Metropolitan Bakery & Café in University City Celebrates Five Years with Five Days of “Metro Madness”

A portion of sales to benefit Project H.O.M.E. and Pedal Co-op

PHILADELPHIA, PA (April 16, 2009) — Metropolitan Bakery & Café at 4013 Walnut Street will offer daily specials April 22 through April 26 in honor of its five years in West Philadelphia. Specials will include discounts on fair trade coffees, organic teas, sandwiches, cookies and more, as well as a prize drawing on the 26th for coupons for free items, including a first prize of 25 free coffees, teas or espresso drinks (that’s free coffee for almost a month!). A portion of the proceeds from the five-day celebration will be donated to Project H.O.M.E., Philadelphia’s nationally recognized provider of housing and services for low-income and homeless adults, and Pedal Co-Op, the new non-profit recycling organization that bikes away recyclables and food waste for composting. Pedal Co-op was founded by John MacDuffie Woodburn, a former Metropolitan employee in West Philadelphia. Visit www.pedalcoop.org.

Metropolitan Bakery is locally owned and operated; all breads and baked in Metropolitan’s artisan baking facility in Fishtown. For more information on our West Philadelphia specials, contact 215-222-1492. You can also find us on the web at www.metropolitanbakery.com or on Facebook as “Metropolitan Bakery.”

About Metropolitan Bakery
With only a table, a shoebox for a register, and a single rack of freshly baked bread, the likes of which Philadelphians had never tasted before, Wendy Smith Born and James Barrett opened Metropolitan Bakery in 1993. Known for their intense, earthy flavors, crackling crusts, and complex texture, our breads are baked in over 30 varieties at our 10,000-foot baking facility and then delivered to our five neighborhood shops and to more than 100 of the Philadelphia area’s best restaurants and gourmet markets. And now, our products are available nationwide… Call 1.877.41.BREAD or visit www.metropolitanbakery.com.

About Metropolitan Bakery Breads
Unique in flavor and quality, true artisan breads use unbleached flours, whole grains, and never contain artificial ingredients or preservatives. Rather than using commercial yeast, which can mask the true flavor and character, Metropolitan Bakery uses natural yeast (called a starter) produced from fermenting figs and berries. Our breads enjoy a long-slow-cool fermentation process, which ensures more flavor, better texture and a longer shelf life. In addition, each loaf is pounded and shaped by hand, allowed to rise slowly in willow baskets dusted with rye flour, and then baked in our Bongard ovens. These traditional, old-world techniques create a crackling crust, a moist and chewy interior, and a fresh, real grain taste.