Congratulations are in order for South Jersey’s own Desiree Bagnell, whose signature MuPHILetta sandwich has earned a spot on the menu at the highly anticipated Recipe Philly restaurant in Center City.
After months of submissions, auditions, meetings, tastings, and judging, Bagnell’s creation made the cut. Diners will soon be able to taste it for themselves when Recipe Philly opens Monday, August 17, at 1401 Arch Street, at the corner of Broad and Arch Streets.
And getting onto this menu was no small feat.
From Self-Trained Cook to Recipe Philly Finalist
Recipe Philly set out to do something a little different: build a restaurant menu around dishes created by people from the Philadelphia region.
The concept began with an open casting call in November 2025 that attracted hundreds of hopeful cooks. Finalists eventually presented their creations to chefs, food personalities, and community judges, with winning recipes earning a place on the restaurant’s opening menu.
For Bagnell, the journey started with a digital submission introducing her MuPHILetta and telling the story of her background as a passionate self-trained cook.
From there, producers reviewed the entries looking for interesting and distinctive dishes created outside the traditional professional-chef world. Bagnell advanced to a video portion of the process and later met in person with the restaurant’s head chefs.
Eventually, she made it into the final group of 61 contestants, where judges tasted her sandwich and determined whether it deserved a spot on the opening menu. And it did!
Meet the MuPHILetta
So, what exactly is a MuPHILetta?
Bagnell describes her creation as an Italian-style sandwich where Southern Creole meets the City of Brotherly Love.
It’s a hefty stack of high-end cold cuts topped with her signature secret blend of olives and pickled vegetables, all piled onto locally made signature bread. The name, of course, is a playful Philly spin on the classic New Orleans muffuletta.
For Bagnell, landing a sandwich on the Recipe Philly menu is another chapter in a culinary journey that started in her home kitchen.
She went from passionate home cook to turning that love of food into The Grateful Gourmet, offering catering and operating a small retail location in Mount Holly. Bagnell has said she learned to cook from her mother and grandmother and eventually pursued food full-time after being laid off during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Recipe Philly Finally Opens Its Doors
I’ve been following the development of Recipe Philly since the concept was first announced, and now the restaurant is finally ready to welcome diners.
The 150-seat restaurant is unlike a typical new opening because the people behind the dishes aren’t necessarily professional restaurant chefs. Recipe Philly invited home cooks from throughout the region to submit meaningful recipes and compete for the opportunity to see their food served in a full-service Center City restaurant.
The entire process has also been filmed as part of a planned series. Filming began in November 2025, with the project being pitched to network and streaming partners.
In other words, the restaurant itself becomes something of a living cookbook filled with recipes and stories from people around the Philadelphia region.
And now South Jersey will have some representation on that menu.
When Recipe Philly opens at Broad and Arch, guests will be able to walk in and order Desiree Bagnell’s MuPHILetta. That’s a pretty cool accomplishment for a South Jersey non-classically trained cook who followed her passion for feeding people.
Recipe Philly
1401 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA 19102
Opening Monday, August 17
Will you be going to Recipe Philly to check it out?
SJFS is dedicated to food, dining, restaurants, and drinking in South Jersey. Got a news tip? Email southjerseyfoodscene@gmail.com.