Cafe Lift expands its space and offerings in Philadelphia

It’s been two decades since Michael and Jeniphur Pasquarello opened up the original Cafe Lift in the city’s Callowhill neighborhood. Located in a refurbished factory along 13th Street, the breakfast and lunch hotspot had amassed a large and faithful following of Philadelphians—so much so that the culinary duo decided to expand. 

The new Philly version of Cafe Lift is now located in a brand new space at 1124 Spring Garden Street, at the three-way intersection where 12th and Spring Garden Streets and Ridge Avenue meet. This new bi-level iteration of the beloved cafe opened at the end of July and has upgraded the restaurant’s capabilities by doubling the space and capacity among other tweaks. 

As a release states, occupancy will be increased from 65 to more than 100 seats, including 45 downstairs, 60 upstairs, and up to eight seats at a street-level coffee counter. Cafe Lift will remain walk-in only, and will be open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. The restaurant will offer takeout and delivery, catering, and private events on both floors as well.

The efforts in the new venue took about a year (the team broke ground last July) and were formed by Mass Architecture Studio, Megan Helmuth’s Riverwards General, plus North Standard Fabrication and Construction. And this comes just a few short years after opening up a Haddonfield location.

“After seeing how successful our Haddonfield operation became with a proper fit-out, a smart kitchen design and more space, we realized that we wanted to pay respect to the original location and improve everything,” says Michael Pasquarello. 

The husband and wife duo team has seen a lot of changes over the years owning not just the Cafe Lift locations, but also 13th Street Kitchens — the restaurant group also responsible for Kensington Quarters, Prohibition Taproom and La Chinesca.

Pasquarello continued: “We’ve experienced a lot of growth as a restaurant group since opening the original location in 2003, and we’re very excited to make these upgrades to the Cafe Lift brand, which will provide us with more space to execute, more space to produce and serve the best products possible, and the ability to offer more menu items and really do all that we want to do without many limitations. The ambiance will be better, the customer experience will be better, and we expect the new Cafe Lift to be more of a destination for many.”

And for those who have not yet ventured over to the Haddonfield iteration of Cafe Lift, Pasquarello also notes that you will be seeing quite a few similarities in this new space, which ultimately spans more gluten-free and vegan options. Plus, there will be a number of new dishes, and they will stick to the brand’s typical output of ever-evolving choices with a focus on hyper-local options from responsible growers. 

The restaurant also serves premium coffee drinks, expertly prepared with beans roasted by Maiden Coffee Roasters in Asbury Park, New Jersey, the release finishes. The open, post-industrial space will additionally accommodate private events utilizing the chefs from 13th Street Kitchens creating special menus spanning various cuisines and dietary needs.

Philadelphians and anyone interested can learn more at cafelift.com