Pop-ups are brewing at Herman’s Coffee
Herman’s Coffee is connecting area residents to a wide variety of local chefs and food businesses at its Pennsport space.
After a decade-long career in the beer industry and three years helming Herman’s Coffee, 1313 S. Third Street, Mat Falco knows that business owners must adapt often to remain afloat. In 2019, Herman’s was ranked among the best coffee shops in the country by Food and Wine Magazine. This year, 36-year-old Falco has met the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic through a variety of pop-up partnerships that have given other food-centric businesses a boost—and pleased area foodies.
“Connections can play a big part in who you are because we all need help along our journey as people who serve the public,” said Falco, whose location celebrated its third anniversary in August. “It’s been great to do whatever we can to make sure that as many people as possible fight through these challenging times and have their names known.”
Pop-ups create unique pairings
To foster these connections, Falco has hosted a series of pop-up events where others have been invited to use Herman’s in-house food cart to hawk their goods. Averaging four such gatherings per week, the site welcomes customers to contribute doubly to the local economy.
One recent pop-up paired Herman’s coffee and tea offerings with spirits from New Liberty Distillery. Later that same day, the Distillery was on hand to add “a shot of limoncello or walnut nocino” to the ice creams offerings of Milk Jawn, a self-described “Philly-based small-batch, super-premium ice cream jawn.”
Tired of pumpkin spice? Check out Herman’s new taste of autumn: apple cider from Pennsylvania’s Three Spring Fruit Farm turned into a frozen cider treat.
Friday night dinners
The shop’s Friday Night dinners feature different guest chefs each week. Take out meals are available from 5 p.m. to 8 p;m., but many sell-out well before the 8 p.m. close. Upcoming events include the signature Filipino dishes of Tita Emmie’s on October 23. Offerings will include pork belly sisig tacos on homemade ube tortillas and adobo wings.
On October 30, Herman’s will welcome Helm back to Pennsport, “We were all sad to see them leave the neighborhood, but they’re returning for one night and bringing back a bunch of favorites!”
Check out the upcoming events and pre-order options (if available) on their website, or on the shop’s Instagram and Facebook.
Other recent pop-ups have included:
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“Mexican Monday” featuring pozole, esquites, and tamales by South Philly cook Alejandro Gonzalez Duarte.
- “Asian street food with a twist” from Bao & Bun Studio
- Trinidadian Doubles by Chris Paul from Everything We Eat
- Sunday brunch by Ulter Catering
- Brazilian street food and tacos by Chef Mardhory of Kouklet Bakehouse.
Falco summed up the shop’s philosophy, “Through social media and these alliances that we have going, we want to be there for people to try new things or to enhance their appreciation for stuff they’ve loved for a long time.”
Falco, a Dickinson Square West resident, also thanked those who support his Pennsport-based space. “They’ve stuck by our side, so that’s not lost on us one bit.”
