Just the other day, we told you about Rue 52, a new cafe near Malcom X Park on 52nd Street. Today, we have news of another restaurant that recently made an appearance on the West Philly scene. Hibiscus opened its doors at 4907 Catharine St. this August, and has since attracted a fan base of regulars that has resulted some favorable Yelp reviews. Their food is made onsite and served fresh and gluten free, ranging from organic juices and smoothies, vegan pizza, cold and hot wraps, salads, soups and quesadillas.

The store

The owner explains that the idea came from her background in herbal medicine and an interest in holistic health. Her belief was that the neighborhood contains a community seeking healthy foods and vegetarian or vegan options, which seems to make sense to us. She also owns two other businesses, including an eco-friendly cleaning business called Purity Power and a boutique in Phoenixville known as Mystic Clothing.

Though Hibiscus is located on Catharine St., it’s really just an extension off of the burgeoning Baltimore Avenue commercial corridor, as you can see in the photos. With the opening of Mariposa on the 4800 block less than a year ago, and new stores popping up on the 4900 block and the 5000 block, Baltimore Avenue continues to hum along, and Hibiscus is just one more new business made possible by this growth. Whether the good stuff will spread to the unfortunate New Third World Lounge just a few doors down is unclear, but we’re hopeful.

Across the street. See Mariposa in the distance?

New pizza place next door, gross looking bar at the end of the street

Clearer image of the gross bar

The overall motto of Hibiscus is “health is wealth.” Hopefully business will be very healthy, and the owners will become wealthy indeed.

–Haley Waugh