After delaying its scheduled October 2003 unveiling, Metropolitan Bakery is on track to open later this month.
The new eatery which will be located at 4013 Walnut St., across from the Bridge: Cinema de Lux will see a late April opening, according to its owner, Jim Lilly.
"We're going to open no later than the weekend after next, the 23rd or 24th," Lilly said.
Construction crews have been completely renovating the interior of the site for several months and are nearing completion.
According to Lilly, the construction work will be finished by the middle of next week. And shortly afterward, the equipment and supplies necessary for the store to open will be delivered and installed.
And with most of the store's employees already hired, Lilly is just waiting for the construction crews to finish.
"We're basically staffed we're ready to go," Lilly said. "I'm probably looking for another couple of part-time people, but I've been hiring all along."
But Lilly and his employees are not the only ones gearing up for the store's opening.
Tony Sorrentino, the University Facilities and Real Estate Services spokesman, feels that Metropolitan Bakery's opening will go a long way in further expanding 40th Street's food options.
"It makes 40th Street that much more of a diverse corridor,"Sorrentino said. "It's very urban it reflects very well on the community, because it says there are a number of consumers looking for that kind of variety."
With the recent opening of Qdoba and the expanded Bucks County Coffee along with the expected summer debuts of the Greek Lady and Marathon Grill the 40th Street corridor is shaping up to be a popular dining destination for students and the community.
Those openings also mean added competition in a market that has seen several restaurants go out of business in the last few years.
But despite the competition and the similarity between Metropolitan Bakery and the offerings at places like Au Bon Pain, Cosi or Bucks County Coffee, Sorrentino feels that the new eatery will have no trouble finding its niche.
"Metropolitan Bakery is a well-respected brand," Sorrentino said, adding that it will be a "destination store people go out of their way to get there."
And although the new eatery will open just before thousands of students make their summer exodus from University City, Lilly is not worried about a lack of business.
"Obviously, we'd like to be as busy as we can, but schedules don't always work out," Lilly said. "We're also trying to appeal not just to students but [to] the local neighborhood as well."
Sorrentino shared that sentiment, predicting success for Metropolitan.
"Jim Lilly lives in University City," Sorrentino said. "He knows better than anyone else that in University City over the summer, there's a thriving, robust market."
Sorrentino also thinks that the quality of Metropolitan's breads, coffee, salads and panini will have something to do with its success.
"It's very gourmet without being very expensive it's a very high-quality product," Sorrentino said.
Metropolitan Bakery, founded in Philadelphia in 1993, currently has six Philadelphia locations.
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