Feeding Frenzy

Restaurants opening, closing and pending

by Drew Lazor

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Published: Apr 16, 2008

>> WAITING LIST

Liz Begosh has carved out a sweet little niche for herself in Philly by selling her Betty's Tasty Buttons artisanal fudge line at various farmers markets about town. Now she's putting roots down in G-Ho with this 650-square-foot commercial space. Her partner is her mother, Marbeth Begosh. (Betty is Liz's grandmother.) "Our focus will be artisan confections, [and we'll] expand into providing for restaurants and catering," she says. The Speakeasy will also serve as a CSA drop-off/pickup for local growers. Down the line, they'll introduce weekend dinners with a focus on seasonality. There's no solid opening date yet, but Begosh is hoping for sometime in June.

Patrick and Terence Feury's long-delayed Maia, which was the subject of a recent CP food feature [Food, "Maia Brother and Me," A.D. Amorosi, April 3], will definitely be open by Sat., May 3, if not sooner. How are we so sure? That's the day they're planning "Maia Cares," a charity event that'll conveniently double as a debut deadline. Curated by partner Scott Morrison, the event'll benefit organizations like breastcancer.org, Main Line Health, the Make a Wish Foundation and the Youth Mentoring Partnership. Eats will include mini kobe pastrami sandwiches, cured striped bass with Meyer lemon jam and more. A thousand tickets are available at $100 a pop; all proceeds will be donated. E-mail dsconnor@comcast.net for more info.

>> LITTLE VITTLES

Roz Bratt,who's run Homemade Goodies by Roz (510 S. Fifth St., 215-592-9616) for the past 11 years, temporarily closed her spot in January to turn it into an all-kosher operation. Rabbi Dov A. Brisman of the Community Kashrus of Greater Philadelphia is supervising the conversion. The bakery will reopen in the first week of May; the kosher offerings will include cakes, cookies, muffins, quick breads and more. >> The central branch of the Philadelphia Free Library (1901 Vine St.) has introduced H.O.M.E. Page Café, a Wi-Fi-enabled space that serves Metropolitan Bakery goodies, Starbucks coffee and more. It supports Project H.O.M.E.'s Harold A. Honickman Entrepreneurial Program, dedicated to helping homeless Philadelphians and at-risk teens get a foothold in the work force.

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