Reading Terminal Welcomes its First Ever Black-Owned Bakery “Sweet T’s Bakery”
Reading Terminal Welcomes its First Ever Black-Owned Bakery “Sweet T’s Bakery”
Reading Terminal Market today announced its newest merchant, Sweet T’s Bakery. The new bakery will offer a variety of sweet potato-based baked goods and desserts and is believed to be the first Black-owned bakery in Market history.
“Please join us in welcoming Sweet T’s Bakery into our Market family,” said Annie Allman, CEO and General Manager of the Reading Terminal Market. “Tia and Mark bring a fresh, new concept that the Market has never seen before and we are so excited to share these flavors with our marketgoers.”
Owners Tia and Mark El first opened Sweet T’s Bakery in South Philadelphia in 2014. The couple closed their brick and mortar location in 2018 to pursue business in new neighborhoods through a food truck. In October 2020, Sweet T’s Bakery joined Reading Terminal Market through the Day Cart program and quickly saw success, selling out their products every weekend.
Sweet T’s Bakery will offer a line of sweet potato-based sweets and baked goods like sweet potato pie, sweet potato pound cake, and sweet potato cheesecake along with four signature drinks. Whole cakes and pies will be available for purchase in-store or online through Mercato. Sweet T’s will also offer cakes and pies by the slice, as well three-inch personal pies. The bakery will operate five days a week, Tuesday through Saturday, and grow to be open daily by fall.
“Our recipes are inspired by my grandmother’s. The business has grown from me putting my own twist, like graham cracker crust, on her pies for friends and family during the holidays to a permanent location in Philadelphia’s most iconic market,” said Tia El, co-owner of Sweet T’s Bakery. “We couldn’t be more proud or excited to share a piece of our culture with the Market’s diverse community of shoppers.”
“Our signature product, sweet potato pie, is something that most people typically enjoy around the holidays,” said Mark El, co-owner of Sweet T’s Bakery. “We’re excited to offer a slice of the holidays to our customers all year long.”
Sweet T’s Bakery is on target to open in mid-April at the intersection of Avenues C and 12 in the Reading Terminal Market. The new merchant will move into the space formerly occupied by Metropolitan Bakery which now sells its full line of product through The Pennsylvania General Store.
