Making moves
Longtime Lehigh Valley restaurants find new locations, new names
In 2017, Zach Umstead started
as a food truck in Bethlehem, serving Asian-inspired finger foods like handformed wontons and homemade steamed buns. The truck proved popular and he opened his first restaurant at 444 Main St. in Bethlehem, expanding into more sit-down food like dumplings.
Then, two months ago, Umstead said, he got a call from the Downtown Allentown Market. Would he be want to open Randevoo there?
“We jumped on it,” Umstead said. On Jan. 5, Umstead and Greg Ioki, the manager and chef at the Allentown Market location, soft-launched to the public, just as dessert spot Khanisa’s
The Pudding Bar announced its exit (more on that below).
Two rolls stick out to Umstead. His favorite is the Slappin’ Salmon, which wraps New Zealand king salmon both inside and outside the roll, then tops the whole thing off with house-made mango habanero sauce and crunchy garlic.
“I love how the spice of the mango habanero plays off the salmon,” Umstead said.
The other noteworthy roll is Ioki’s specialty, the Loki roll, which pairs Japanese yellowtail and cucumber with black pepper seared yellowfin tuna, house ponzu, tobiko and scallions. Umstead said Ioki taught him how to make sushi 12 years ago in Colorado, and the two have been working together through Randevoo’s expansion.
Randevoo’s Downtown Allentown Market menu plays off the lunchtime crowd that frequents the market, but Umstead said he plans to offer dinner at the location.
“I just got the green light for a liquor license today,” he told me Wednesday.
Umstead is hoping to launch menu tastings in the next month or so, pairing sushi with flights of sake and other liquor for intimate dinners — an idea that would certainly be new and unique for the Market.
While Umstead went from food truck to restaurant, Dinky’s Ice
Cream Parlor & Grill co-owners Jillian and Norman Matthews are doing the reverse. The duo shut down their storefront in December at 312 E. Third St. in Bethlehem in favor of an upcoming food truck, a decision the husband-and-wife team said made them feel “both nervous and excited.”
“We wanted more freedom to do what we want to do,” Jill said. “The food truck does that for us.”
It may come as a surprise to fans of the South Side spot famous for its burger concoctions and extensive ice cream menu that the couple would close the storefront. But it felt right to the Matthewses. The couple, who opened Dinky’s in the midst of the pandemic, have weathered some personal storms, including Jill’s cancer diagnosis among other family health scares. “We’ve missed out on a lot of family things,” Jill said.
The truck, which they hope to debut in February, will change that. Norman said Dinky’s was already booked for Allentown Fair and Musikfest, along with other local businesses. The menu won’t stray too far from the retro comfort food that Dinky’s became known for.
“We’re taking our menu and shrinking it down to a slider,” Jill said, highlighting a homemade bacon jam that will crown a burger, as well as ribs that customers can order bone-in or layered barbecue style in a sandwich. Fans of Dinky’s ice cream shouldn’t worry: The couple was already outfitted with a trailer with some ice cream options.
Also undergoing an identity shift is another South Side Bethlehem spot.
The former Hummus House at 518 E. Third St. announced this week that it was rebranding as HandHeldz.
“It’s a brand new name and a brand new focus,” owner Anthony Hechme said. “There was this misconception that all we served was hummus.”
Hechme’s mother was the original owner and chef of Hummus House, which she launched as a new Syrian immigrant over a decade ago in Allentown. The shop, which moved to Bethlehem in 2021, featured Middle Eastern cuisine as well as the former store’s namesake chickpea dips.
HandHeldz will be different.
Hechme said he took inspiration from his time eating giant, overstuffed sandwiches in New York. He’s kept some original menu items that fit with the theme but has expanded offerings to include paninis and wraps, “crazy looking big sandwiches that are like comfort food.” Hechme said that the rebranding also included a new look for the shop, including kiosks for ordering and local art gracing the walls. For all the rebranding, though, Hechme said he kept the original Hummus House logo as a callback for longtime customers.
Another restaurant looking to provide a taste of its owner’s home is Mis Raices, a Colombian restaurant which planned a soft launch Friday and a grand opening Saturday at the former Cactus Blue Mexican Restaurant site at 2915 Schoenersville Road in Bethlehem. Owner Laura Rativa said it’s the family’s second Colombian restaurant in the Lehigh Valley, after Las Delicias at 144 W. St. Joseph St. in Easton.
Rativa said the restaurant would celebrate traditional Colombian cuisine. Indeed, the menu features a brunch menu where customers can choose hearty Colombian favorites, like calantado paisa (rice, beans, fried meat, eggs and cheesy arepas) and tamales tolimenses (tamales stuffed with chicken, ribs, eggs and vegetables). Rativa’s personal favorite — caldo de castilla, a broth from ribs — is perfect for the wintry chill. Next door, Mis Raices will have its own bakery as well, with pastries and sweet breads for dessert, along with coffee and juices.
Some briefs to finish out this week:
Greenhouse & Enoteca, the Allentown West End eatery with a greenhouse attached to it that closed in November 2022, has been sold and will be the site of a future restaurant, according to Pat Spitzer of Weichert Realtors, who represents the seller. Spitzer said that the restaurant’s buyer would make an announcement soon.
Ciao SandwichShoppe ,at12 N. Third St. in Easton, announced on Facebook that it is looking to sell the location. Owner Isaac Csezmadia, who recently opened Chez’s Delicatessan in Downtown Allentown Market, said he and his business partner want to focus on Chez’s.
And as mentioned above, Khanisa’s The Pudding Bar decided not to renew its lease at Downtown Allentown Market in December. Sean and Khanisa Darby opened the business in Easton but moved to Allentown in late 2022 after a contentious dispute with Easton officials over code violations that eventually led to the shutdown of their store. The brand will now move to selling its specialty pudding online only, at thepuddingbar.com. Attempts to reach the Darbys for comment were unsuccessful.