The Morning Newsletter
Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter
Welcome to Saturday. It should be mostly sunny with a high near 70.
After Inquirer restaurant critic Craig LaBan inadvertently signed up for a Philly sandwich competition ― where he would have to make them, not eat them ― he enlisted in hoagie boot camp. Find out if he prevailed as a hoagie hero.
But first, there’s news about the closure of a popular Jersey Shore water park, a Montco school pausing its football season after hazing reports, and street closures ahead of the “No Kings” protest in Philly today.
Later on, get a dose of cuteness: See dozens of dachshunds compete to be top dog of the hot dogs.
— Paola Pérez (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
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What you should know today
Demonstrators in Philadelphia and beyond will march to protest ICE and the deployment of troops in American cities on Saturday. Here’s everything to know, including road closures and parking restrictions.
A Maryland man has been charged in connection with the shooting death of a 16-year-old girl in North Philadelphia earlier this week.
DA Larry Krasner admits regret, but also blames the bail system in earlier dismissed cases against a man now accused of kidnapping Kada Scott.
A man is dead and a suspect is in custody after a shooting during an altercation at the City Hall SEPTA platform Friday morning.
Former President Barack Obama endorsed U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill for New Jersey governor. The Democratic nominee is locked in a tight race with Republican Jack Ciattarelli.
Arrests have been made in a rash of armored truck heists or attempted heists, including one that led to school lockdowns in Lower Merion.
Cheltenham School District has halted its high school football season after hazing allegations were reported anonymously to the district on Friday.
The Jersey Shore has lost another nostalgic attraction in the iconic Wildwood water park Splash Zone, which closed its doors after 26 summers.
A merger of Temple University and the Library Company of Philadelphia has moved a step closer to completion with a vote last week by Library Company trustees.
The FIFA Philly 26 volunteer center held its grand opening in the Fashion District this week. It will serve as hub for an anticipated 3,500 volunteers for the World Cup next year.
I’ll admit it: I haven’t perfected my hoagie-making skills. I will always give major props to my local neighborhood deli for getting it right 99.9% of the time. This week, I found out I’m not the only one still figuring hoagies out.
A delicious and well-constructed hoagie is an art form. In his latest adventure, Inquirer food critic Craig LaBan took to hoagie school to learn how to properly prepare this cultural staple.
🎤 Now I’m passing the mic to LaBan:
I should have read the fine print before I agreed to participate in a recent “Hoagie Throwdown” at Other Half Brewing in Fishtown, produced by my friends at the Delicious City Podcast. I assumed they’d drafted me simply to be a judge and taste their lineup of sandwiches from 20-plus restaurants vying to be Philly’s hoagie champ.
Eating hoagies is something I’m very good at. I’ve chronicled the craft and culture of Philly’s greatest sandwich for more than two decades, from the oregano-dusted Italian classics and veggie-hoagie underdogs of South Philly to the “meat wrap” monsters of Delco and the one-meat, never-lettuce cousins of the Norristown Zep.
But I was not meant to praise hoagies. I was summoned to the wrestling arena at Other Half Brewing to make them, something I’d actually never done before in a city where the meat slicer’s whirring hum is the lunchtime lullaby at a thousand neighborhood delis.
“Sorry if I wasn’t completely clear in my early communication,” said Eli Kulp after I’d reached out with concern a few days before the event. The former Fork and High Street chef-turned-podcaster thought it would be hilarious for me to participate in an Iron Chef-style “celebrity” hoagie-making scrum inside a wrestling ring against two still to-be-determined foes. “We want this to be fun for you.”
I couldn’t back out now. But I also wasn’t going down without a fight — and I needed help. A hoagie whisperer. A cold cuts QB coach. A seasoned pro to train me in the sweet science of hoagie-making. ― Craig LaBan
What does Montreal do better than Philadelphia?
According to Inquirer columnist Daniel Pearson, “leaders embrace being a city, rather than trying to plug their square suburban preferences into a round metropolitan hole.”
Get Pearson’s perspectives on field trips, political systems, and state budget shenanigans in this week’s edition of Shackamaxon.
🧠 Trivia time
Prior to the “major” sand losses caused by last weekend’s storm at the Jersey Shore, Hurricane Erin caused plenty of damage back in August.
What percentage of all Jersey beaches saw at least minor erosion due to Erin’s winds and waves?
A) 100%
B) 85%
C) 40%
D) none of the above
Think you know? Check your answer.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
Hint: Philadelphia sports radio mainstay
MANLIKE MISSILE
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here.
Cheers to Chris Potts who correctly guessed Friday’s answer: Doylestown. Two brothers from the Bucks County borough are living the “dream” as NFL coaches. They face each other Sunday.
Dozens of wiener dogs ran their little legs off to be crowned top dog Thursday in Manayunk, as part of a fundraiser for the Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society.
Inquirer reporter Michelle Myers and staff photographer Monica Herndon captured all the cute action at the Great Wiener Race. Check out more photos here. (You’re welcome.)
Somewhere on the internet in Philly
Be still, my romantic heart: Philly-area film photographer Teddy Monzo posted the sweetest images of a couple celebrating their engagement doing their top Philly activities, like going to their favorite taproom and riding SEPTA.
Over on X, local sports artist Dhwani Saraiya reflected on the journey to designing a really cool T-shirt for the Flyers’ home opener: “We went from depressingly making art in my college dorm room to working with all 5 Philly sports teams in the span of 5 years.” You rock, Dhwani.
Philly Film Fest is underway and people are sharing their lineups and reviews thus far. What are you excited to see? Let me know.
And what can you expect at a stoplight? In Philly, it means seeing a Bentley, a four-wheeler, a pedal bike, and a horse lined up at the same time, according to one Philadelphian. I think they nailed it.
👋🏽 Thanks for starting your day with The Inquirer. I’ll catch up with you again tomorrow.
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