Community Building Programs of the White Dog Cafe

The Philadelphia Sister Restaurant Project begun in 1990, develops "sister" relationships with minority owned restaurants. Visits to our sister restaurants and nearby minority cultural attractions are promoted in our newsletter. The purpose of this project is to encourage our customers to visit neighborhoods they otherwise might not go to in order to increase understanding, build citywide community, and support minority businesses and cultural institutions.

Currently, our sister restaurants include:

Corrine's - An African American Woman owned restaurant located in Camden not far from the Walt Whitman Cultural Center
Geechee Girl Rice Cafe - Chef Valerie Erwin builds upon traditional southern rice delicacies with Chinese, Thai and other world influences at her Germantown cafe.


International Sister Restaurant Program

Mentoring Program Since 1992 this program with students from the Restaurant, Hotel and Tourism Academy at West Philadelphia High School provides opportunities for workplace experience, community service participation, field trips to purveyors and family farms, and recreational and cultural activities. Students learn about the restaurant business and put on a special event in the spring with the help of our staff. Each year a Culinary Scholarship of $1000 is awarded to a graduate to attend restaurant management or culinary school.

Community Tours provide an opportunity for our clientele to have first hand experiences with different issues in Philadelphia neighborhoods. This expands our sense of community and interconnectedness and encourages active citizen engagement. These include:

Child Watch Visitation Program Conceived by the Children's Defense Fund and initiated locally by the cafe, this tour provides opportunity for citizens to experience first hand the lives of inner city children The tours, which begin with breakfast and a speaker at the cafe, are led by Philadelphia Citizens for Children and Youth and involve visits to child and family serving facilities such as schools, public health centers, juvenile detention centers, shelters, & recreation centers.

Community Wall Murals and Community Garden Tour Begun in 1989 this annual tour demonstrates the importance of gardens and mural art to inner-city communities. It involves a neighborhood tour followed by lunch with speakers from the communities.

Affordable Housing Led by the city's housing director, this annual tour began in 1993 and visits successful housing projects at different stages of development, highlighting cooperation between community, government and the private sector.

Prison Garden Tour Customers drive to Graterford State Penitentiary with the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program for a tour and to meet the inmates working on a collaborative mural addressing victims and survivors of violent crimes.

Eco-tour provides first hand experience with environmental issues such as recycling, energy conservation, and water purification.

Annual Multicultural Events which celebrate diversity include Noche Latina, Native American Thanksgiving Dinner, Rum & Reggae, Dinner in Memory of Dr. Martin Luther King, Gandi Birthday Dinner, and a Freedom Seder.

White Dog Community Enterprises, is our 501(c)3 non-profit organization with a mission to help build a Local Living Economy in the Greater Philadelphia region.

Whole World Products are merchandise which support an inclusive and sustainable world economy including products made from recycled materials or products made by disadvantaged workers.

Contributions Every year, the Cafe contributes 20% of pre-tax profit to not-for-profit causes, in the form of food, labor and cash donations to non-profit projects and organizations including White Dog Community Enterprises. Approximately $8,000 - 12,000 a year is contributed in cash to organizations such as Action Aids, American Civil Liberties Union, Amnesty International, American Friend Service Committee, Bread & Roses Community Fund, Business Leaders for Sensible Priorities, Children's Defense Fund, Habitat for Humanity, Humane Society, NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Planned Parenthood Federation, People for the American Way, Witness for Peace, and Woman's Way. Food contributions are donated to numerous non-profit events and approximately $10,000 in gift certificates are contributed to fundraising events benefiting additional non-profit organizations.

Table Talks are scheduled several times a season at breakfast and Monday dinners. Speakers talk on issues of public concern, followed by discussion. Topics have come from the areas of: health care reform, crime and violence, the environment, foreign policy, cultural diversity, recreation, children & youth, and education. New Visions in Business is a table talk series by leading socially responsible business people.

Storytelling on select Monday nights provides the opportunity to hear the life stories of active Philadelphians and gives voice to under-represented groups such as ex-offenders, senior citizens, gays, youth, immigrants and homeless people. They also provide a forum to exchange perspectives at a personal level on experiences such as war, civil rights marches, parenting issues, and illness.

Community Service Days, held through out the year, provide opportunities for White Dog customers and staff to participate in volunteer projects such as rehabbing houses or building community gardens.

Take a Senior to Lunch Saturdays, White Dog customers are invited to bring a senior to lunch or be matched with a senior who would like to get out more often. Both receive half off the total bill. (Black out dates apply. Be sure to mention you are "Taking a Senior to Lunch" when making reservations.)