White Dog & Reading Terminal Market

Panelists discussions the local food movement, from left: Ann Karlin of Fair Food, Nicky Uy of the Food Trust, White Dog Cafe founder Judy Wicks, and Bob Pierson of Farm to City

The Reading Terminal Market's Avenue D Celebration included a panel discussion late Tuesday afternoon focusing on "How the Local Food Movement Got Its Start".

Among the panelists was Judy Wicks, who founded the White Dog Cafe and, through her foundation, the Fair Food project.

The seminal importance of Wicks' White Dog Cafe to the Philadelphia food movement becomes clear just by looking at some of the other participants in the eleven demonstrations and discussions the market is hosting as part of its celebration.

James Barrett and Wendy Born of Metropolitan Bakery

Aliza Green, the first chef at White Dog who was instrumental in executing and developing the cafe's emphasis on locally-produced foods, will co-present (with La Cuchina proprietor Anna Florio) "From the Market Aisles to Your Plate". (Their program is scheduled for 12 noon Saturdy.) In recent years Aliza has produced a series of no-nonsense, highly useful pocket-sized books dedicted to single categories of foods (meat, fish, produce, etc.) which provides an A-to-Z guide on how to buy, store and use individual foods.

James Barrett and Wendy Born, founders of Metropolitan Bakery, both worked at White Dog in its early days. Among members of the audience Thursday afternoon when they gave a bread-making demonstration was Jack Treatman, of Old City Coffee, another alumni of White Dog.

Restauranteur Ellen Yin also spent time as a server at White Dog. She joined Terrence Feury, her outgoing chef at Fork, at the noontime demonstration today on preparing fish.

Philadelphia & Chocolate: History

Wilbur Buds

With the big dedication ceremony complete, the Reading Terminal Market got into the nitty gritty of regional food lore in the first of its week long programs in the Rick Nichols Room.

Leading off at noon on Monday was Michael Holahan, co-owner of the market's Pennsylvania General Store and president of the Reading Terminal Market Merchants Association, who provided an overview of the region's role in the chocolate industry.

Today' candy industry, Holahan explained, grew out of the mom-and-pop confectioneries that could be found in almost any burg with a railroad depot, to provide quick treats for passengers. In eastern Pennsylvania, many of these shops had been established by immigrant Germans, who brought their traditional recipes over from the Old World. With the introduction of industrialization in the late 19th century some of the shops kicked up production, and found markets beyond their little towns for some of the treats they created. Among those in the greater Philadelphia region that attained renown were Zagnut, Goobers, Raisinets and Snow Caps.

One Philadelphia confectioner came up with the brilliant idea of placing filled chocolates in a box. Although Whitman's no longer manufactures in Philadelphia (it was bought out by Russell Stover), the concept lives on.

The German candy tradition was supplemented in the big cities, Holahan said, by Jewish candy-makers. In Philadelphia the most prominent product coming out of that lineage today would be Goldenberg's Peanut Chews, which Holahan said the Goldenbergs started as a ration during World War I.  Although, like most of the small chocolates firms it has been taken over by a larger company, Just Born (maker of Peeps), Peanut Chews continue to be manufactured in Philadelphia -- because Just Born wants to keep its Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, plant peanut-free.

In his talk Holahan also recounted the birth of the Wilbur Bud, how Milton Hershey sold off his Lancaster caramel manufacturing business to found his model community and orphange and make the Hershey bar on the side, and the eventual duopoly battles between Mars and Hershey, especially once Mars in the 1960s started processing its own chocolate rather than buying $30 million worth a year from Hershey.

For additional reading on the subject Holahan recommended Emperors of Chocolate: Inside the Secret World of Hershey and Mars by Joël Glenn.

Poses and Garces Together at Reading Terminal Market

Steve Poses, Rick Nichols and Jose Garces

The man who launched the Philadelphia Restaurant renaissance, Steve Poses, was unexpectedly greeted by the man who today represents Philadelphia restaurants to the world, Jose Garces.

They met late this afternoon prior to Poses' presentation as part of the Reading Terminal Market's renovation celebration. That celebration centered around the dedication of the Rick Nichols Room, the new multi-purpose room serving as the keystone of the market's Avenue D renovation program.

It was Nichols, retired food columnist at the Philadelphia Inquirer, who arranged for Garces to make a surprise visit to La Cucina, the kitchen and cooking school located adjacent to the new room. Poses was genuinely surprised by Garces' appearance, who he had never met before.

While Garces may be the face of Philadelphia food these days thanks to his role as one of the Food Networks' Iron Chefs, it was Poses, more than any other single individual (George Perrier included), who is associated with the city's restaurant renaissance in the 1970s through his first restaurant, Frog, and later The Commissary. Poses today concentrates on catering, including the recent Franklin Institute fund-raisers for the Obama reelection campaign.

For his 5 p.m. program today Poses demonstrated an item which made an early appearance on Frog's menu: Siamese Chicken Curry with Broccoli and Peanuts. Poses said it was added after he tasted a similar dish at staff meals prepared the Thai cooks who populated Frog's kitchen; his twist was to use the Thai curry paste to flavor a defiantly un-Thai bechamel sauce. The more than two dozen foodies in the audience had a chance to sample the dish, as well as a watermelon-feta salad he prepared.

The recipe is included in The Frog Commissary Cookbook, which remains a steady seller among cookbooks in the Philadelphia market.

Poses and Garces

Reading Terminal Market Nears Avenue D Finish Line

The new, improved Avenue D looking south
toward Filbert Street (Harry Ochs Way)

The Reading Terminal Market will celebrate its Avenue D improvement program with a ribbon cutting Monday and programs and panels for every foodie's taste through the following Saturday.

The $3.4 million program not only eliminated the zig-zag of the market's Avenue D corridor and replaced it with a straight-line vista (see photo at left), but created additional leaseable space for new merchants, and a new multi-purpose room which, when not used for general seating, can handle special programs and group meetings. The market's infrastructure was improved with the addition of a second freight elevator to the basement, where new dry, refrigerated and freezer storage was created.

The ceremonies kick off Monday, June 18, with Mayor Michael Nutter snipping the official opening ribbon at 10 a.m. That ceremony will also dedicate the multi-purpose room named after Rick Nichols, food columnist emeritus for the Philadelphia Inquirer, and the market history exhibit which adorns the room's walls. Nichols helped prepare the exhibit with the Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent.

Foodie programs will be held at 12 noon and 5 p.m. each day through Friday, with another noontime program on Saturday. On Wednesday at 5 p.m. a panel chaired by Michael Klein of the Inquirer and philly.com will feature local food bloggers: Claire Batten of phillyfoodlovers.com, Kaitlin Lunny of icancookthat.org, and yours truly. The full schedule of programs follows at the end of this blog entry.

Although next week marks the official dedication, none of the four new vendors announced so far will be open for business. The first to open is expected to be The Head Nut, in space formerly used as refrigerated storage under the market's mezzanine-level office. The purveyor of nuts, candy, general bulk dry goods, coffee and tea could be open as early as the end of June. Valley Shepherd Creamery and Wursthaus Schmitz are working on their zoning and building permits and their Health Department plan review process.  The Tubby Olive is finalizing its store design.

The Head Nut under construction

That still leaves unfilled one of the newly-created spaces (a small stall across Avenue D from La Cucina), in addition to finding a vendor to take over the larger Coastal Cave spot, vacated this spring when the owner retired. Another large, prime space to be filled was created earlier this year when Delilah Winder's eponymous soul food emporium entered bankruptcy.

The addition of The Head Nut has already trimmed a temporary surge in the market's seating capacity. When construction starts on Wursthaus Schmitz seating will shrink even more. Because of the earlier move of Flying Monkey and creation of the Rick Nichols Room, however, the market will have more seating than before the Avenue D project began. Still, it will be musical chairs for peak lunch hour seats.

Avenue D Dedication Week Programs

Monday, June 18:

12 noon -- Pennsylvania is for Chocolate Lovers, Michael Holahan of Pennsylvania  General Store; Philly Meets the Bayou with Bill Beck of Beck’s Cajun Café.
5 p.m., At Home with Steve Poses

Tuesday, June 19:

12 noon -- Cooking with Sal, Sal Vetri and Brad Spence of Amis Restaurant
5 p.m. -- How the Local Food Movement Got its Start, with Ann Karlen of Fair Food, Bob Pierson of Farm to City, Nicky Uy of The Food Trust, and Judy Wicks of the White Dog Foundation.

Wednesday, June 20:

12 noon -- Dipping into Philly’s Ice Cream Roots, Bassetts Ice Cream and the Berley Brothers of Franklin Fountain.
5 p.m. -- Food Bloggers panel.

Thursday, June 21:

12 noon -- What a Friend We Have in Cheeses, with Eran Wajswol, Valley Shepherd Creamery.
5 p.m. -- Making Serious Dough, with Wendy Born and James Barrett of Metropolitan Bakery

Friday, June 22:

12 noon -- Seafood Made Easy, with Ellen Yin and Terence Feury of Fork Restaurant.
5 p.m. -- Made in Germany, with Doug Hager and Jeremy Nolen of Wursthaus Schmitz

Saturday, June 23:

12 Noon -- From the Market Aisles to Your Plate with cookbook author Aliza Green La Cuchina at the Market's Anna Florio.

Reading Terminal Market Roundup

These cheese cases aren't Halteman's

The Halteman Split

L. Halteman Family settled into its new footprint occasioned by the Reading Terminal Market's Avenue D renovation, but split itself into two distinct businesses: Riehl Deli & Cheeze Shop for (surprise) cheeses and cold cuts, and L. Halteman, continuing to sell beef, pork, poultry, bacon and other smoked meats, as well as local produce.

Although both parts are owned by the Riehl family (which took over from Lester Halteman a decade or so ago), they're attempting to separate the businesses which may formally part sometime down the road. In the meantime, if you buy some fresh meat but also want to purchase slice ham, you'll have to make two stops.

The deli part of the operation also changed its procedures. Previously, cold cuts were sliced to order. Now, they're pre-sliced and placed in trays. It looks pretty, and I understand the efficiencies the system brings to the business, but as a customer I liked seeing the cold cuts sliced to order to my desired thickness or thinness.

Nichols Room Dedication

Mayor Nutter will join in the official ribbon cutting of the Rick Nichols Room June 18 at 10 a.m. and the exhibition of the market's history and its role in the region's food system on the new multi-purpose area's back wall. New signate will be installed next week.

The ceremony kicks off a week of special events celebrating the market's $3.4 million Avenue D renovation program. For the remainder of the week special programs will be held in the Nichols Room and the adjacent La Cuchina at the Market kitchen, which can be turned into a single space by opening the sliding doors. Market merchants, local chefs, authors and leaders of the Philadelphia regional food system will be featured in the programs.

The market and La Cuchina at the Market apparently resolved their differences over the kitchen school's flooring. As designed, the floor was the original slighty sloping surface, installed when the market opened in 1892 to allow water drainage from ice. La Cuchina proprietor Anna Florio was concerned that the sloping floor could lead to falls and injuries. A new floor with new tiles was installed to provide a level surface, which requires a slight step up from center court. The Nichols Room retains its sloping floor.

More on Avenue D Project

The dedication of the Nichols room won't mark the end of the Avenue D renovations, since work will continue well into the summer on spaces the project created for new vendors: Valley Shepherd Creamery, the Head Nut, the Tubby Olive and Wursthaus Schmitz. A vendor has yet to be selected for a small (less than 250-square feet) space adjacent to Wursthaus Schmitz along Avenue D.

The market also has to find new vendors to fill the slots vacated by Delilah's and Coast Cave. Legalities still have to be resolved with the bankruptcy trustee for Delilah's before a new tenant can be signed there. Coastal Cave closed earlier this spring when its owner retired. RTM General Manager Paul Steinke said he's close to signing with a hybrid retail/take-away operator (product line unspecified) for the Coastal Cafe spot.

The market was unhappy with its floor tile selection of the new restrooms -- the white tiles simply showed too much soil no matter how frequently they were cleaned. Gray tiles were installed in the women's rest room this past week; the men's room gets the makeover Monday night.

Just outside the restrooms you may spy new icons installed this week into the wall: split silhouettes, one female, one male, on the appropriate side of the common entryway.

But There's Still Lobsters

Coastal Cave may be gone, but late last month the market's board approved changes in the leases of two fishmongers, Golden and John Yi, to include the sale of live lobsters. They'll be installing their own tanks rather than taking over Coastal Cave's old ones, which the market probably will scrap.

For Mother's Day sales, John Yi was selling live lobsters today, which can be maintained outside of water for four to five days when properly packed and refrigerated.

More Parking, New Discount Program

The parking garage on 11th street between Arch and Filbert will soon join the market's parking program, with a maximum of two hours for $4. (You'll pay considerably more if you overstay your welcome.) With the Parkway Garage on 12th Street still part of the program, the market expands considerably its discount parking capacity. Merchants, however, will have to have two separate validation machines, one for each garage. The second garage should begin to offer the discounts on or about July 1.

The market's gift certificate program is going to plastic from paper. Nearly 60 of the market's 72 current merchants signed up for the program, which eases the record-keeping for market's back office. As soon as the plastic cards are delivered the program will start.

Nichols Room Opens

The new multi-purpose room at the Reading Terminal Market, named after semi-retired Inquirer food columnist Rick Nichols, opened while I was away in Wisconsin. Today it was nearly full for the noontime lunch crowd.

Most of the time the room will simply be another seating section at center court, but the market plans to make it available for groups via reservation, and for special events. It can also be combined with the kitchen area at La Cuchina at the Market, Anna Florio's adjacent cooking school classroom.

Later this spring the market will add to the back wall of the room an exhibit on the history of the market, created in cooperation with the Philadelphia History Museum (formerly known as the Atwater Kent).

The seating in center court environs -- recently upgraded with new chairs and tables -- temporarily expanded this winter into the area that formerly housed The Spice Terminal. When Wursthaus Schmitz begins construction of its new stall, that extra space will disappear.

This is all part of the Avenue D Project at the market, which is nearing completion. As part of that program, L. Halteman Family recently rejiggered and expanded its space, renaming part of it Riehl Deli & Cheese. Work is also progressing on the space along Avenue D for Valley Shepherd Creamery and the Tubby Olive. Another new vendor, The Head Nut, will begin work on its stall under the mezzanine soon.

The market has yet to announce a new tenant for the space created by the retirement of Coasal Cave's owner. Also up in the air is what will become of Delilah's: officially she could still return, but that appears more and more unlikely as time rolls by since the business was put into bankruptcy.

The Tubby Olive Signs On at RTM

The Tubby Olive, a Newtown, Bucks County, purveyor of on-tap vinegars and olive oils, has signed on to occupy one of the new spaces at the Reading Terminal Market made available through the Avenue D expansion project. The shop will be located along the market's Avenue D wall across from Molly Molloy's.

The Tubby Olive's web site lists three dozen varieties of traditional, organic and flavor-infused olive oils and a similar number and variety of vinegars. Most are priced at $29 for 750 ml (25.4 ounces) and $15.95 for 375 ml (12.7 ounces), with organic oils going for $2 and $1 additional. (Regarding the vinegars, although most are listed as "balsamic", at those prices they won't be the finest, the kind where just a few drops can raise simple foods like ice creams or strawberries to whole new level. Classic balsamic vinegars like these would retail for about four times the price of the Tubby Olive's. What the shop sells, however, appears, to be perfectly fine vinegars for a wide variety of uses, though from the flavor list on the web site there are few I'd purchase. Does anyone really need or Dark Chocolate Balsamic Vinegar?)

Tubby Olive is the fourth new merchant to sign up for space made available by the market's Avenue D project, joining Wursthaus Schmitz, the Head Nut and Valley Shepherd Creamery. RTM General Manager has a few other new spaces still to fill, as well as the recently vacated Coastal Cave stll along Avenue C. In addition, he's still waiting to hear from the bankruptcy trustee for Delilah's to see what we become of that space; when Delilah's was shut in mid-March, the trustee told the market they expected to reopen in just a few weeks.

The entire imrovement project is running along at top speed, with Flying Monkey Bakery now relocated and the new merchants expected to open in phases between May April and early summer. L. Halteman Family Country Food to shift to their new footprint by the end of the month.

Steinke said the new multi-purpose room, named in honor of former Philadelphia Inquirer food columnist Rick Nichols, should be finished in the next few weeks. By next weekend, all the chairs and tables in center court and the piano court, which have been showing signs of wear, will be replaced to match what will be going into the Nichols Room.

Things Change: Expected and Unexpected

You go away for a week and things change.

Like the sudden pullout of Delilah Winder from the Reading Terminal Market. Or the arrival of spring.

Officially, the market hopes to welcome back Delilah when her bankruptcy/financial issues are resolved. Market GM Paul Steinke would love to see Delilah back -- the bankruptcy court told him Delilah's could be re-open in just a few weeks -- given Delilah's high visibility through her Oprah connection and Food Network exposure. But he's got to be thinking of bringing in another soul food restauranteur if that doesn't happen.

Another change, this one no surprise: Flying Monkey Bakery moved to its new location in the former Spataro's spot this past week. Which reminds me: I neglected to pick up some whoopie pies this morning!

Flying Monkey's move clears the way for a faster pace of work on the remainder of the Avenue D improvement project at the market, especially the Rick Nichols Room, the multi-purpose room to be located behind the bakery's old spot and adjacent to La Cuchina at the Market, Anna Florio's institution of higher culinary education.

Work should begin next month on Wursthaus Schmitz in what's now seating space behind Flying Monkey, with opening hoped for before Memorial Day, the official start of grilling season. The connection? Bratwurst!

A bit later on the schedule will be Valley Shepherd Creamery, which will locate along Avenue D across from Molly Molloy's. They aim to open in late spring. Chief Shepherd Eran Wajswol and crew are busy right now with lambing. They expect 800 little ones to join the flock this spring.

Another sure sign of spring is the arrival of ramps. Iovine's had them today, $1.99 for a small bunch (enough for two servings as a flavor accompaniment to your eggs or just about anything other protein. Alas, they had traveled too far and were in less than pristine condition. I'll wait a few weeks.

Greens and garlic await oven at Dinic's

Dinic's has got new menu boards up and, as reported earlier, scallopine is gone and meatballs are in. Joe Nicolosi says they pretty much have the meatballs every day, though they might occasionally skip a day.

Bobby Fisher, chef at Molly Molloy's, has been missing in action due to surgery, according to Jim Iovine, proprietor. Best wishes for a speedy recovery, Bobby.

Like J.P. Morgan's yacht, if you have to ask the price you probably can't afford it, but the jamón ibérico de bellota (Spanish acorn ham) at Jack Morgan's Downtown Cheese is like eating ham butter. It puts the best prosciutto to shame.

The American version of dry aged ham can be obtained at L. Halteman Family. It's also priced dearly (though not nearly as high as the Spanish pig). You can buy some of the Smithfield ham slices (vacuum packed on premises) for a bit over $5, enough to make three or four sandwiches. The Riehl family, operators of the stall, will be shifting their footprint closer to Avenue C next month, also part of the market's current improvement project.

Steinke will be off to Los Angeles late next week for the annual conference of National Association of Produce Market Managers, the professional association of managers of permanent wholesale produce markets, retail farmers' markets, and public markets. He'll make a presentation about the RTM's current Avenue D improvement project.

First Flush at the Market

Next Saturday evening, Feb. 25, will be another edition of the Valentine to the Market, the fund-raiser renewed after a bit of a hiatus to benefit the Reading Terminal Market Preservation Fund.

It will be worth the price of admission ($125, or $300 for VIP tickets) just to see how the market celebrates the opening of its new restrooms, which are scheduled to be completed just in time for the event. Who gets the first flush? You can purchase your ticket here.

Carlolyn Wyman, who writes for the market's newsletter and website, has a nice article about the event here. Among the interesting points of the article:

This year’s party is actually a revival of a February fundraiser first held in the early ’90s to fund the legal fight to help save the Market from physical decline and development threats. In the later years of the Valentine’s ’90s run, monies raised were used to build the Market’s demo kitchen and to bring Market produce out to far-flung neighborhoods (an outreach that spun-off into today’s independent nonprofit Food Trust).

The new restrooms are a major component of the Avenue D renovation program at the market. New family/accessible restrooms opened a couple months ago. With the opening of new facilities for men and women, construction activity will pick up along Avenue D, including the new multi-purpose room to be named in honor of former Inquirer scribe Rick Nichols. (The market had hoped to have the Nichols Room open in time for the party, but that didn't work out.)

With Spataro's move Friday across Avenue C along center court, Flying Monkey will begin outfitting the old Spataro's spot (and a bit of the old Spice Terminal) as its new digs. L. Halteman Family Country Foods (soon to be Riehl Deli & Cheese) plans to shift its stall to Avenue C by April 1 if all goes well.

Spataro's To Move This Week

Spataro's, the oldest sandwich business within the Reading Terminal Market, could move to its new Center Court location as early as Thursday.

When Spataro's moves across the aisle to the spot formerly home to Dinic's, that clears the way for Flying Monkey Bakery to take over the Spataro's stall, all part of the Avenue D renovation project at the market.

Spataro's, whose pater familia Dominic Spataro died at the age of 94 last month, remains the home of the bargain lunch at the market, even though pricier cheese steaks and hoagies are also available. Still on the menu are two sandwiches priced at $4.50: liverwurst & onion, and egg & tomato. The closest competition is the Hatville Deli in the Pennsylvania Dutch section of the market, where a plain cheese or liverwurst sandwich also sells for $4.50.

RTM's Leasing Strategy Works Against Rick's Return

With the market's renovation program centered along Avenue D opening up space for four new merchants, General Manager Paul Steinke's emphasis has been to fill those slots with "purveyors" who primarily sell foods for cooking or eating at home. That's why the chances of any new pure lunch vendor of getting one of the two remaining stalls is slim at best and why Rick Olivieri's attempt to reenter the market with his Rick's Steaks business will fail.

It's certainly possible, though, that a vendor selling for both on- and off-premises consumption could get that nod. I think the only chance for a new vendor to primarily sell for on-premises consumption would be to offer something not now available from other lunch counters. Hot donuts, anyone?

Only one of the three new vendors announced so far will sell food for eating within the market, but it will also offer groceries and other food products to take home: Wursthaus Schmitz would carry German groceries and cold cuts as well as hot foods for eating either within the market or at home.

The second new vendor would be artisinal cheese maker Valley Shepherd Creamery, which is expected to sign a letter of intent within a few weeks. The latter's product would be overwhelmingly for off-premises consumption, though there's no reason why someone couldn't have a sheep milk yogurt for lunch in center court. A third new vendor, The Head Nut will essentially replicate the offerings of The Spice Terminal, which declined to renew its lease.

That leaves two remaining spaces for new vendors: one along the Avenue D wall, another in a small space on center court adjacent to where Wursthaus Schmitz will be located.

The market's operating policy guidelines require that no more than the greater of one-third of the number of vendors or one-third of the floor space go to businesses "which offer food intended primarily or exclusively for consumption within the Market."

While Steinke is comfortable that the current breakdown of merchants is well within that restriction, by my subjective count 36 of the 77 existing merchants exclusively or primarily fall into the "on-premises consumption" category.

Let me emphasize the subjective nature of determining whose "primary" business is for off-premises consumption or not. As an example, take 12th Street Cantina, which I consider among those who "primarily" sell for on-premises conception but Steinke does not. Steinke says this business a "two-sided" purveyor that doesn't count against the operating policy ratios because of the many take-home Mexican groceries and prepared foods they sell. My opinion is influenced by the fact that 12th Street Cantina has a seating area for diners. (I've got to admit, though, nearly all of my purchases there have been for ingredients to use at home.)

The same debate could be held about any number of other vendors, from Kamal's Middle Eastern Specialties to By George! Pizza, Pasta and Cheeseteaks, both of which also sell plenty of items for consumption and/or cooking at home, but also earn money as lunch vendors. (Indeed, the line for cheese steaks at By George! at lunchtime frequently blocks the aisle.) The key metric in making any such determination as to whether a business is "primarily" engaged in sales for off-premises consumption would be to know the revenue breakdowns, but neither Steinke nor I have access to that proprietary information.

Getting back to Olivieri, another factor why he has little chance of reestablishing his cheese-steakerie in the market are the three existing vendors who depend upon cheese steak sales, and two others who find it a highly profitable sideline. Although Steinke said he couldn't give a "blanket answer" to a hypothetical question about allowing a new merchant to compete with the same product of five existing merchants, it's hard to imagine him adding another tourist-centric cheese steak stall. He acknowledged to Dan Gross of the Daily News, who broke the Olivieri story Wednesday, that cheese steaks were not the market's "highest priority".

When Olivieri's lease was not renewed in 2008, the market allowed two additional vendors to sell cheese steaks: Carmen's Famous and By George! (Spataro's earlier had been permitted to add cheese steaks when they moved to a new center court location.) Today all three businesses incorporate "cheese steaks" into their formal names. In addition, the Down Home Diner sells cheese steaks, as does the new Molly Molloy's.

Rick's Steaks loss of its lease in 2008 followed Olivieri's vociferious leadership of the Reading Terminal Market Merchants Association when the market was restructuring lease agreements and fee structure. You can find earlier stories about the Olivieri-RTM clash here and here.

Vendors Lining Up For RTM: Wursthaus Schmitz, Nut Vendor

New temporary seating to become Wursthaus Schmitz

With work on additional leaseable vendor space at the Reading Terminal Market scheduled to wrap up by early April as part of the Avenue D project, General Manager Paul Steinke is busy lining up vendors to fill the new spots.

The latest announcement is that the owners of Brauhus Schmitz will open a German food shop -- Wursthaus Schmitz -- in the general area of where the Spice Terminal had been located, at the intersection of Center Court and Avenue D, opposite the new La Cuchina at the Market. They'll sell prepared food for consumption at the market and take-away, deli meats, as well as imported products, including mustards.

The market has been without wide-ranging German food products (beyond the limited Pennsylvania Dutch merchant offerings) since Siegfried's departed in 1990. Steinke has sought to fill that niche for years (Rieker's of Fox Chase declined the opportunity shortly after Siegfried closed). 

Owners Kelly Schmitz-Hager and Doug Hager are hot to trot and hope to be open by Memorial Day.

(I heartily welcome the renewal of a German food purveyor at the market, but it raises a question about the sudden mushrooming of German restaurants in center city. Once upon a time the only German restaurant around was Ludwig's Garten on Sansom. When it closed we were Gemütlichkeit-less. Now, however, we've got Brauhaus Schmitz, Frankford Hall, and the newly opened Bierstube in Old City. Even Jose Garces and has threatened to get into the act with a Wurstmacher in the old Letti Deli on 13th Street.) 

Spice Terminal Successor Nears Dotted Line

Although negotiations are not completed, Steinke is optimistic to sign a new bulk spice vendor, who would occupy space beneath the market's administrative offices one aisle north of center court. The prospect is a long-standing suburban vendor of nuts, spices, herbs, coffee, grains, and condiments -- the same lines carried by the Spice Terminal. Looking at the potential vendor's existing website, it appears this outfit has greater depth of stock than Spice Terminal's.

Steinke said he decided to go after the suburban vendor because of its 30 years of experience, which trumped an otherwise attractive offer from employees of the Spice Terminal. He acknowledged that part of his decision mix was the tens of thousands of dollars it would cost the market to move the Spice Terminal to a new location, as required by the Avenue D Project. Extensive carpentry for the shelving would have accounted for much of that cost; a new vendor under a new lease is responsible for those costs.

Steinke also expects to sign Valley Shepherd Creamery within the next few week. In addition to selling its great artisinal cheeses (primarily sheep, but some cow and goat and mixed milk cheeses), Valley Shepherd plans to make fresh cheese on-premises.

With Spice Terminal's closing last Sunday, Steinke made quick work to turn it into additional seating, if only on a temporary basis, just in time for the last two days of the auto show. The extra seating will stay in place for the flower show in early March, than give way for Wursthaus Schmitz.

Dinic's Remembers Market's Butchers

When Dinic's moves into its new stall at the Reading Terminal Market (perhaps as early as later this week, if the city's Health Department can schedule its inspection), it will be adorned with signs remembering the stall's predecessors in vending meats at this spot. Though Tom Nicolosi is a purveyor of cooked meats, he knows it all starts with the butcher.

Most folks know that Dinic's will occupy space vacated last year by Harry G. Ochs & Son Prime Butchers. But that's only half the story. Until the early 1970s, while one side of the stall was occupied by Ochs, the other was home to another market butcher, G.M. Yerger. When Yerger went out of business, Ochs expanded to span the entire space along Avenue B between the market's Fifth and Sixth Avenues (aisles) .

The signs, by the way, date back to the market's beginnings under the Reading Railroad's train shed. Wander and you'll see a number of them over what had originally been hooks to hang meat and other vittles. At Kaufman's Lancaster County Produce, for example, you'll see a sign for Eugene M. Moyers & Son, which left the market in the mid-1980s (but still makes killer ham under its Blooming Glen brand in the village of the same name between Doylestown and Quakertown).

Before yesterday, the soon-to-be-home of roast pork, beef, brisket, pulled pork and pork cutlet sandwiches was shrouded in plastic, looking as if the artist Christo had arisen from the dead and moved into the Reading Terminal Market.

With Dinic's move, Spataro's will begin work to move across the aisle. When that work is done, Flying Monkey will take over Spataro's space.

Avenue D Project Running Late

The musical chairs involving the sandwich makers and baker is just one aspect of the Avenue D Project, which will create additional leaseable space for more vendors and a multi-purpose room for meetings and other gatherings (as well as additional seating during lunch hour). The entire project was originally envisioned to be completed by late February, just in time for the Flower Show when hordes from across the Northeast and Mid Atlantic descend for an early fix of springtime.

Like most construction projects, however, this one fell of its initial schedule. Although the revamped rest rooms should be open by late February, the rest of the construction won't be completed until late April.

RTM Construction Update

It will probably be another week or so before DiNic's begins construction on its new Reading Terminal Market home, the former Harry Ochs stall. With all permits and designs in hand, the work will begin once a contractor is selected from from the bids received.

This past Saturday Jimmy Iovine was sweeping up inside the now vacant Beer Garden space which is tentatively scheduled to reopen in mid-October as Molly Molloy's. This week a new floor is due to be installed.

Along Avenue D in back of the Beer Garden temporary construction walls are up as crews work in that area. The storage and prep areas there have been permanently relocated to the basement. Meanwhile, work continues above Tootsie's Salad Express on the expanded market office.

BAAH! Cheesemaker Plans RTM Outpost
Fresh Cheeses To Be Made On Site

Some of the more than 600 sheep
in Valley Shepherd's flock

Valley Shepherd Creamery is expected to be the first new vendor to occupy space along the Reading Terminal Market's Avenue D.

Earlier this month the RTM and cheesemaker Eran Wajswol signed off on a proposal to occupy about 700 square feet across Avenue D from what will soon be Molly Molloy's gastropub.

The shop will be located along the RTM's back wall, where it will be easiest to pipe in fresh milk from delivery trucks. That's necessary because Wajswol plans to make fresh cheese on premises for market shoppers. At Valley Shepherd's farm store in Long Valley, N.J., his fresh offerings include cream cheeses (no gums or additives) and ricotta.

As its name implies, Valley Shepherd specializes in sheep milk cheeses, although some of its products are cow-sheep mixes.

Although Valley Shepherd plans to make fresh cheese at the RTM, its cave-aged product earned the creamery its stellar reputation. Wajswol went so far as to blast an aging cave into a hillside on his farm. One of his cheeses, a Gouda-like product, spends two years in the cave.

If you haven't had a chance to try Wajswol's cheeses, you're missing one of the best artisinal products available. At least one variety is usually in stock at the Fair Food Farmstand at the RTM, often Shepherd's Basket, a Basque style aged for four to five months. With the exception of the fresh cheeses and yogurts, everything else is made from unpasteurized raw milk. You can get an idea of the offerings at Valley Shepherd Creamery's website.

In addition to the store at the northwest New Jersey creamery. Valley Shepherd operates a small store on Sullivan Street in Manhattan's SoHo district, and soon will be opening another in Brooklyn's Park Slope neighborhood. The RTM store will be its third owned and operated retail outlet. In addition to restaurants, like New York City's Le Bernardin, Wajswol sells at various farmers' markets in New York and New Jersey.

If all goes according to plan, you might see Valley Shepherd at the RTM by late spring, according to Paul Steinke, the RTM's general manager.

Shut and Open Case at Tootsie's
Over Labor Day weekend, Tootsie's Salad Express shut down while workers began extended the Reading Terminal Market's mezzanine office, which is located above the eater, owned by Marion "Tootsie Iovine" D'Ambrosio. By this past Monday, it was back in business. The work is part of the RTM's Avenue D expansion program.

Avenue D Project Moving Along 

Works Aims For Completion By Flower Show

The new DiNic's will feature many more counter seats

The RTM is moving forward with its $4.5 million Avenue D improvement and expansion project first reported here more than a year ago. Last week GM Paul Steinke held a series of briefings for market merchants to update them on the sequence of construction and design updates.

If all goes according to schedule, the work will be complete and ready for use before next year's flower show, which opens to the public March 4.

For the market, the central benefit is creating more leaseable space for added vendors.

The biggest benefit as far as the market's customers are concerned is expanded and improved rest room facilities.

But the most visible change will be the addition of a multi-purpose room and new demonstration kitchen at the east end of an expanded Center Court. The room -- to be called the Rick Nichols Room in honor of the Inquirer's former food columnist -- will be used as a seating area when not in use for kitchen demonstrations and private functions.

Rendering of new La Cucina and multi-purpose room

A newly-added feature for the Rick Nichols Room will be a historical exhibit on the market's history adornning the facility's walls. Funded by a William Penn Foundation grant, the exhibit will be prepared by the Philadelphia History Museum (formerly the Atwater Kent) and include contributions from Nichols.

Much of the improvement work has already begun in the bowels of the market, in its giant basement where some of the merchants have storage and prep space. Earlier this year a second elevator went into service to improve basement access. New dry storage space is basically finished, and soon work will begin on adding cooler and freezer units so that the existing cold storage lockers under the mezzanine can be cleared for the rest room and additional vendor space.

The most visible work will begin after Labor Day when both The Beer Garden and DiNic's start construction.

The Beer Garden, purchased by the Iovine brothers earlier this year, will be shut down while a kitchen is added and the seating area and bar renovated and expanded.

DiNic's will be moving to the space last occupied by Harry Ochs & Sons. With twice its current space and lots of additional counter seating, the market hopes lunchtime congestion around the popular lunch stall can be reduced.

When DiNic's moves, Spataro's will take over that space. Flying Monkey will move into Spataro's spot, as well as additional space from what is now the Spice Terminal, which will relocate under the mezzanine. Other vendor alterations include a shift in L. Halteman's footprint to front on Avenue C (where Market Blooms had its second stall), Miscellania Libri and The Shoe Doctor to a new location further north along the renovated Avenue D, and the move of La Cucina to the new demonstration kitchen and multi-purpose room.

RTM Unveils Avenue D Plan 

Work Could Be Complete By Autumn

Making Avenue D as lively and inviting as the other aisles in the Reading Terminal Market is the aim of a $2.7 million design unveiled Thursday. The detailed plans for the aisle which zigs and zags around the back wall and rest rooms in the rear of the market were shown at meetings with market merchants by Paul Steinke, the RTM general manger, and representatives of the designers, Friday Architects/Planners.

The construction could be completed as early as October.

Among the key components:

• Expansion of Center Court through relocation of Flying Monkey Patisserie;
• Addition of a multi-purpose area to be used for general public seating and for private meetings, in space currently housing Miscellanea Libri and merchant storage;
• Relocation of the demonstration kitchen so as to visually become part of center court and serve as an extension of the multi-purpose room;
• More than doubling the number of stalls in the women's rest room; and
• Addition of about 1,300 square feet of leaseable space.

Steinke said the expansion of the rest rooms -- the fixture count will also be doubled in the men's room -- was critical given the growth of visitors to the market. Last year about 6.1 million shoppers, tourists and center city workers passed through the market's doors, making it a more popular attraction than the combined attendance of the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall.

The renovated rest rooms, along with two family rest rooms, will be built in space currently occupied by La Cucina and market operational, security and maintenance offices. Steinke said stalls in the women's rest room will increase to 16 from 7. There is frequently a line out the door of the facility, sometimes reaching as far as the shoe shine stand during peak periods.

Current Avenue D (right), redesign at left.
Click on image for enlargement.

If bids come in within budget, a construction manager will be named in early March, with major construction to start by mid-May. A six-month construction schedule is anticipated, which makes completion before the holiday shopping season starts possible if there are no significant delays.

Some work has already been completed: the activation of a new, second freight elevator last week is critical, because much of the existing dry and cold storage on the main floor used by merchants will be moved to a reconfigured basement, increasing the need for reliable basement access. A contractor is already lined up to install the new coolers and build the storage areas in the basement, which also provides an opportunity for merchants to expand their cool and dry storage. That work is expected to start in April.

Because of existing refrigeration equipment, ambient temperatures in the basement are frequently in excess of 80 degrees. A ventilation system is expected to lower the temperature to at least 75 degrees, utilizing the removed warmth in a water-heating system.

The multi-purpose area against the back wall at center court will have moveable glass walls, so that private groups can be accommodated while maintaining a visual openness. Most of the time, according to Steinke, the multi-purpose area would be used for public seating like the rest of center court, but the capability to rent to groups will enhance market income.

When the multi-purpose area is open there will be no net change in the number of seats available to the public. However, when it is rented out there will be a reduction of as much as 60 places. For that reason, some merchants have asked the market to commit to not leasing the multi-purpose room during peak periods like the Flower Show.

The demonstration kitchen, now housed as part of La Cucina, the cooking school business operated by Anna Florio, will be moved adjacent to the new multi-purpose room. She is expected to continue the business at the new location.

Steinke said the relocated kitchen will enhance special events at the market. As an example he cited last year's ice cream festival which, among other attractions, included a demonstration by Georges Perrier making cherries jubilee. The market had to construct a temporary, barely adequate kitchen in center court to handle the demonstration.

Avenue D takes a dog leg in the area adjoining Iovine Brothers Produce and L. Halteman. Originally Avenue D ran straight through the market from Filbert Street to Arch Street. However, the need to build fire stair towers in conjunction with construction of the Pennsylvania Convention Center, whose grand hall and many smaller meeting rooms occupy the space above the market, required the zig-zag. Halteman's will lose some space by the straightening of Avenue D, which would be made up by expanding into some of the space occupied by Market Blooms, which is leaving that space to concentrate on its Avenue A location along the 12th Street side of the market.

Under the plan Avenue D will continue in a straight line from its Filbert Street entrance to the area where the new lavatories will be located. This provides additional space for the multi-purpose room, demonstration kitchen, and new stalls along the north wall. Flying Monkey Patisserie will be moved to existing cold storage space, while the shoe shine stand and Miscellanea Libri will move to north along Avenue D.

Steinke told merchants at Thursday's meetings that they are welcome to submit proposals for the 1,300 square feet of added leaseable space. He said their proposals would be considered on the same basis as those already received from outsiders who wish to become market merchants. He emphasied that in judging the proposals the market would adhere to its guidelines: no chains, no franchises; only owner-operated businesses would be considered. Also, decisions would adhere to the market's goals of limiting Food Court (lunch) vendors to 30 percent of total RTM leaseable space.

The renovation program also includes an expansion of the market's management office space, currently located on a mezzanine. The space would be extended over Tootsie's Salad Bar to accommodate a conference room, which the market currently lacks, and create additional desk space.

The project will be financed by a combination of a low-interest loan from Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation, bank financing, and the market's existing sinking fund. Proceeds from Saturday Night's "Valentine to the Market" party will also benefit the project.