More than 120 supporters, friends, and guests joined us at International House Philadelphia on April 18, 2016 for our 14th annual Taste of Success cook-off/bake-off competition. Twelve up-and-coming talented entrepreneurs in the food industry offered tastes of delicious appetizers and desserts, and were judged by some of Philadelphia’s finest chefs and restaurateurs (Tim Spinner, Michael Sultan, and Michael Mantia). Four winners went home with cash prizes, and all of our contestants went home with accolades!
1st Place Hors D’oeuvre
Peter Tong
Dump-N-Roll
Far West Wonton: chipotle turkey bacon cheeseburger tempura wonton with a smoky bourboun BBQ sauce
2nd Place Hors D’oeuvre
Gregory and Theresa Daglis
Phyllodelphia
Sausage and cheese filled phyllo triangles: flakey phyllo triangles filled with a cheesy Italian sausage mixture
1st Place Dessert
Nefertari Muhammad
Sister’s Original Supreme Pies
Butternut Squash Pie: organically grown butternut squash batter poured into a graham cracker crust.
2nd Place Dessert
Curtis Evans
Signature Catering Company
Deconstructed sweet potato cheesecake with curry ice cream
We were also excited to congratulate the first four inductees to Entrepreneur Works’ brand-new Hall of Fame at this year’s Taste of Success! Our four inductees are Shelly Salamon, Juan Romano, Darrell Short, and Richard Wilcox.
Shelly came to Entrepreneur Works through our multi-week business skills course. She opened up her first bicycle shop, Fairmount Bicycles, 5 years ago. She has since expanded to a second shop, Brewerytown Bicycles, and now has 14 employees.
Juan worked to create a local store that would contribute to the betterment of his community. His grocery features fresh produce and healthy options. Customers from K & Luzerne Streets, formerly without any local access to fresh produce, are thrilled to have a local source of healthy ingredients. Juan came to Entrepreneur Works for two small business loans to help renovate and expand his store.
Darrell Short started his company in the city of Chester (Delaware County) 11 years ago because the city had no taxi cab companies. He started with 1 taxi cab and has now grown his fleet to 5 cars, employing 12 people from the community. Darrell has come to Entrepreneur Works periodically over the past several years for technical assistance and guidance with his business.
Richard Wilcox has been serving his delicious donuts and baked goods at Phatso’s in the city of Chester (Delaware County) since 2001. Richard employs himself and 3 others in the community. He was even featured on a FOOD Network show in 2014! Richard has been coming to Entrepreneur Works for many years for technical assistance to help his business thrive.
