A new Philly restaurant is hosting a reality show contest to build its menu
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Renderings: Courtesy of Recipe Philly
During the Great Recession, Philly business executive Ed Baumstein's CFO gave him a money-crunching mandate: close two offices, lay off staff and cancel the holiday party.
- "I said, 'I'll do the offices, I'll do the people, but I'm not letting go of the office party,'" Baumstein tells Axios.
Why it matters: Instead, he held a potluck at his house — a get-together that effectively became an elevator pitch for his latest venture: a new restaurant called Recipe Philly.
Driving the news: Recipe Philly is opening next spring in Center City — with a twist.
- The restaurant is holding a culinary contest to decide what will be on its menu — and filming the whole thing to turn it into a reality TV show.
- The goal: Identify dozens of recipes from hometown cooks, and get the show picked up by a streaming giant like Netflix or Hulu.
What they're saying: Baumstein, who runs Homebred Hospitality, wants to recreate his potluck experience, where his colleagues feasted on meals from monkey bread to Vietnamese shredded cabbage and turned the recipes into a company cookbook.
- In the process, he hopes to capture Philadelphians' heart-tugging reflections about how their recipes, some handed down over generations, have influenced their lives.
- "It's not just the food that's so tasty at that moment," he says. "But it's also all the memories and the love that attaches to that food."
How it works: The filmed competition kicks off Saturday at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, where contestants will fill out recipe cards and share the stories behind them.
- Hundreds are expected. Anyone interested can register for the casting call through December, as long as they're 18 or older.
- The show's producers will whittle the contestants to about three dozen finalists.
- Their signature dishes will be judged by a panel of celebrities, influencers and guests.
The intrigue: Winners will receive $1,000 and have their names and photos on the menu next to their dishes.
- They can also eat for free at the restaurant for as long as their dish remains available.
Zoom in: Baumstein has tapped some heavy-hitters to execute his vision, including chef and partner Andy Revella, who has helped develop menus at restaurants like Bennigan's and Rainforest Cafe.
- Plus: independent film shop, Kinnane Brothers, which helped produce films for comedians Kevin James and Adam Sandler.
What we're watching: Baumstein is using Philly as an incubator, hoping to expand the competition to several other cities.