Covering floors, and so much more
Longtime Allentown shop wants customers to think of rugs as art
“I used to purchase everything off Wayfair, but when I came here, I learned about the direction of the pile of the rug, the breakdown of the fibers, the science behind the dyes, the history.” — Matt Geist, co-owner of Ward’s Oriental Rug Service and Gallery
To Matt Geist and Daria “Dee” Ward, rugs aren’t just a covering for your floors, something you step on or use to get from one end of a room to another.
“This is not just a sales operation,” Ward says. “It’s an experience for people who want to come in for art.”
Ward and Geist are the newest owners — and third generation — to own Ward’s Oriental Rug Service and Gallery at 333 W. Union St. in Allentown. The shop, which houses hundreds of antique and contemporary hand-loomed rugs, reinforces the couple’s focus on refocusing rugs as works of art with museum-level lighting and a layout that doesn’t feel like a warehouse.
Ward’s was opened in 2002 by Gary Ward, Dee’s father-in-law. Gary and his father, “Pop,” were avid antique rug collectors. When Gary retired from AT&T in the early 2000s, he figured he’d “turn his avocation into a vocation,” he quipped. Gary’s son, Kevin, was set to take over, but died in 2022.
For Dee, Kevin’s widow, Ward’s is home — and her future.
“It’s been a part of my life for the past 16 years,” she said. “When Gary and Pat [Gary’s wife] said they were interested in moving on with their lives and spending time traveling, I thought it would be a great opportunity.”
Plus, Dee said, “I have a 15-yearold son and I wanted to make sure it stayed in the Ward family.”
Geist and Dee Ward, who are dating, officially took over the shop Feb. 1. Geist, who previously worked in welding, has found the hushed beauty of handmade rugs a draw and thrown himself headlong into learning about the artistry and craft of hand-knotted rugs.
“I used to purchase everything off Wayfair, but when I came here, I learned about the direction of the pile of the rug, the breakdown of the fibers, the science behind the dyes, the history,” he said. “There’s so much more to what you can be putting on your floor.”
While Geist handles clients, Dee Ward is handling marketing and social media with an eye toward changing how people think about rugs.
“Our target market is 35- to 50-year-olds,” she said. She wants to challenge how people think about rugs as archaic and stuffy and to have fun with them.
“You can use traditional rugs to design contemporary rooms or get contemporary rugs to [modernize] a traditional room,” she said.
The duo offers unique services for the rug-curious, including personal shopping to help uniquely outfit your home with the perfect rug, as well as sending certain rugs home with clients to make sure the lighting and feel of it fits right at home.
For now, Geist and Dee Ward are basking in the wonders of the rug business.
“It feels amazing,” Geist said. “We’re super excited to move this forward.”
Get them to the Greek
Chris Nagy had just come from his son’s tennis match in New Jersey when he fell in love with The Great Greek Mediterranean Grill.
“There was one nearby and we went to check it out,” he recalled. “We ordered half the menu and tried a little bit of everything. We loved the food.”
Nagy loved the food so much that he and his wife Marcia are opening up Pennsylvania’s first franchise location of The Great Greek Mediterranean
Grill at the Promenade Shops at Saucon Valley in Upper Saucon Township, in between Lashes by Gab and Kome Fine Japanese Cuisine.
The name is self-explanatory — customers can expect grilled Mediterranean dishes that lean Greek at the fast casual restaurant. Those looking for something handheld to munch on while perusing shops at the outdoor mall can select from wraps and gyros, amped up with chickpeas, falafel, lamb or chicken. More in a sit down mood? The restaurant will offer seating that will make for a perfect spot to chow down on souvlaki (marinated chicken, steak or lamb on skewers) paired with fluffy rice pilaf and either French fries or house specialty feta fries.
This will be Nagy’s first restaurant, something the retired former Air Products employee said he always wanted to own.
“I was looking for something to keep me busy and this was right,” he said. “I love to eat Mediterranean food.”
Nagy was attracted to the Promenade not only because he’s a local — “we live a five-minute drive from the Promenade and our kids grew up in the area” — but because it offers a unique opportunity to get something healthy, quick and Mediterranean at the outdoor mall, where most eateries are sit-down affairs.
The Promenade location will be the 81st location for The Great Greek, which is rapidly expanding. Started in 2016 outside Las Vegas, the franchise counted 25 locations in 12 states in 2023.
The 2,550-squarefoot restaurant will be the latest opening at the Promenade Shops, where a recent announcement said J. Crew Factory would be coming in the spring, along with a rotating slate of local businesses that take part in the mall’s pop-up shops.
The Nagys are looking to open by June.
“We want to open in time for foot traffic in the warmer months,” Marcia Nagy said.
The couple is excited to open their first restaurant together. “If it goes well, who knows? Maybe we can open another one in the Lehigh Valley,” Chris Nagy said.
Some brief closing and opening news:
Starlite Diner & Lounge, at 233 Route 100 in Upper Macungie Township, has sold. I got a tip from a reader (thank you!) and confirmed it with staff at the diner this week. No word yet from the new owner about when the takeover will be complete.
Sweet Nanny’s Candie’s and Ice Cream Creamery at 101 S. Broadway in Wind Gap confirmed Monday via Facebook that the business has been sold.
“It has been bittersweet,” the post reads. It continues to say, “The new owner will continue to have ice cream and all the sweet treats!”
Frescura Verde
Produce, a new grocery store, will open across from Palestinian restaurant Ayat at 700 N. 13th St. in Allentown. No further information is available on the opening.
And finally, McCarthy’s Red Stag Pub and Whiskey Bar is hoping to reopen this week. The popular eatery at 534
Main St. in Bethlehem had a small fire Feb. 3 that temporarily shut it down. Owner Neville Gardner told me last week that he is hoping to open this week and is raising funds for his hourly staff via the Downtown Bethlehem Association. To donate, go to visithistoricbethlehem. com/support-the-stagstaff/.