and take them to his Yerkes Honey Farms, where he has more than 18 hives and colonies.
It all started when he began making honey to treat his seasonal allergies. From the bees work, he makes honey and 100 percent beeswax candles.
His flower-filled gardens are a certified Waystation for Monarch butterflies too. He takes orders in person or through his website and Facebook page.
34 Henry Ave., Collegevile, Pa 19426
610-505-3341
JamBru Kombucha: Brewing a New Business during a Pandemic
Jamaar Julal has been brewing kombucha on the side for a few years and selling it on his personal Instagram page.
But when he was furloughed from both his job at Poi Dog and The Restaurant School where he is an alum, he decided that the pandemic provided the perfect time to build his own business.
And his komboucha comes with a twist. He infuses it with flavors that honor his Jamaican heritage.
As a young Black man, attending private schools that were otherwise all white, Julal says he's struggled with depression and a sense of identity.
A tattoo on his arm reminds him that 'everything's good,' and that he is perfect just the way he is.
He launched a GoFundMe Page with the hopes of getting out of his Point Breeze home kitchen and into a commercial space then buying more equipment so that he can increase his output.
JamBrü Kombucha | Instagram | GoFundMe Page
Lumbrada Express is the place for Mexican spice and flavor
Lumbrada in Wayne is known for its flavors and traditional Mexican cuisine.
The restaurant business runs in owner Anselmo Torres' family, who opened Lumbrada with his brother in 2018. Lumbrada means bonfire in Spanish, and in its essence, it means bringing family together.
The Molcajete is the hottest item on the menu, which is a fajita served in a Volcanic Rock stone bowl. They're also known for a variety of unique dishes on the menu, like the Pina Loca, or the tropical fajita, where they carve out a pineapple and replace it with fajita mix, along with the pineapple chunks.
Another popular item is the table side guacamole, which can be made spicy, medium or mild.
Lumbrada is also spicing up their margaritas. They have tequila infused with Chipotle and are featuring a creamy Avocado Margarita.
Pre-Covid, Lumbrada held Salsa night every Saturday night, where a salsa instructor taught salsa, and people could dance the night away. They hope to bring it back when the restaurant fully opens.
821 W Lancaster Ave, Wayne, PA 19
Porcos: The City's Best Literal Hole-in-the-wall is on the move
Porcos and Small Oven Porchetteria opened in mid-December, just three months before COVID-19.
When customers could no longer walk in, shop the pastries and sandwiches and walk out, Chef/Owner Chad Durkin started serving out a side window, earning the shop a Philadelphia Magazine Best of Philly for literal hole-in-the-wall.
Porcos is now mobile too, taking up permanent residence in the food cart, dubbed Inda Cart, at both Garage South on East Passyunk and Garage North in Fishtown.
Garage is known for its large collection of canned beers but now you can get cocktails to-go too, and sit and chill under a sidewalk umbrella with your sandwich and some cookies and pastries from Porcos.
Porcos & Small Oven Porchetteria | Facebook | Instagram
Porcos Main
2204 Washington Avenue
Garage South | Garage IG
1231 East Passyunk Avenue
Porcos Garage North
Girard & Frankford Aves
Artisan Boulanger Patissier makes French baking an art
Ooh, la la! Take a look at this longstanding French bakery in the heart of South Philly.
'Artisan Boulangerie Patisserie' translates to exactly what they do there. Artisan means 'by hand', boulangerie means 'bread', and patisserie means 'pastry'.
Owners Amanda Eap and Andre Chin make authentic French breads and pastries that even Parisians rave about.
As James Beard nominees more than once, their house-baked breakfast and lunch items have lines forming first thing in the morning.
Artisan Boulanger Patissier | Facebook Instagram
1218 Mifflin Street, Philadelphia, PA 19148
215-271-4688
PSPCA, MLAR host drive-in movie night
It's the fourth Annual Drive-In Movie Night with the Mainline Animal Rescue and the Pennsylvania SPCA on August 15th.
Executive Director of Philanthropy Allison Hough says this year they're hauling in a 45-foot-tall projector screen onto their 60-acre sprawling farm located in Chester County.
They will be showcasing "The Sandlot", a coming of age story of a young boy and his neighborhood friends.
You'll be able to hear the movie in your vehicle via the radio, or you can sit outside your vehicle in chairs or a comfy blanket, and hear the movie via loud speakers. You can pick up a Sandlot-inspired t-shirt, with all proceeds from the event going directly to the animals to aid in their life-saving missions.
With current COVID-19 conditions, the shelter is appointment-only.
Drive-In Movie Night August 15th
Mainline Animal Rescue| Facebook
1149 Pike Springs Rd, Chester Springs, PA 19425
350 E Erie Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19134
More from this week's show
Live musical performances are popping up in City Hall's Dilworth Park. The free lunchtime concerts, courtesy of Center City District, feature local singers and songwriters. The next one is Monday, August 10th at 1pm.
Pop-Up in the Park | Music Pop-Ups
Dilworth Park
1 S 15th St (West Side of City Hall), Philadelphia, PA 19102
Christopher Jackson, who played George Washington to Lin-Manuel Miranda's Hamilton in the blockbuster Broadway musical is hosting Christopher Jackson: Live from the West Side, Saturday, August 15 at 8pm.
You can access the virtual livestream concert with a $40 dollar donation that will benefit the Kimmel Cultural Campus' COVID-19 Relief Fund.
Christopher Jackson: Live from the West Side | Benefit Concert Tickets
The Academy of Natural Sciences has reopened with some creative reminders of the need to mask up and social distance, including masked bears on exhibit and social distancing dots with images of triceratops and other creatures.
There's a new exhibition to explore, Survival of the Slowest, about the evolutionary benefits of being slow. Lulu, the two-toed sloth is the star but there are other sluggish creatures to see and learn about too.
The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University | Pandemic Safety Protocols | Facebook
1900 Benjamin Franklin Pkwy, Philadelphia, PA 19103
