A European-inspired cafe and wine bar is headed to Philadelphia's Washington Square West neighborhood, with owner Beth DeBruyn planning to open the doors at 1108 Pine St. in spring 2027. The spot sits directly across the street from Louis Kahn Park, in a building that most recently housed an art gallery.
Scarlet on Pine will run all day, according to WhatNow, opening with coffee and pastries in the morning before the menu shifts toward lunch and then dinner service as the day goes on. By evening, the space becomes a wine bar, rounding out a single address that covers three distinct dining moods.
DeBruyn recently bought the Pine Street building, according to a report from the Philadelphia Inquirer, which also notes the cafe is planned to have roughly 50 seats along with a brick rear patio. The same account describes DeBruyn's plan to serve coffee, viennoiserie, and lunch during the day before the space transitions into wine-bar mode at night.
A Menu Built on Vegetables, Chowder, and Homemade Pasta
The food at Scarlet on Pine will lean heavily on vegetable-focused dishes, DeBruyn said, balanced against the meat-and-potato preferences of her husband. Clam chowder is also locked into the menu, a nod to the decade the couple spent living in Boston, where they were married in 2016. DeBruyn said she also loves making homemade pasta, and that will have a place on the menu as well.
Beyond the dining room, the cafe plans to sell bottles of wine, cheeses, and homemade breads, including sourdough and focaccia, for customers to take home. The concept grew out of DeBruyn's background in baking and her love of pastry and wine, paired with her husband's experience as a sommelier, the report notes. Her husband, Chris, who works in construction and has around 20 years of hospitality experience, is also involved in the project, per the Inquirer's account.
From Cottage Baker to Culinary-Trained Restaurateur
Before Scarlet on Pine, DeBruyn ran Cakezilla, a cottage baking business making special occasion cakes out of her licensed home kitchen. She went on to attend culinary school, earning a degree in health supportive culinary arts, and trained at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York, according to the Inquirer.
Her resume since includes an externship at the Michelin-starred New York City restaurant Dirt Candy, along with stints at Philadelphia's Irwin's and Rosemary. The Inquirer's account adds that she also worked at High Street. That mix of pastry training, fine-dining experience, and her husband's wine expertise is what ultimately shaped the Scarlet on Pine concept.
A Name Rooted in Nostalgia
The name Scarlet on Pine draws from a song and from DeBruyn's own nostalgic memories, and that sense of sentimentality carries into her design plans for the space. DeBruyn said she wants the restaurant and its food to evoke nostalgia throughout, and the interior is being planned with a vintage feel carrying subtle nods to a classic French cafe.
Expect woods, antique mirrors, and other non-modern touches inside, with DeBruyn saying she wants the space to feel comfortable and cozy. She also said she loves the location and the surrounding Washington Square West neighborhood, with Louis Kahn Park right across the street offering a quiet counterpoint to Pine Street's row of shops and restaurants.
