Korean specialties
Mi’s Kitchen in Breinigsville serving japchae, kimchi, bibimbop
OK, so maybe an East Asian vacation isn’t in the cards for you right now. That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy some of the region’s cuisine closer to home.
Mi’s Korean Kitchen, offering traditional Korean dishes like japchae, kimchi and bibimbop, opened March 31 at 1044 Trexlertown Road, Suite 109, in the Breinigsville section of Upper Macungie Township.
Owner Mi Kim of Lower Macungie Township previously operated the business for about a year at the Quakertown Farmers Market before deciding to relocate for more space, better visibilty and a quicker commute.
“I love people, and I also love food,” Kim said. “So, opening a restaurant was always a dream of mine.”
Mi’s, with seating for about 30 guests, offers fried dumplings such as pork, shrimp and vegan, along with other specialties such as chicken wings (traditional or boneless) and a Korean BBQ platter, with pork or chicken, three dumplings, rice and Korean sides such as kimchi, fish cakes and bean sprouts.
Other menu highlights include noodle dishes such as japchae (clear noodles) and stir-fried udon with pork or chicken; rice dishes such as a sweet or spicy pork bulgogi rice bowl and pork or vegetarian bibimbop (rice bowl with seasonal vegetables, fried egg and more); and fried options such as mushroom and zucchini fritters.
“People really like my Korean fried chicken,” Kim said. “It comes with your choice of homemade sauce, including the most popular ones: sweet and spicy gochujang and honey garlic.”
The restaurant, with seasonal outdoor seating, occupies the Waterside Shoppes
space that previously housed Chef Panda Asian Cuisine.
Hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5-8 p.m. Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays; 5-9 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays; 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturdays; and noon to 7 p.m. Sundays. Online ordering is available at miskoreankitchen.com. Info: 484-347-6910.
East Penn area news
About six miles east of Mi’s Korean Kitchen, a Prohibitionand mobster-themed restaurant is looking to form a gang of its own in Emmaus.
Capo & Co. Keg-CorkKitchen, a full-service restaurant offering modern American cuisine and a selfserve draft beer and wine wall, is looking to hire more than 50 employees — servers, bartenders, managers and kitchen staff — ahead of its planned opening in late May/early
June at 1375 Chestnut St., owner Antonio Mannino said. Prospective employees should call 610-349-9479 to schedule an interview.
“When people walk through our doors, we want them to step back in time to the 1920s,” Mannino said.
Capo & Co., taking its name from the Italian word “capo,” meaning boss, has been a project three years in the making.
Mannino and a team of contractors have extensively renovated the Chestnut Street building, which previously housed Mannino’s Italian restaurant, Italiano Delite, for about a decade.
Aesthetic highlights include copper ceiling tiles, black leather booths, Edison bulb light fixtures and arched ceilings made to look like half wooden barrels.
Other decorative accents include a 1920s phone booth, speakeasy doors with password openings and framed photos of notorious gangsters like Al Capone and John Dillinger.
Capo & Co., with seating for more than 200 guests, will serve “beer bites” like a fried fresh mozzarella tower, “Ma’s Famous Meatballs” and “The Bugsy Twisted Tater” (spiralcut russet potato deep-fried and topped with with pulled pork, cheddar and fried jalapenos, served with chipotle ranch dipping sauce); sandwiches such as roasted pork with broccoli rabe, Nashville hot chicken and a California club; and specialties such as grilled salmon, filet mignon and Bolognese pappardelle.
Other menu highlights will include sliders and burgers (made with blend of chuck and brisket), “Boss” beef chili, jumbo chicken and hog wings and about a dozen 12-inch artisan pizzas.
“We’ll have a little bit of everything, including some authentic Italian dishes like fettuccine carbonara, and veal or chicken parmigiana,” Mannino said.
Capo & Co. also will feature an outdoor patio, a 35-seat, rectangular full bar and a self-serve craft beer and wine wall, featuring more than 20 specialty beers and four wines on tap. Customers will add money to a card that they will use to pour desired amounts of their selected beverages, Mannino said.
Also in the East Penn area, The Pub on Main, at 102 E. Main St. in Macungie, has permanently closed after nearly 15 years of business.
“There just aren’t enough people to work today,” an announcement posted Friday on the business’ Facebook page reads. “And many of our employees are expecting and onto their next chapter and we are beyond happy for them!
Thank you for all your support over the years.”
The Pub on Main opened in 2008 when Franco Armetta and Brian Fey purchased the former Macungie Pub at East Main and Lea streets, according to The Morning Call archives.
Bethlehem and Easton finds
A new destination for locally brewed IPAs, lagers, stouts and other beers is nearing completion in south Bethlehem.
Country Club Brewing ,a craft brewery serving madeon-site beer along with locally produced wine and spirits, is expected to open in late May or early June at 323 Pierce St., co-founder and head brewer Mike Kromer said.
The newly constructed brick building, adjacent to the South Bethlehem Greenway between Third and Fourth streets, will feature an open-concept layout, with an 80-seat taproom next to a five-barrel brewing system.
Kromer, who began homebrewing more than 10 years ago, is operating Country Club with five partners: Derek Mangin, Ethan Porter, Michael Recchiuti, Jose Rivera and Brandin Robinson.
Kromer has known Rivera and Robinson since childhood, and the friends have bonded in recent years over their mutual fondness for craft beer.
The nearly 1,700-square-foot brewery will feature an industrial look, with dark epoxied flooring, exposed ceiling beams and an accordion-style, sliding glass door. A 10-seat bar with a concrete top will feature a 12-tap system, serving at least three flagship beers, Kromer said.
Country Club’s team has been brewing at an off-site location for the past few years, testing recipes and bringing the new brews to local and national beer festivals. It’s garnered several accolades, including best dark beer and best overall beer for Coconuts Falling — a coconut-flavored stout — at the 2018 Allentown Beer Fest.
“We plan to open with at least 10 different beers — some stouts,
IPAs, double IPAs, a lager, pilsner and maybe a Berliner,” Kromer said. “We’re going to offer a little bit of everything.”
Country Club, which also plans to make hard seltzers, will feature a side patio and entertainment such as televisions, trivia nights and live music. Info: facebook.com/CountryClubBrewingLLC.
From one blossoming business to another, FD Market ,a sustainable goods shop and zerowaste refillery that opened in Emmaus’ triangle in December 2019, on Friday opened its second location at 158 Northampton St. in downtown Easton.
The Easton shop, a few doors down from the Grand Eastonian Hotel & Suites, carries FD Market’s full line of products, including beauty and skin care items such as bath bombs, body scrubs, lotion bars, shave cream and sustainable makeup.
Customers also can shop household items and cleaning products such as bamboo toilet paper, beeswax candles, cotton string market bags, biodegradable eco-sponges, counter composters, dish and vegetable brushes, reusable coffee filters and sandwich bags and machine-washable UNpaper Towels.
The business, operated by 2018 Emmaus High School graduate Jacquelyn Bassett, also offers refills of all-purpose cleaner, body wash, dish soap, laundry detergent and other liquids. Info: fdmarketco.com.
Shopping center additions
A few Lehigh Valley malls and shopping centers have recently welcomed new tenants:
First, at the South Mall in Salisbury Township, C&I Minerals, carrying an array of minerals, semi-precious gemstones and hand-crafted jewelry from around the world, opened April 11, co-owner Ismael Santos said. The space previously housed clothing store Elay’s Outlet.
Shoppers can browse a variety of sterling silver jewelry along with dozens of types of gemstones and minerals, including amethyst, calcite, citrine, green onyx, rose quartz, fluorite, pink rhodondite and titanium-coated crystal.
Other hand-crafted items include beaded necklaces and bracelets, candle holders, Turkish-imported lamps and meditation accessories such as incense.
Second, at the Palmer Park Mall in Palmer Township, Art Video Productions, a photography and video studio offering family portraits, corporate headshots, video production commercials and more, opened April 22 next to Rack Room Shoes.
Art Video Productions is operated by husband and wife Louis Oliveira and Trixie Argente Oliveira, who have more than 25 years of experience in photography and video production; they previously operated their business on Northampton Street in Easton.
The studio also offers senior portraits, fashion/ branding, advertising, product photography and video production, including training and wedding videos. Info: 484-546-4312; artvideoproductions.com.
Lastly, at the Shoppes at Hellertown at 25 Main St., one chain has opened while another is coming soon.
Starbucks, the popular coffee shop chain with more than 33,000 stores worldwide, opened Friday at the center’s former Bank of America building.
The cafe, with a drive-thru and outdoor patio, supplements about two dozen other Lehigh Valley locations, including a kiosk inside the Giant grocery store less than a half-mile away at 1880 Leithsville Road in
Lower Saucon Township.
Also, Advance Auto Parts, an automotive aftermarket parts provider that serves both professional installers and do-it-yourself customers, is planning to open its newest area store in August in the Shoppes at Hellertown, a company spokesperson said.
The new location will occupy a roughly 7,500-square-foot space that previously housed National Auto, which closed last spring.
Advanced Auto Parts, founded in Virginia in 1932, offers a variety of auto parts, including brake pads, mufflers and spark plugs, along with oil and fluids such as conventional and diesel motor oil, coolant and antifreeze, and accessories such as car and seat covers, license plate frames and air fresheners.
The Hellertown store, supplementing about a dozen other area locations, also will offer free services, including wiper installation, charging system testing and battery installation, and check engine light services.