If you’re celebrating Thanksgiving in the neighborhood, check out information below on holiday hours and closings at some popular local stores and cafes. We also included information on SEPTA holiday service. Information on Thanksgiving Parade is available here.

SEPTA Holiday Service

• Buses, trains, and trolleys will operate on a Sunday schedule on Thanksgiving Day.

• Broad Street and Market Frankford and Broad Street Line and trains will operate with all night service beginning Thursday, Nov. 28 at 12:01 a.m. Regular Owl Bus service will resume Friday, Nov. 29 at 12:01 a.m.  Continue Reading

DTLR, a fast-growing lifestyle retailer with over 245 stores in 19 states, has opened a new flagship store on South 52nd Street. The store is located at 4 S. 52nd St., in the space previously occupied by VILLA, which was acquired by DTLR in 2017.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony took place on Thursday. During the ceremony, DTLR President Scott Collins, along with Councilwoman-elect Jamie Gauthier, provided remarks to commemorate the brand-new, three-story, 8,600-square-foot store.  Continue Reading

                Photo by Hanbit Kwon

The future of the building housing an auto body shop and second-floor martial arts gym damaged by fire late last month is still unclear. The City’s Department of Licenses and Inspections deemed the building “unsafe” soon after the Sept. 24 fire.

Damage from the fire caused the closing of Ren’s Auto Repair and Collision and 8 Limbs Academy, a popular kickboxing school and fitness facility.

The building’s owners have indicated that they are interested in repairing the building.  Continue Reading

Did you know that you don’t have to wash your dog alone at home, in your bathtub or sometimes even your kitchen sink? You can do it in a specially made tub while socializing with other dog owners. And after you’re done, you don’t need to clean up all the mess. That’s what a self-serve pet washing shop, “PHilthy Paws”, which has just opened at 47th and Baltimore, is for.

In addition to the tub, PHilthy Paws also provides tools to clean your animal (shampoos, brushes, dryers, and more) that are included in your fee – ranging from $12 to $18 per wash, depending on the size of your pet. Dogs as large as 100+ pounds are welcome, too.  Continue Reading

While the weather is still warm, folks in Cedar Park and nearby areas may be interested to know that there is a new addition to the local drinking establishments scene. A pop-up wine garden, named simply The Wine Garden, which focuses on wine and wine only (no beer), has recently opened at 5019 Baltimore Avenue, in the outdoor space previously occupied by Taco Angeleno. One of the co-owners is Saba Tedla, owner of Aksum and Booker’s restaurants also located on Baltimore Ave.

The Wine Garden offers seating for up to 30 people and serves vintage wines and specialty drinks, plus live entertainment featuring local musicians, according to Philadelphia Magazine. Basically, it’s a great place to relax after a long workday and on weekends.

The Wine Garden is open Monday through Friday 4-11 p.m.; noon-11 p.m. on Saturdays and noon-6 p.m. on Sundays. It will stay open through the end of October. So far, there’s no website or Facebook page, but we’ll keep you posted.

Photo from Taco Taco’s Facebook page.

A new Mexican restaurant, Taco Taco, quietly opened last month in the former Honest Tom’s Plant Based Taco Shop location at 261 S. 44th Street. According to a recent report, Honest Tom’s longtime kitchen staff members – Alvaro, Maria and Eli – took over the space after former owner Tom McCusker left at the end of July to start a new business, Fruitadelphia.

The new restaurant is no longer vegan, although it still features some vegan items, like BIFF (a walnut-based “meat”) tacos and burritos. The new owners brought back the old menu, including breakfast on the weekends, which Honest Tom’s used to serve before it went all-vegan in the summer of 2018.

Taco Taco is open Monday – Friday 11 a.m.-9 p.m. and on Saturdays and Sundays 10 a.m.-9 p.m.

For more info, check out their Facebook page.