my sister’s closet has moved to the Bethlehem Village Shoppes at 3650 Nazareth Pike in Bethlehem Township. The resale boutique provides financing and employment for female survivors of sex trafficking in the Lehigh Valley. The store is part of Bloom for Women Inc., a nonprofit group that provides shelter and care for female survivors of sex trafficking. Bloom also operates a studio in Bangor.
The new My Sister’s Closet location, which has been in operation for 14 years, offers visibility from the street and space for storage of donated clothing and accessories.
The Easton Farmers Market It will open May 7 in Scott Park along Larry Holmes Drive, and will be open on Saturdays from 9 am to 1 pm This season, the market will host 45 vendors, 14 of them new.
Free parking is back too. The oldest continuous outdoor farmers market in the US returns for its 270th season.
JPMorgan Chase & Co., the largest bank in the US, comes to downtown Allentown. The bank’s plan for a branch at Seventh and Linden streets has been approved by a federal regulator. The bank will be on the first floor of The Hive, a City Center Investment Corp. development that will contain about 250 apartments.
Juliette Bridals by Ivana has a new location and will hold a ribbon cutting on May 19 at 161 Genworth Road, Pottsville, with the Schuylkill Chamber of Commerce. The event is open to all and refreshments will be served. Sign up through the chamber’s website. Juliette Bridals says she has served three generations of Schuylkill County brides, and also sells prom dresses and tuxedos.
Vinyl Press Graphics and Signs has moved to 15 S. Second St. in Emmaus. Business partners Michael Irwin and Chris Kline will host a grand opening on May 5 from 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., with a ribbon cutting at 5:30 p.m.
Wert’s Cafe is back after a brief closure following the death of owner Greg Wert. The North 18th Street restaurant, Allentown, closed for a week after Wert’s death at age 59 and reopened on Monday.
The cafe was founded in 1968 by Fred and Connie Wert. Greg Wert was one of their three children. Hundreds of clients and friends took to social media to express their condolences following his passing.
The 3350 Schoenersville Road, Bethlehem, location of 3 men and a bagel it reopens after a brief surgical closure for the baker. 3 Men & A Bagel also has a location in Trexlertown.
The Lower Macungie Planning Commission has expressed concern about a wawa drive-thru only, no gas pumps or convenience stores, proposed for the Trexler Business Center on Hamilton Boulevard. This Wawa would only have curbside and curbside pickup service for food and beverages. The commission questioned the amount of parking provided for employees and the flow of traffic around the site.
The only other drive-in Wawa is in Falls Township, Bucks County. Wawa opened its first store in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, in 1964 and now operates more than 960 stores in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida, and Washington, DC The convenience chain’s website did not provide any update this week on the many stores planned for the Lehigh Valley. Wawa is considering adding stores in Lower Nazareth Township, Hanover Township (Northampton County), South Whitehall on Route 309, and in Bethlehem near the Hellertown border.
AN royal farms convenience store and gas station heads to the Brass Rail site in Allentown. The chain’s plan for a store on the Rail’s Lehigh Street site. The restaurant will be demolished. It is scheduled to close on June 4 after more than 90 years of serving customers. According to the Brass Rail website, the restaurant introduced the cheese steak to Allentown.
Work at Royal Farms is due to start this year. The chain is known for its fried chicken. Royal Farms has also proposed opening a Bethlehem site on Avenue A near Airport Road, in the Lehigh County portion of the city.
Wing King has opened at 129 E. Third St. in South Bethlehem. As the name implies, the menu includes chicken wings, sandwiches, burgers and cheese steaks.
The wing joint has five levels of sauces, from honey hickory to barbecue severe to buffalo severe and more. King Wing is equipped to serve a crowd, with 50 bone-in or boneless wings with three sauces for $59.99. There are also smaller portions. Sandwiches are $8.95-$9.95, while wraps are $7.99.
While new restaurants continue to open, others say staff shortages remain a problem. Ella’s Restaurant and Pizzeria at 639 Main St. in Hellertown posted on social media that it has closed indefinitely “due to extreme understaffing issues.”
Elpedio’s Restaurant will open May 1 on the site of the Seipsville Inn in Palmer Township. The menu posted online includes classic Italian dishes like fettuccine alfredo, chicken and beef marsala, along with beef and pork dishes, shrimp and pesci di mare, a combination of shrimp, cod, mussels, white wine and pasta. Vegetable entrees include eggplant parmesan and stuffed portobello.
Elpedio’s will also have a children’s menu.
The restaurant will serve Sunday brunch from 10:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
An old Kmart at Shillington Plaza in Cumru Township, Berks County will reopen as a Ocean State Job Lot, a discount store based in Rhode Island. The chain with 147 locations in the Northeast promotes its discount prices on kitchen essentials, pet supplies, food and seasonal products, along with holiday items and an “ever-changing range” of home goods.
Ocean State has a store in Wind Gap. The Berks County store will open sometime this summer.
Obsidian tattoo and piercing parlor from Bethlehem has expanded to Emmaus. The 173 Main St. location is open now, with a grand opening taking place in the summer. The original location at 330 W. Broad St., Bethlehem, remains open seven days a week.
The New Santiago Restaurant at 125 S. Third St. in Coopersburg has reopened after a year-long hiatus. Last weekend, Santiago’s was serving dinner specials that included open turkey or roast beef, macaroni and cheese with stewed tomatoes, and $13.95 grilled chicken.
Santiago’s current posted hours are 7 am to 2 pm Sunday through Wednesday and 7 am to 8 pm Thursday through Saturday.
Berk Nature opened The Rookery, an extension of the conservancy’s headquarters, last month. The Rookery is in Angelica Creek Park, on top of the existing Nature Place structure. It does feature a rooftop patio and indoor meeting area that can accommodate up to 300 people.
The new space allows for expanded educational programs and larger private events. It is made from sustainable materials.