South Street's Sabrina's Café highlights female pastry chefs
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – It is Women's History Month and CBS News Philadelphia is heading into the kitchen for this story. Men have dominated commercial kitchens but there is a café on South Street that highlights female pastry chefs.
At Sabrina's Café on South Street, they're putting a spin on a long-standing stereotype.
"It's been said many times before that the women's place is in the kitchen, but still in our industry it's still a very male-driven industry and the males get the recognition," Monica Glass, a gluten-free pastry chef, said.
Glass focuses on making pastries for everyone, like her gluten-free banana bread.
She's one of five local female pastry chefs the café is featuring on its menu for Women's History Month.
"I really strive to make gluten-free things that people don't realize are gluten-free so everyone can sit at the table together," she said.
"It's really an honor to be able to highlight and showcase female chefs that may not have an opportunity in this forum and in this part of the community to see their items featured," Kat Matranga, of the Sabrina's Café leadership team, said.
Each slice has a bigger purpose.
All proceeds of the featured pastries will go toward Project Home to help women in need in Philadelphia.
— Marcella Baietto (@MarcellaBaietto) March 17, 2023
One the chefs involved with the partnership is @chefmoni.
She baked gluten free banana bread. 🍌🍞
Story airs tonight at 4:55 & 5:55 PM on @CBSPhiladelphia. pic.twitter.com/VyC97ID4CR
"Project Home is a Philadelphia-based charity that's creating jobs, housing and things for females in Philadelphia," Matranga said. "So, we're donating one hundred percent of the proceeds of the sales of the pastries from these wonderful chefs each weekend."
She says customers are also donating on top of their orders.
Both women have 20 years of experience in the food industry.
In that time, they say they've seen the kitchen and restaurants they've worked in go from male-dominated spaces to now places of more inclusion.
"I was the minority and now I'm seeing this transition to the majority. I mean just in Sabrina's alone we have seven women in leadership roles," Matranga said.
"The effort that the people behind the scenes, that you don't always get to see working and feeding people because they do it with such a love and passion. It's just important to bring that to light," Glass said.
The banana bread is just one of several pastries Sabrina's Café that is highlighting this month. Check out all the pastries at the café.
Our reporter Marcella Baietto surely was happy about her pastry.