Manna Bakery

May Calendar 🌼 Rabee’ = Spring is here ربيع May arrives carrying the scent of orange blossom, warm pistachio, toasted simsim = sesame, and fresh baked pastries from the oven. 🌿✨ A few things you’ll need to note. We have Clark Park Farmers Market again this weekend! So it’s 2 in a row at Clark Park! The reason being that Rittenhouse Farmers Market has the craft fair show going on, so we won’t be at Rittenhouse this weekend! As for the menu, you’ll see a lot of flower shaped items to celebrate the blooming of spring along with lots of fruits and citrus making their way into the pastry line up! The weather is warming up so see you all out in the sun! 🌞 Our tables are filled with flavors we grew up loving, rose, fresh mint, and fruit from the season’s first harvests. Every pastry tells a story of home, gathering, the sweetness of May in Philly and the history of فلسطين. Come and taste the spring we’ve been waiting for and stay for the sohbe = friendships you’ll make in line 🤍

This Sunday MAY 17 we will be popping up at Kalaya! A Thai inspired Manna Bakery menu that is only available on Sunday! ‼️‼️ POP UP STARTS AT 10am ‼️‼️ Line up includes Chicken Massaman Curry Buns, Lahme Bi Ajjine finished with a soy tamarind glaze, Fuul Manakeesh with Kreung Ra & Thai Chili vinaigrette, & Labneh Ajat (pickled Thai cucumbers). For sweets, the Thai Tea Basque cheesecake is back for 1 time only! Mango Lime rice pudding will be on there too😍 We will also have Mango Passionfruit Chili Brioche Buns with Makrut Lime Leaf & Sumac Sugar and Mango Passionfruit Chili Pistachio Tarts! We will have a few of our classics like Kaak Al Quds (Jerusalem bagels), hummus, muhammara, cardamom buns and cookies that will be available too! 1st Photo 📸: @travel.with.rina

Limonada ma’ na’na’ aka Limonana - Our Lemon Mint Brioche Bun finished with Sumac Sugar Our brioche buns are known for their soft and airy texture. They transform into different flavors with the seasons. This particular flavor pays tribute to the popular spring and summer beverage found in Palestine and across the Levant. Cafes and restaurants serve ice cold glasses of zingy lemonade that has been blended with ice and mint. The ultimate refreshing drink. Nothing like basking in the sun while the cold minty lemonade kisses your lips. This iconic drink is now in bun form.

Folks! Excited to announce that we are doing a dinner with our good friends @mannabakery_philly next Tuesday. I’ve known Saif and Stef for a number of years now and super stoked to sneak them in for a dinner before their place opens this spring/ summer. Expect Lahme Bi Ajjine( Lamb mince pie), Zaatar and Cheese + a healthy amount of desserts. It’ll be super Fun! Food will be good! All profits will be donated to @wckitchen to support their work in Gaza. Reservations live at noon on Wednesday!!!

Baba’s Fuul Manoushe - Spiced Fava Bean Stew topped with garlic chili tatbeeleh (vinaigrette) , olive oil, thinly sliced onions and fresh herbs. When I was a little boy, Fuul wasn’t a favorite of mine. Until, baba made his version. He didn’t reinvent the wheel. He just highlighted its sweetness by adding tomatoes in the cooking process and enhanced a couple of ingredients that traditionally go in it. He tinkered with a few version until he produced his favorite version. The version that became my preferred way of eating Fuul. Sahtein = Bon Appetit Thank you all for coming out this weekend. It was quite difficult to navigate the emotions of the menu this week. Crafting some of Baba’s favorites was not easy, as my process of creations always stems from nostalgia, emotion and memory. Therefore, to execute something, I must embody and live the moment. However, when those happy and valuable moments are tied to someone that has passed it can make things a little more complicated. Seeing you all come out to support was truly heart warming. Thank you Philly for always showing up❤️

Dear Baba, While I may not see you reading this, I know you are. You fought bravely, but ultimately cancer got the better of you as it does in many instances. While death is never timely, at 61, I’d say it was a little too soon. When people ask me, “when did you start cooking?” my answer always has two parts. The first being the time I attempted to make tomato sauce on my own at 8 years old. The second being when you brought me into the kitchen on the weekends and had me assist you while you made pancakes and omelettes for everyone. I watched with curious eyes on how the liquid batter bubbled and puffed before you demonstrated how I should flip it. Then, we moved onto cracking eggs for the omelettes and you grabbed a little stool for me to stand on because I was too short for the counter. You taught me how to crack an egg and I proceeded to do the rest without breaking a yolk or dropping a little shell fragment into the mix. I vividly remember you saying, “wow you cracked them all perfectly—you must be talented.” That is the very moment I believed that I can cook. From then on, I attempted to cook and bake everything and anything I saw. I made little cakes for you that you would proudly eat at the end of a long day with a glass of milk. You would exclaim, “these are delicious!” while eating another two of them. Unfortunately, baba you never got to eat or try most of the things that I make at Manna Bakery. You never got to see the storefront open. I had your order ready. I wanted to show you how things baked in those big ovens, and I told you that when you come, you’ll make Fuul (spiced fava bean stew) for everyone. As much as it hurts to see you go, I know that you were suffering in the end. In honor of you baba, this weekend’s menu will feature some of the things you enjoyed eating. It is a shame I won’t get to see you savor all the food, but I know you’ll be watching. I just wish I could see you watching me. You may no longer be sitting at the table, but you will always be in every plate. I love you Baba. I’ll make you proud❤️

We’re growing our team and we’re hiring! 🥐☕️✨ At Manna Bakery, everything we create tells a story. From the first mix of dough to the final pour of coffee, we’re rooted in craftsmanship, creativity, and care. And as we grow, we’re looking for people who want to help us keep telling that story—while pushing it forward. We’re not just a bakery café. We are a team that believes in innovation, in elevating everyday moments, and in constantly pushing the boundaries of what a bakery experience can be. Now hiring: • Bakers • Baristas • Front of House Staff • Pop-Up Event Crew • Manager We’re looking for individuals who bring passion, attention to detail, curiosity, and pride in their work. People who care about the little things, who show up for their team, and who are excited to grow, create, and evolve with us. If you’re someone who wants to be part of a place where your work truly matters, we’d love to meet you. Come help us write the next chapter 🫶 Email your resume to [email protected]

Manakeesh - Teta Style The Manoushe is such an incredible and important part of Palestinian and Levantine cuisine. You’ll find many iterations across distinct mediums. The Manoushe you eat at your cute local Arab bakery baked in a fire oven is a different experience than the one you munch on while standing on the side of the road. Likewise, the one you order in a restaurant isn’t the same as the one your teta would make for you at home. The definition of what exactly makes a Manoushe is fluid, but once you bite into one, it’s all euphoria and jubilation. Your body knows it’s a Manoushe even if you haven’t consciously made that observation or decision yet. Don’t even get me started on the toppings and different manakeesh flavors that exist. From slight variations of the same manoushe flavor to completely unconventional and separate flavors, the sky is the limit with what you’ll see and what can be done. At Manna Bakery, we’re always pushing that limit. The Manoushe we have crafted at the bakery is one modeled after teta’s. Often smaller, round and baked a little lighter. Its texture being ultra soft and airy. With that said, I’ve honed in on its production to create what I think is a Teta style Manoushe that expresses all the best parts about it. Airy, soft, light and one never feels enough.

IT IS OFFICIAL. We are opening a store front. From a little 8 year old boy with a burning passion for cooking. Sitting at teta’s table and smelling all the fragrant dishes. Sneaking into the kitchen to lick the bowl of raw batter when mama was baking a cake. Selling my baked goods from a foldable 6 foot table at markets, and sometimes from a little plastic box on the side walk. It has been a long journey. This is by no means the destination, but it is certainly a beautiful moment along the path. An opportunity to further express who I am and where I come from. Another chapter in the story of Saif and Falasteen. Shukran = thank you for all of your support and love. It’s what got us here. And it’s going to be your love and support that will keep us going. It will be a challenge navigating the caveats of running a brick and mortar, but we are confident that WITH YOU and BECAUSE OF YOU we will make it❤️ شكراً جزيلاً ❤️

What a fun night it was at @provenancephl The marriage of flavors, the connecting of cultures and the expression of love through food. I wouldn’t have expected less working with the dazzling Michelin Star team at Provenance. The dishes were created live in front of the guests. At first I thought, maybe that would add more pressure. However, in the moment, when the kitchen is as fluid and organized as the one at Provenance, I was having the time of my life. On the contrary, listening to people chat and hearing their excited gasps along with some of their comments about the food was amusing. At the end of it all, I couldn’t believe how everything was so…balanced😵 @abbydahan Thank you for having me. Thank you to everyone who helped make it possible @nicholasbazik and the entire team at Provenance. Can’t wait to be back on either side of the counter🫶

We are so excited to announce a collaborative pastry dinner between @chefsa1f of @mannabakery_philly and @abbydahan on February 19th! We wanted to do a pastry dinner that was focused on giving back to our community. Proceeds will benefit @sundayloveproject , which fights food insecurity in Philadelphia through their free grocery store, Greater Goods, in Kensington! It will be 6-courses, priced at $275 per person (excluding taxes and a 20% service charge). Reservations will be released on Thursday the 5th at noon on @opentable . Reservations are ONLY available at the 5:30 seating at our Kitchen View Counter and Sunkoo Yuh Room! We cannot accommodate any dietary restrictions or allergies for this dinner.

Thank you 2025 and we look forward to 2026, but before we move on, it’s important to take a moment to take 2025 all in. To look back at it and appreciate all the difficulties it brought our way. For without challenge there is no growth. We must also bask in all the beauty and happiness it brought. Life isn’t partisan. It doesn’t always move towards positivity. It tends to throw it all at you. It’s up to you to recognize when it’s time to face a challenge and learn. It’s also up to you to recognize an opportunity, so that you can reward yourself and others around you. I wish everyone a great new year ahead and to be armed with the necessary awareness to navigate all events of life. At Manna Bakery, we will continue to strive towards excellence and always aim to be at the forefront of creativity, innovation and quality. Throughout its lifetime, Manna Bakery has brought a long list of items that weren’t popular in Philadelphia beforehand. Some of them include maritozzi, basque cheesecake, cardamom buns, manakeesh, kaak al Quds (Jerusalem bagel), sticky date cake (sticky toffee pudding), and 16 layer honey cake among many others. Being the first to do things isn’t the important part. It’s the continuous task of reinventing and perfecting things that matters for us. While perfection will never be attained, it’s our pursuit of it that keeps us pumping. It’s what wakes me up in the morning and it’s what wakes up everyone else who has joined my team. It’s why we do what we do. For the love of it and for the exhilarating excitement of chasing perfection knowing we’ll never get there. My brain is always churning out favorites that I consumed throughout my childhood. From traditional Palestinian dishes and creative takes on classic flavors from Teta and Palestine to foods from other parts of the globe that aren’t remotely Palestinian. Why is that? Because it’s my story. It’s the story of a Palestinian that ended up floating around the globe without permanent roots. Connecting with other cultures and seeing them through the lens of food is how I gain a deeper understanding for them. Cont’d in comments ⬇️