The second annual celebration of Muslim-owned businesses and halal-serving restaurants in the Greater Philadelphia area returns to the Khair Community Center in Phoenixville on Sept. 21. Tickets are $5 until Sunday night, increase to $7 after Sunday, then $8 at the door.
Philly seems to be overflowing with new halal restaurants of late -- halal hot chicken is unstoppable -- and the Halal Food Festival aims to introduce Muslims and non-Muslims alike to more halal-serving businesses in the city and the suburbs.
Halal, the Arabic word for 'permissible,' is used to describe various parts of Muslims' lifestyles, from clothing to finance practices, that are allowed under Islamic law. When it comes to food, meat that is considered halal follows the tradition of zabiha, which requires that the animal has been blessed, treated humanely before and during slaughter, and killed by a single cut to throat that drains most of the animal's blood. (Pigs are never halal, however.)
Halal food festivals, from World Halal Food Festival in London to the Houston Halal Food Fest, aim to share foods from throughout the Muslim world, which consists of numerous distinct cultures and communities who have roots across the globe. The Philly Halal Food Festival premiered last October with more than two dozen vendors and saw more than 3,000 attendees.
The family-friendly festival, which will run from noon to 10 p.m., is more than doubling in size this year with more than 50 food vendors, 27 local businesses selling everything from jewelry to fragrances, games, and bounce houses for the kiddos. "We want the [the fest] to be a meeting point for Muslims -- not just a place to eat, but a place to engage in new relationships," said Noor Bowman, founder and co-organizer of the event.
Bowman's aim is to put a spotlight on the people who make Philly's halal scene so diverse. Chefs and attendees of all backgrounds coming together "shows how food is a unifying thing," Bowman said.
From cheesesteaks to the viral Dubai chocolate bar, here are seven vendors to visit at the Philly Halal Food Festival 2024.
When chef Diana Widjojo stepped away from Hardena, the Indonesian restaurant in South Philly, she carried over the restaurant's commitment to serving halal to her own Indonesian supper club, Rice & Sambal. "We're Indonesian, so naturally we're Muslim -- and I prefer halal anyway. I'm very picky with my meats," Widjojo said. The supper-club-turned-residency at Dankbaar on East Passyunk Avenue will soon transition into a full-fledged restaurant. Festival-goers can enjoy Widjojo's rendang (braised beef stewed in coconut milk and spices) and ayam kecap (roasted chicken with lemongrass, sweet soy, garlic, lime leaf), among other items.
📍1911 E. Passyunk Ave. Philadelphia, Pa. 19145, 📞 215-279-7052, 🌐 ricensambal.com
Amongst family and friends, Alaa El Habahbeh is known for her baklava and basbousa (semolina cake). The King of Prussia-based home baker opened her online business Sukar, which sells through Instagram and Etsy, two years ago. She specializes in the two aforementioned Middle Eastern desserts, along with kunafa, a sweet, cheesy shredded phyllo pastry. Habahbeh has also hopped on the Dubai chocolate bar trend -- a milk chocolate bar made by the Dubai-based Dessert Chocolatier that's filled with crispy kunafa and a pistachio paste, which has gone viral on TikTok. Whether she's making the viral Dubai chocolate bar or her classics, Habahbeh says that she wants to share her culture through sweets that are "all made with love."
🌐 instagram.com/sukar_us, 📞 267-331-3729
Momos are literally the name of the game at Nepali MoMo Kitchen. Chef-owner Bharat Bist opened his dumpling-focused restaurant in Spring Garden in 2023 -- his wife, Gigi Giri, owns Mount Masala, the Nepalese hotspot in Voorhees. Bist's dumplings, made of flour, can be stuffed with nearly 40 different combinations from goat to tandoori chicken. And everything on the menu is halal. Bist says that he caters to halal-eating clientele in part because his best friend, who helped him open the restaurant, is Muslim.
532 N 15th St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19130, 445-777-5544, nepalimomokitchenmenu.com
Eating cheesesteaks at a Philly food festival is a no-brainer, and Ubayd Rodriguez, co-owner of Union Steaks, is back at the Halal Food Festival for a second year with various halal steak options (jerk chicken, beef). After serving time in prison, Rodriguez began his culinary career at the now-shuttered 10th Street Deli, which he owned until he finding the spot that would become Union Steaks four years ago with business partner Tone Trump.
📍1733 W. 3rd St., Chester, Pa. 19013, 🌐 instagram.com/unionsteaks
Owner Asad Khan grew up in Northeast Philly without many halal options. After an introduction to Nashville hot chicken, he developed a recipe and decided to open a storefront at the Philly Gas station off Roosevelt Boulevard. Now, Khan has nine other locations in the Philly area -- the local chain recently opened its 10th location in Winslow Plaza in Sicklerville -- and a loyal following of hot chicken fanatics that are all about the oversized slider sandwiches, tenders, and loaded fries. Some cite Asad's as the beginning of the halal hot chicken craze in Philadelphia with nearly a half dozen different brands now expanding their footprints across the city.
📍7300 Roosevelt Blvd., Philadelphia, Pa. 19149, 📞 267-367-8124, 🌐 asads.co
Godshelter Oluwalogbon brought his popular New York City food truck, DF Nigeria Food Truck, to the parking lot of an Aldi in North Philly in 2021. The truck is a part of his larger company, Divine Flavored Catering, which owns a number of brands serving Nigerian food around the country. At the Philly food truck, folks can find halal versions of Nigerian classics, including meat stews, jollof rice, egusi soup with pounded yam, and zobo, a hibiscus drink.
📍5200 Whitaker Ave., Philadelphia, Pa. 19124, 🌐 dfnigeriafoodtruck.com
Shahar Liaquat is a Norristown home baker who started her Pakistani dessert business -- which translates to "something sweet, something savory" in Urdu -- after closing her salon during the pandemic. Liaquat will serve mini tres leches cakes and Dubai chocolate bars; chicken and beef puff pastry patties; and pani puri and gol guppa (a crispy deep-fried wheat balls filled with potatoes, chickpeas, and spiced water) at the fest.