8 places to experience Latino arts and culture in Philly

Marángeli Mejía-Rabell is on a mission to see Latino communities thrive.

Arriving in Philadelphia from Puerto Rico 34 years ago, Mejía-Rabell set out to find her people and create a new life for herself and her young daughter. One of her first discoveries was Taller Puertorriqueño, where she volunteered and saw her daughter practice dance — it would later become not only a second home but the jumping-off point for her long career in the Philadelphia arts scene. The Temple University communications alum has done it all, from teaching drama to youth and participating in theater residencies, to serving on the boards of well-respected organizations, and building economic and community-building models for nonprofits.

Mejía-Rabell doesn’t shy away from stepping up and bringing her whole self to work, often speaking Spanglish without hesitation as a means of sharing her identity without judgment. Being of service to others is a guiding principle first shaped by her parents’ values and work ethic. As her work evolved into more creative endeavors, the notion of service expanded into impact, reframing accessibility and diversity: What does work as an artist look like and who defines how art is accessed?

As cofounder and partner at Afrotaino in 2005, Mejía-Rabell’s team presents multidisciplinary musicians across the Puerto Rican and African diaspora like Bomba Estéreo (a recent Bad Bunny collaborator) to Philadelphians. And since 2014, she’s served as festival director of the Philadelphia Latino Film Festival, creating space for independent filmmakers to be connected to their roots, bridging stories between generational perspectives, and reimagining the intersection between legacy and emerging practices in visual media.

“Ese sentimiento de comunidad, de camaradería, de ayudarnos unos a otros” — that feeling of community, camaraderie, and helping each other — is a motivation across her multi-hyphenate pursuits.

Below, Mejía-Rabell guides us through her favorite places to experience arts and culture created by and for Latinos in Philadelphia.

“Tu llega a Norris Square y piensas, ‘Soy Boricua y estamos aquí,’ ” she said. “You arrive in Norris Square thinking, I’m Puerto Rican and we’re here.”

The Norris Square barrio has a rich history of Black and Puerto Rican culture in North Philadelphia. This micro-enclave situated on the 2200 block of North Palethorp Street in West Kensington is lined with colorful casitas and public gardens, and is a real-life case study of cultural preservation against a rapidly gentrifying area.

Walking through the maze of Las Parcelas (2248 N. Palethorp St.) and Villa Africana Colobó (2263 N. Palethorp St.) is an immersive trip back through time led by Doña Iris Brown, immortalized as a larger-than-life mosaic tile mural designed by Celso Gonzalez. Brown, along with the Norris Square Neighborhood Project, visiting artists from the Clay Studio, and many others over decades transformed a residential block into a magical land of fincas filled with farm stands, ceramic dishware, butterfly bushes, and huts replicating West African villages and a Puerto Rican settlement in Loíza.

“Norris Square gardens are beautiful but Colobó has something where it transports you. I forget where I am when I’m sitting there,” Mejía-Rabell said.

📍2248 N. Palethorp St.; 2263 N. Palethorp St., 📞 215-634-2227 🌐 Norris Square Neighborhood Project, 📷 @myneighborhoodproject

Executive director Rocio Cabello and husband Renny Molenaar, who serves as artistic director, are embedded in Germantown’s artistic pulse. Readings, lectures, jazz concerts, exhibits, and meetings are held by residents and artists alike in this gallery space.

But Friday Night Rumbas are the heart and soul of the gathering space, when international musicians join younger musicians for an evening of song and dance fueled by Afro-Cuban drumming traditions. For Mejia-Rabell, Friday Night Rumbas have always been organic, interactive, and a crossgenerational music and visual arts event with “un ambiente de familia.” Everyone is welcome to partake, learn, and keep the tradition alive.

📍5339 Germantown Ave., 📞 215-869-1001; 917-957-4504 🌐 iMPeRFeCT Gallery, 📷 @imperfectgallery

Mejía-Rabell’s connection with the Painted Bride began in the ‘90s, first as an actor and writer, later as copresenter of Creole Choir of Cuba shows in partnership with Afrotaino in 2011, and then as manager of the BrideNext initiative. The Bride has been critical in opening doors for independent producers and always saw the importance of Latinos in the city, according to Mejia-Rabell.

In 2021, she joined the Bride’s programming committee, bridging artists and audiences beyond “butts in seats.” Nowadays she’s focused on connecting emerging voices in theater with broader audiences, exploring contemporary models for investing in art beyond the geographic limits of a venue. Commissioning original works on current issues like gentrification and immigration is an example of how she sees the arts and culture landscape shifting to meet artists where they are.

She takes the Bride’s core beliefs to heart.

“The Bride’s goal is to engage a group of artists and cultural workers … part of their visioning, programming discussions, and decisions are artist-driven and people-powered.”

📍5212 Market St., 📞 215-925-9914 🌐 The Painted Bride, 📷 @paintedbrideartcenter

Though Center City’s longest running upscale Mexican restaurant is closed due to a kitchen fire, Tequilas is close to Mejía-Rabell’s heart: She had been a patron since the very beginning, stopping in for lunch meetings that often bled into happy hours. Hailing from Guadalajara, owner David Suro and his family have been a constant in the Mexican restaurant and bar scene in Philadelphia since 1986, and nothing will change that. (Editor’s note: A GoFundMe to help pay the staff, now out of work, has raised $61,000 of its $100,000 goal as of publication.)

“Me encanta la comida, pero me encanta how you feel when you get in,” she said. “I love the sense of familia between them.”

📍1602 Locust St., 📞 215-546-0181 🌐 Tequilas, 📷 @tequilasphilly

Around the holidays Mejía-Rabell is busy putting in her orders for criollo plates from Parada Maimon in Callowhill. The cafeteria-style eatery serves old-school Dominican and Caribbean dishes that attract Latinos across the diaspora for a taste of home with a personal touch. The food is affordable and hits the spot, she says, with family combo platters under $25. Catering, takeout, and delivery are popular options, but dining in is also worthwhile since Maimon is BYOB.

“Chivo [goat], always arroz blanco, and I love their ropa vieja” are Mejía-Rabell’s usual picks.

📍345 N. 12th St., 📞 215-925-2000 🌐 Parada Maimon, 📷 @paradamaimon

Mejía-Rabell has been keen on Michelle Angela Ortiz’s multiyear public art project in the Ninth Street Market. Ortiz’s collaborative storytelling of immigrant vendors is “really lifting folks that have taken the bulk of racist energy,” said Mejia-Rabell. “Our Market” takes the form of musical performances, light installations, revitalized produce stands, and a digital archive project that centers the stories of vendors, business owners, and neighbors who work and reside in the Ninth Street Market.

“I was born, raised, and still live near the market for 40-plus years, and my immigrant mother worked in the market for 25 years. This project is an investment back into my community,” said Ortiz.

At times, the artworks present positive narratives to combat threats of displacement, gentrification, and erasure. The result is radical: a call to action for people to rethink who the Ninth Street Market belongs to and how public art can better serve underrepresented communities.

📍Ninth Street/Italian Market, 🌐 Our Market Project, 📷 @ourmarketproject

After Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in September 2017, Mejía-Rabell brainstormed relief aid with longtime friend and creator of Amy’s Pastelillos, Amy Rivera-Nassar. In 2019, after a charity event at A Seed on Diamond Gallery, Gusto! Philly was born.

“The mission remains to lift culinary artists in the region and celebrate Latino culture,” Mejía-Rabell says. Beneficiaries are shared up front at each event to drive awareness and collect donations for relevant Puerto Rico aid, often climate crises. Outside of events, Gusto! creates “grub guides” to spotlight Philadelphia Latino and Hispanic restaurants, pop-ups, makers, and food vendors worth knowing.

The wildly popular annual Bad Bunny-themed brunches have been raging on for three years running. Bad Bunny is an artist pushing boundaries with his concerts and “leverages his popularity to bring key and burning issues impacting the quality of life in Puerto Rico,” says Mejía-Rabell. There’s a natural like-minded mission between the global superstar and Gusto! Above all, it’s just a good time (and BYOB), she adds.

📍N/A, 📞 N/A 🌐 Gusto!, 📷 @gustophilly

Philadelphia Community Access Media (PhillyCAM) has been a longtime resource to anyone who doesn’t see their stories represented in mainstream media. PhillyCAM offers training in all aspects of radio and television production and community news reporting for those interested in creating impactful news stories for their communities.

Having served two terms on their board, Mejía-Rabell values bilingual content made available across a public access channel and radio station through their members, which include 20 Latino producers.

“What PhillyCAM does for creatives and for community media in the city is just phenomenal: creating access, showcasing existing programming but also making it very accessible for folks,” she said.

At the core, PhillyCAM prioritizes partnering with Philadelphia communities in a way that is thoughtful, elevates community through storytelling, and creates educational experiences that are accessible and user-friendly. The People Powered Media Fest is this ethos come to life. PPM Fest spotlights the ways that grassroots media makers, activists, and organizers create collective impact through teamwork, across cultures and media platforms.

📍699 Ranstead St., 📞 267-639-5481 🌐 Philadelphia Community Access Media, 📷 @PhillyCAM