Rene Kobeitri Owner of Rim Cafe and Jeff Belonger Founder of MyPhillyAlive
‘Largest Cheesesteak Birthday Celebration In South Philly!’
Friends, family, food and giving back to the community! All rolled into one, thanks to Rene Kobeitri, owner of Rim Café!
Rene has a knack for bringing people together from all over. His birthday is May 10th, and because of some Covid restrictions, the party was moved to May 24th. One of Rene’s mottos, “Make It Happen Baby,” is truly the hallmark of who Rene is, his personality, and the love he has of making people happy! Hence why he loves having his birthday party, but wanting to do things for others and making them happy.
This year’s birthday party will be free to the public! Not only will it be unique, but the biggest one yet! Usually just a block long, this one will be 3 blocks long! He has friends and guests flying from all over to celebrate Rene himself! They want to give back to Rene as well. What will be unique about this party, and one to never forget, is that he has Chefs, cooks and celebrities who will be part of the 500 foot cheesesteak. But wait – it will be more than just your basic cheesesteak. This will be an international cheesesteak!
It will be a collaborative effort of individuals who will be making 10 or 20 foot sections that will be their own recipes that will represent specific countries. Some of the sections will also be their own creative recipes that you usually don’t find at a cheesesteak shop.
What countries will be represented? Or specialty cheesesteaks created? Here are a few to wet your whistle:
- Chef Mike Peacock owner of G’Day Gourmet – Australian cheesesteak
- Chef Michael Sarian owner of Curly’s Comfort Food in Levittown – Cuban cheesesteak
- Chef Michael Strauss owner of Mike’s BBQ – Vietnamese cheesesteak
- Chef Christina Martinez from South Philly Barbacoa – Mexican Cheesesteak
- Chef Mike McKinley from Yakitori Boy – Japanese cheesesteak
- Chef Dian Widjojo owner of Hardena Restaurant in South Philly – Indonesian cheesesteak
- Chef Pat Romano Jr owner of We Are Inn in Philipsburg, PA – Pennsylvania Dutch cheesesteak
- Chef Joe Tarantino owner of Tarantino’s Restaurants (Atltanta area) – Rattlesnake cheesesteak (not real rattlesnake, but it will have a bite in taste)
- Vern Herestofa – Greek cheesesteak
- Chef Jason Green owner of Jay’s Steak & Hoagie Joint & his kitchen manager Jason Wilkinson will be doing two 10 foot sections! Their Beer Dip cheesesteak! Beer Cream Cheese Dip spread on the inside of their pretzel roll with chopped steak & deep fried onions on top! The 2nd 10 ft will be Jay’s Favorite cheesesteak! Served with ribeye, fried onions, hot pepper relish, garlic & extra Provolone cheese
- Anthony Covatta & Luciano Russo from DaVinci SalZa Calabrese sauce! Making a Marinara & Alfredo cheesesteak
- Jeff Belonger Founder of MyPhillyAlive & Social Media Strategist will be making the “Fat Bastard” cheesesteak! Ribeye, pepperoni, caramelized onions & Provolone cheese!
There will be more than just a 500 foot cheesesteak! There will be a Cannolis station (1,000 mini Cannolis from Agostino Bakery) for the public! Did we tell you that Rene makes the best Cannolis in Philadelphia!
There will also be guest Chef’s Tony Luke Jr and Geno Vento, who will be cooking up their own specialties for some VIPS in a specific area who are Rene’s specials friends coming from out of town. He will have a Gelato and Espresso station in the VIP section as well. Chef Brian Duffy, who has been on the tv show Bar Rescue, will be in da house creating a special cheesesteak.
The party will kick-off at 6 pm with a special Priest blessing. Keith Jones from NBC 10 will be there as well. The party will then continue with some special photo ops of the massive 500 foot cheesesteak, followed by the cheesesteak sections being cut up into small pieces for everyone to enjoy. There will also be some entertainment and much more! Come one, come all! Tell your friends and family, and celebrate with Rene and his friends!
Rene Kobeitri, Jeff Belonger and Tony Luke Jr
We want to give a shout out to some who have helped make this event possible with their generous donations (sorry if we have missed anyone)!
- Jason Campisi – Vice President of South Jersey Party Rentals – Supplying 500 feet of tables
- Rocco Gallelli – Partner of Innovative Catering Concepts – Supplying a food truck for a few out-of-town to cook
- Gene Blum – Instructor, Catering Sales & Event Management – Helped with the planning & logistics of the cheesesteak
- Colorado Boxed Beef Company – they are supplying 500 lbs of Ribeye steak for this event
- Liscio’s Bakery – they are supplying 500 feet of their bread
Rim Café specializes in Espresso, coffee, Gelato’s, Cannolis, hot chocolate, sweets and more. I truly think they have some of the best hot chocolate, Gelato’s and Cannolis in Philadelphia! Don’t believe me? Check it out for yourselves. Head to Rim Café in the Italian Market area!
Location
Starting from Wharton St to Washington Ave on 9th St
Rim Café
1172 S 9th St
Philadelphia, PA 19147
Date
May 24, 2021
Time
6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Cost
FREE
Website
Photos Courtesy of Amaris Pollock – For your photography needs, follow her on Instagram!
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