Thursday, November 09, 2006

Good Eats & Good Deeds

The White Dog Cafe has long been an institution in this city.

In the early 80s, I spent a fair amount of time in Philly during my clerkship on the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals and during the occasional litigation matter. I then moved to Philly just as the restaurant scene was beginning in the mid-80s. One of the mainstays was the White Dog. Owner Judy Wicks is the perfect combination do-gooder and good foodie.

Today, the Inquirer reports the that White Dog's owner ready to move on, noting "After almost 24 years, Judy Wicks - the godmother of ethical eating in the city - will gradually step away from her White Dog Cafe." The article explains:

Time to turn the White Dog Cafe over to new owners.

"I need to get out of the restaurant business," she said in a recent interview on her deck.

That's a shocker, because after nearly 24 years, Wicks and her cafe seem inextricably entwined. It is her soul, her conscience and compass. She drew the canine sketches that adorn the menu; she painted the murals on the bathroom walls; she used the place as a proving ground for sustainable business practices.
Luckily, she's in no rush out the door:

So she'll take her leave slowly, over 10 years. And in the meantime, she'll remain head of the "leadership circle."

"But I want to be out of here," Wicks said. "I want the restaurant to stand - or fall - on its own."

In retirement, Wicks said, she'll continue to spread the gospel of good business.

She has stayed true to her roots, from the early 70s when she first moved to Philly and opened a store called "Free People," with her then-husband, Dick Hayne. They split and he went on to found Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie, along with a conservative Republican persona. See Clothes Make the Man.

The Mission Statement of White Dog says it all --

Our Mission is to Fully Serve: Serving Our Customers, Serving Our Community, Serving The Earth, Serving Each Other.

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