Bethlehem’s newest restaurant has flare
Chef Skye Lin deftly flicked a stack of perfectly white onion slices onto the grill top.
“One, two, three, go,’ Lin shouted as he quickly ignited the onion tower, musically clanging his spatulas as the onion blaze raged.
There are few places in the Valley where you can get such a dramatic, table-side show while you enjoy a fromscratch meal but the newest restaurant to come to Bethlehem does that and more.
Steak and Steel Hibachi just opened at 44 W. Walnut St. in Bethlehem. It’s already generating a lot of buzz with diners, with its fiery hibachi tables, impeccably fresh sushi and chic cocktail program.
The restaurant is owned by the group that also operates MYST, a restaurant in Jim Thorpe that specializes in sushi and hibachi dishes.
Steak and Steel’s interior had a comfortable, modern Japanese interior design that also features local art.
Of course, the food — and the fiery drama — is what’s creating the buzz at Steak and Steel.
One side of the restaurant features the hibachi tables, where chefs prepare, with great drama, your food right before your eyes. (Hibachi is a Japanese style of cooking that’s done over a high-heat metal cooking plate.) You can choose from a variety of proteins, including shrimp, lobster, filet mignon, scallops and chicken. You can also order a hibachi meal anywhere in the restaurant, if you’re looking for a less-intense dining experience.
While the hibachi tables may be what’s generating the buzz, there’s another must-have at Steak and Steel.
“We may be known for our hibachi but sushi is our secret weapon,” said Rob Lewis, managing partner of the restaurant.
You can sit at the sushi bar and watch the chef prepare a variety of styles as well as enjoy Steak and Steel’s signature rolls. (One to try: The dragon roll, featuring eel and cucumber topped with avocado and eel sauce.) You can also enjoy nigri and sashimi including tuna, yellowtail tuna and uni.
Of course, not everyone is a sushi fan but Steak and Steel has many more options for diners. One to try: The General Tso’s Chicken, featuring crispy fried chicken coated in traditional spicy/sweet sauce and served with broccoli crowns and rice. You can also get drunken noodles and numerous varieties of udon (thick Japanese wheat noodles.)
While you’re having your meal, you can also enjoy craft cocktails, including an old-fashioned that’s smoked tableside and a Japanese julep (featuring a sugar cube, fresh torn mint and Japanese whiskey, on the rocks with a spring of fresh mint). Sake fans will be happy to learn that Steak and Steel offers a flight of imported sakes. The restaurant also has wine and craft beer on tap.
Info: facebook.com/ SteakandSteelHibachi
A loss for Lehigh Street
As reported by my colleague Anthony Salamone, Willy Joe’s at 2407 Lehigh St., Allentown, is set to close by April.
Co-owner Matthew Wursta said it was a tough decision but it was time. The restaurant — known for its famous hot dogs with special chili sauce — has been open at the location for nearly four decades.
“We will greatly miss all our wonderful customers who have supported us for so many years. They have become more than just customers, they have become great friends. We will stay open until the sale is complete, and of course our store at 15th & Liberty Street, the original location, is still open,” said co-owner Richard Hirst in an email.
Good news for a Stroudsburg pub
On Christmas Eve, a sprinkler pipe burst at a popular downtown Stroudsburg restaurant, causing extensive damage and forcing it to close temporarily.
While the repairs at Siamsa Irish Pub are continuing, the restaurant’s owners say they will be opening the upstairs to diners on a limited basis. It’s best to check the restaurant’s Facebook page for the latest hours.
“It’s been a long process but there is light at the end of the tunnel…To say we are excited is understatement!” reads a post from the pub’s Facebook page.
The restaurant is at 636 Main St., Stroudsburg. Info: facebook.com/siamsairishpub or 570-421-8434.
News that will bowl you over Hampton Lanes
— Northampton’s legendary bowling alley and entertainment center — is back open after being closed for two years following major damage from a snowstorm.
The alley, which first opened in 1958, welcomed back bowlers Tuesday. The 24-lane bowling alley’s new hours of operation are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mondays; 4-10 p.m. Tuesdays; 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Wednesdays; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Thursdays; 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. Fridays; 9:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. Saturdays; and 9:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays.
The building suffered a roof collapse and other extensive structural damage after a major storm dumped nearly two feet of snow in early February 2021. Much of the facility had to be rebuilt.
Info: hamptonlanesbowling.com/
New tenants for the Promenade Shops Handmade Mystic Healing Crystals and Jewelry
will open its third location at the Promenade Shops, near the JJill store at the lifestyle center. Expected to open in March, it will be its second store in the Lehigh Valley — the other is at 2 S. Fourth St. Emmaus. There’s also a shop in Doylestown, Bucks County.
The business offers a wealth of experience in crystal healing as well as one-of-a-kind spiritual and Bohemian crystal healing jewelry along with loose gemstones, crystals and other handmade accessories and gifts.
Turning Point, a chain of award-winning breakfast, brunch and lunch restaurants, announced it would open its newest location at the Promenade this year, near UBreakIFix and Playa Bowls. The 4,449-squarefoot restaurant will be the chain’s first in the Lehigh Valley.
Turning Point offers an upscale breakfast and lunch experience with international French press coffees. Some of the menu highlights include cinnamon roll pancakes and Southern chicken and waffles; grande huevos rancheros; avocado toast; chicken pesto panini; and the Nashville hot honey chicken wrap. The restaurant also has a variety of milkshakes and specialty drinks on its menu.
Turning Point has more than 20 locations throughout the Philadelphia metropolitan area.
Other new tenants planned or opened recently include Batch Microcreamery, ELITE Salons & Suites and Squishable.
Send me those tips
As always I appreciate the helpful tips I get from you readers. Reach out if you see any openings and closings of new retail businesses or restaurants around the Valley. Email: jsheehan@mcall.com and include “Retail Watch” in the subject line.