January 28th, 2010
Got the winter blues? Frankford Avenue has just the thing to cheer you up. Bundle up, grab a friend and head out to the arts corridor to see old pals and maybe make a few new ones. The new vintage boutique, two percent to glory, makes her First Friday debut. Throw in a pony, some vegan pastries, talented artists and the usual food and drink, and you have yourself a night to remember.
This month’s listings after the jump…
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December 17th, 2009
Andres Amarilla and Meredith Klein are emissaries for what was once a dying art. As an 11 year old boy growing up in the post-dictatorship years of Argentina, Andres was likely the one of the only children in the country learning the Tango. Cultural repression during the junta years had crippled a once-growing traditional dance form, which still resonates in the ears of foreigners as hallmark of Argentinean society. Slowly the dance was winding back into popular psyche, but a young generation had lost the art form. Andres took his rare training as youth and parlayed it into a career dedicated to teaching others a piece of his culture that had almost been erased.
Andres met Meredith Klein, a fellow dancer with ties to the Philadelphia region. After traveling and teaching Tango workshops on the road for several years, and getting married, the couple decided to take up a friends offer to use his South Street loft as a base for a part-time dance academy. Weary of a life of constant travel, they settled into Philadelphia two years ago and began plying their trade in the City of Brotherly Love.
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Tags: Philadelphia Argentine Tango
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November 11th, 2009
The two-story brick building’s low slung exterior and modest facade do not belie the expansive space within. Without the handmade sign strewn with christmas lights and some choice descriptive terms in capital letters (”ART”), there’d scarcely be an indication at all of the teeming interior of Piranha Betty’s Art Shop that awaits the visitor. This new artist collective has packed every inch of their Frankford Avenue store front with their wondrous creations.
Their informal signage is excusable, PBAS just opened within the last week, but their content is above par. Stylized crucifixes, crafted trinkets and other fabrications of the mind meld with a barrage of live music, tarot readings and video bowling (harder than it looks). The result is eclectic, but on their First Friday premiere last week, it was had the energy and spirit of a party.
Their primary mission is to provide an affordable public venue for local artist to ply their wares. Beyond that, they also offer the community a chance to buy high quality creative works, most for under $60.
Of course, there is only so many receptions and First Fridays to fill such an expansive space, so PBAS is working on scheduling events to fill out their calendar, including “live music, life drawing classes, film nights, and children’s art workshops.”
For information about joining the artist’s collective, click here. Otherwise stop by 2472 Frankford Avenue today and support neighborhood art! Piranha Betty’s can be found online at http://www.piranhabettys.com/.
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November 2nd, 2009
Halloween has come and gone and the icy grip of winter will soon be upon us, but for this last chapter of fall be sure to come out and enjoy the crisp air outside on First Friday. This November has puppet shows, scandalous photography and a hand stitched heaven; what could be greater? Come on by for your fix of art/food/fun/drink.
And a sneak peek for next month: we’re gearing up for a Frankford Avenue Holiday Event next First Friday, with your favorite stores and galleries getting decked out all festive like. So make sure a shopping spree on the avenue is on your list for next month. Rumor has it there will be some new faces on Frankford just in time for Christmas…
This month’s event listings after the jump…
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Tags: First Friday
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October 29th, 2009

Neighbors viewing renderings of the streetwork
Last night, neighbors from the 1700 to the 2300 blocks of Frankford Avenue gathered at Circle of Hope for an important community meeting. They were briefed on the details of a million dollar PennDOT project, years in the making, that was about to break ground. The location: their own doorsteps.
After years of community planning phases and approval letters being sent between NKCDC, PennDOT and the City of Philadelphia, street improvement work on Frankford Avenue was finally put out to bid several months ago. A contractor, L.C. Costa Construction Inc, of Warminster, PA was the low bidder with a 1.15 million dollar price tag for the half-mile zone’s street work. Pending a final commencement order from PennDOT, contractors could begin work as early as the first half of November, and no later than early December.
Details after the jump…
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Tags: Circle of Hope, group g, Orth-Rogers, Streetscaping
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October 26th, 2009
When Renee Fuchs came to Philadelphia from her native Hatboro, she thought she was coming to follow a lucrative career in Human Resources for a local non-profit. Now, years later, as she stands on the verge of opening her very own vegan bakery and cafe, it looks like she made a wrong turn somewhere. But that ‘wrong turn’ has taken her straight to Fishtown, and into a community hungry for even more healthy food and tasty coffee.
All during her tenure at the non-profit, Renee had had side projects as an outlet for her creative energy, even selling homemade doggy treats out of her home. She started making vegan food when her brother was diagnosed with Celiac disease, also known as gluten intolerance, making it impossible for him to digest most traditional baked goods.
Her discovery of a store for rent in Fishtown was what made her decide to make her interest in vegan baked goods into a job. Renee says she was looking for a place “with open-minded people”, and settled on Fishtown over Center City. She says its up-and-coming feel and artistic presence made it seem like a neighborhood that would be more accepting to the concept of a vegan cafe.
Although Renee won’t be baking the food at Bella Sera, it will be provided by a well-regarded regional bakery, Vegan Treats, out of Bethlehem. Renee doesn’t want to push away non-vegan customers, and believes that Vegan Treats makes pastries so good, they’re virtually indistinguishable from non-vegan baked goods.
Renee wants her cafe to be focused on providing healthy, delicious food without harming the environment or exploiting workers in other countries. In that spirit, all the plates at the cafe will be biodegradable, and all the coffee will be Fair Trade. So come out and support the latest addition to the Ave. Renee held her grand opening last Sunday to huge crowd, and is looking forward to more successes to come in the future. Visit their website at www.bellaseracafe.com for more information.
Located at: 2146 E. Susquehanna Ave
Tags: Bella Sera, Businesses
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