BETHLEHEM, Pa. – A husband and wife are following their dream with a new full-service dining establishment, offering breakfast, lunch and dinner, in Northampton County.
Ay Bendito Café, offering authentic Puerto Rican cuisine, will hold its grand opening at 7 a.m. Monday, June 15, at 310 E. Goepp St. in Bethlehem.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held at 11:30 a.m.
Ay Bendito Café, offering authentic Puerto Rican cuisine for breakfast, lunch and dinner, is coming soon to 310 E. Goepp St. in Bethlehem.
Ryan Kneller
Ay Bendito will occupy a renovated property that previously was home to Bed Head Vegan Brunch House, which closed in 2025 after two years of operation.
The property also once housed other dining establishments, including D’William Restaurant from 2018 to 2019 and Hometown Heroes, a former neighborhood pub that operated for around 13 years before transitioning to a cafe in its final year of business in 2017.
Ay Bendito’s owners, husband and wife Edwin Diaz and Maria Santiago, purchased the Goepp Street property and implemented updates that include refurbished flooring and counters and new interior and exterior paint.
Diaz and Santiago were born and raised in Puerto Rico, where they previously operated another restaurant, before moving to the United States around 10 years ago, Santiago said.
The couple is excited to share the flavors and culture of their native island with the Lehigh Valley.
Ay Bendito will be a family-run establishment, with Santiago’s mom and the couple’s three children – Felix, Favio and Kendall – helping out in various capacities.
For many dishes, Diaz and Santiago are utilizing long-held family recipes.
“Ay Bendito Café was born from the heart of a family and a dream we never let die,” reads a message on the café’s website.
“Our story did not begin here… it began in Puerto Rico, where over a decade ago we opened our first business. It was a beautiful chapter that shaped our lives, but one we had to close when we made the brave decision to move to the United States in search of a better future for our family. It wasn’t easy. It has been 10 years of hard work, sacrifice, and long days. But through it all, we never let go of our dream. We always knew that one day we would rise again and build something of our own… something that represented who we are and where we come from.”
Ay Bendito Cafe
Ay Bendito, with seating for 36 guests, will offer appetizers such as cheese-filled corn fritters, mini codfish fritters, mini alcapurrias, mini potato balls filled with ham and cheese and mini empanadas filled with guava and cheese
There also will be a wide selection of pastelillo varieties, including pork and cheese, tripleta, pizza, spinach, plantain pie (pastelon), spicy crab and chicken, potato and cheese; and “comfort plates” such as “Cerdo Ahumada del Patio” (smoked pork, served with breadfruit tostones, plantain tostones or fries) and “Bendito Maduro Burger” (juicy burger stuffed with sweet plantain, mozzarella cheese and a fried egg; served with fries or tater tots).
Guests also will enjoy sandwiches (served with tater tots or fries) such as a “Mallorca Melt” (grilled chicken with Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato and house aioli), “Tripleta Boriqua” (three meats – chicken, ham and steak – with American cheese, fries, onions, lettuce, tomato and mayo-ketchup) and “El Ponceno” (juicy pastrami with melted American cheese, pickles, mustard and onions, served on toasted traditional Puerto Rican bread or Puerto Rican sweet bread).
“More than a restaurant, we are a piece of Puerto Rico in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania,” Ay Bendito’s description continues.
“Every dish tells a story, every recipe carries our roots, and every detail is filled with family love. Here, you don’t just come to eat… you come to feel at home.”
The café also will serve up freshly prepared breakfast options such as “Ay Bendito… Que Revolu” (Puerto Rican-style scrambled eggs with ham and cheese; served with pan sobao toast or fries); “Abuela Fina” (tres leches pancakes; served with seasonal fruit and choice of protein: bacon, ham or sausage); “Kendall” (cinnamon bun-style French toast; served with seasonal fruit and choice of protein); and “Dulce & Picante” (sourdough toast with extra virgin olive oil, avocado, cottage cheese, hot honey, a fried egg with chili crunch, salt, pepper and scallions).
Other menu highlights will include a variety of house-made soups, salads, sides, warm bowls and desserts such as flan, cheesecake (with choice of fruit topping), quesitos (flaky puff pastry filled with sweet cheese and topped with touch of sugar), tembleque (creamy coconut tembleque made from mom’s special recipe) and mallorca (soft and fluffy Puerto Rican mallorca, dusted with powdered sugar and featuring choice of sauce – caramel, Nutella drizzle or cinnamon icing – and choice of topping – marshmallows, bacon, Oreo, almonds or sprinkles).
Ay Bendito Café, offering authentic Puerto Rican cuisine for breakfast, lunch and dinner, is coming soon to 310 E. Goepp St. in Bethlehem.
Ryan Kneller
An expansive drink menu will include specialty coffee drinks such as Americano, cortado, mocha, affogato, “Café Bendito” (double 8-ounce espresso with milk, cookie butter and Biscoff crumble) and seasonal “Café Latte” (double 8-ounce espresso with milk, Nutella, whipped cream and rim of Oreo, walnut or almond).
The café’s cutting-edge coffee technology also will allow you to personalize the foam on your coffee with images and messages printed directly on top of the drinks.
Other beverages will include natural juices such as passion fruit, watermelon and strawberry lemonade; and iced specialty drinks such as a flan iced latte, lavender bliss matcha and an Ay Bendito frozen frappe.
The café is sourcing 100% authentic Puerto Rican coffee, and customers also will be able to purchase bags of coffee to make it fresh at home, Santiago said.
“Every cup lets you experience a piece of our homeland,” reads a message on the café’s website.
Ay Bendito Café will operate 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays; and 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
For the latest Ay Bendito Café updates, follow the restaurant’s pages on Facebook and Instagram. Info: aybendito.cafe.
More Northampton County newsLehigh Valley’s 3rd new Wawa of 2026 to hold grand opening with free coffee, T-shirts
ALLEN TWP., Pa. – Just a few months after two new Wawas opened in Lehigh County, the gas station and convenience store chain will welcome customers to a new location in Northampton County.
Wawa, Inc. has announced its newest Lehigh Valley location will hold a grand opening on Thursday, June 4, at 10 Stonegate Drive in Allen Township.
Doors will open at 8 a.m., and the grand opening party will feature free coffee, a ribbon-cutting celebration (8:30 a.m.), photo opportunities with Wawa’s mascot, Wally Goose, and an introduction to the store’s team, including general manager Anna Daumer.
Free limited-edition T-shirts will be given to the first 100 customers (while supplies last), and bonus America250PA T-shirts will also be given to the first 100 customers (while supplies last). Full story here.
Ryan Kneller
Target opening of new Lehigh Valley Sheetz pushed back to July
HELLERTOWN, Pa. – A popular chain offering gas, made-to-order food and drinks and various convenience items is expanding its footprint in the Lehigh Valley.
Sheetz, the Blair County-based chain with more than 750 locations across six states, is planning to open its ninth Lehigh Valley location this summer at Main Street (Route 412) and Kichline Ave. in Hellertown.
The gas station and convenience store will operate across from the Interstate 78 East on- and off-ramps at Route 412.
The site was previously home to Star Pre-owned of Hellertown, a car dealership that was demolished last year. Read more here.
A Sheetz location is coming soon to Main Street in Hellertown.
Ryan Kneller
Longtime retailer closes, entertainment center expansion coming soon at Wind Creek outlets
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – A store selling specialty gifts, holiday decor and more has ended operations, as a fresh entertainment option is set to join the lineup at a prominent shopping destination in Northampton County.
General Store, offering a wide array of gifts, greeting cards, holiday decor and more, closed this past weekend at The Outlets at Wind Creek Bethlehem.
The store, operating on The Outlets’ lower level near the escalators, sold home decor and gifts such as candles, collectibles, garden flags, plush figures, specialty food items and country accents.
The Outlets at Wind Creek Bethlehem, at 77 Wind Creek Blvd., debuted as The Shoppes at the Sands in 2011 with space for 31 tenants, and The Old Farmer’s Almanac General Store was an original tenant.
In recent years, the lower-level tenant was known simply as “General Store.” Read more.
General Store has closed on the lower level of The Outlets at Wind Creek Bethlehem.
‘Farm-to-shelf feel’: Check out remodeled Bethlehem supermarket, featuring thousands of new items
BETHLEHEM, Pa. — A popular Lehigh Valley grocery store has implemented major improvements to its decor, layout and assortment, including an expanded deli featuring a salad bar, sushi bar, fresh-baked pizza, made-to-order subs, grab-and-go entrees and a hot buffet.
The Bethlehem location of The Fresh Grocer, at 1880 Stefko Blvd., has undergone a complete remodel and kicked off a two-week grand reopening celebration on Friday, May 29, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10 a.m., according to a news release.
Joyce “Mom” Fasula, president of Gerrity’s, is proud to continue investing in the Bethlehem community.
The project, which began in October, expanded the size and assortment of every department.
The store added more than 5,000 new items, including specialty categories such as prepared foods, scratch bakery, ethnic foods, organic products, health and beauty items, and pet food. Full story here.
Ryan Kneller
Popular bakery chain continues expansion with new Northampton County location
LOWER NAZARETH TWP., Pa. – A specialty cake company, with more than 800 bakeries across the United States and Canada, invites you to “let your taste buds dance with joy” at a new location in the Lehigh Valley.
A new location of Nothing Bundt Cakes, a bakery franchise famous for its handcrafted bundt cakes, bundtlets and bundtinis, opened May 23 at 3788 Nazareth Road in Lower Nazareth Township, an employee told 69 News.
The new bakery occupies an updated space that previously housed a Subway sandwich shop in the Northampton Crossings shopping center.
Founders Debra Shwetz and Dena Tripp started Nothing Bundt Cakes in Las Vegas in 1997, according to a historical account on the company’s website.
The pair had a shared dream: “to bake happiness into every bite.” Read more.
A new location of Nothing Bundt Cakes operates at 3788 Nazaret Road in Lower Nazareth Township.
Ryan Kneller
Lehigh County updates’Something for everyone’: Multi-restaurant, ‘fast fine’ dining concept sets opening in Lehigh County
UPPER SAUCON TWP., Pa. – A new food hall coming soon to the Lehigh Valley will offer a unique dining experience, featuring a wide array of cuisines from world-renowned chefs and prominent, award-winning restaurants under one roof.
A new location of Wonder, an innovative “fast fine” dining concept allowing customers to order from more than 20 chef-driven brands in a single, seamless transaction for dine-in, pickup or delivery, will hold a soft opening from June 8 through June 10 at Promenade Saucon Valley in Upper Saucon Township, according to an online announcement.
A grand opening will be held on June 11.
The restaurant, totaling more than 3,000 square feet, will operate next to Elite Salons & Suites at the open-air lifestyle shopping center, 2845 Center Valley Parkway Suite 802.
It will be Wonder’s second regional location, supplementing a location that opened in 2024 inside a Quakertown area Walmart, at 195 N. West End Blvd. in Richland Township, Bucks County. Full story here.
‘Spreading like crazy’: Couple bringing restaurant chain’s 1st Pa. location to Airport Center
HANOVER TWP., Pa. – A new location of a rapidly growing, national restaurant chain is coming soon to a prominent shopping center in Lehigh County, and the husband-and-wife operators have plans to open additional locations throughout the Lehigh Valley.
The first Pennsylvania location of Chicken Salad Chick, serving full-flavored, Southern-style chicken salad made from scratch and served from the heart, is expected to open in mid- to late July at 942 Airport Center Road in Hanover Township, according to franchisee Amanda Greenford, who’s operating the new restaurant with her husband, Ernest Greenford.
The soon-to-be-renovated space in the Airport Center previously housed a Buff City Soap location, which closed last year.
Amanda was born and raised in Alabama, where Chicken Salad Chick originated and locations are prevalent, and she and her family missed the brand’s food after moving to the Allentown area from the South a little more than three years ago. Read more here.
A Chicken Salad Chick location is coming soon to the Airport Center in Hanover Township, Lehigh County.
Ryan Kneller
‘New name, more hours, same great taste!’: Score ‘serious cheesesteaks’ in Allentown once again
ALLENTOWN, Pa. – A business serving up “hearty cheesesteaks with serious local pride” has returned to Lehigh County.
Project Steaks, formerly known as Chopsteaks, reopened May 8 with expanded hours at Jay’s Local in Allentown’s West End, Project Steaks co-owner Dave Roberts told 69 News.
Roberts and his partner, Stephen Kilroy, originally launched the business – specializing in hand-crafted cheesesteaks – as a pop-up venture last summer at Jay’s Local.
From July through September, the cheesesteaks were available on Thursdays as part of Jay’s Local’s Guest Chef Collaboration Program, but foodies can now score the cheesesteaks from 4 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
“If our time here continues to go well, we’d love to make it permanent,” Roberts said. “The feedback’s been really great. People are telling us it’s the best cheesesteak in the Valley, the best they’ve ever had.” Read more.
Project Steaks
New Lehigh Valley Salon Suites offering luxury spaces for beauty professionals, other entrepreneurs
ALLENTOWN, Pa. – A new Lehigh County venue invites barbers, hair stylists, estheticians, tattoo artists and other creative professionals to be their own boss and build their brand with a private, customizable suite.
Lehigh Valley Salon Suites, offering luxury, fully customizable space for independent beauty and creative professionals to grow on their own terms, will hold a grand opening event from 3 to 6 p.m. on June 14 at 825 N. 12th St. Suite 2B in Allentown, according to a news release.
The event will feature a ribbon cutting ceremony, along with tours of suites, flash tattoos by Pretty but Poison Ink, small bites and drinks, music, a pop-up shopping opportunity with Redemption, a build-your-own bouquet bar and photography by McKinney Media.
Guests also will have an opportunity to meet the founder and explore the unique venue. Full story here.
Lehigh Valley Salon Suites
Allentown restaurant temporarily closed as it awaits liquor license renewal
ALLENTOWN, Pa. – Operations have temporarily ceased at a popular restaurant and bar in Lehigh County.
Pennsylvania Rye Company, specializing in craft cocktails, whiskey and made-from-scratch food, is temporarily closed at 536 Hamilton St. in downtown Allentown as the business awaits its liquor license renewal, co-owner Jesse Haik told 69 News.
An announcement was made Thursday on the business’ social media pages.
“PA Rye Co will be temporarily closed until further notice,” the online post reads. “We apologize for the inconvenience and look forward to serving you in the near future.”
Pennsylvania Rye Company, featuring an extensive selection of local, national and international whiskeys, operated with food service only on Wednesday.
Haik expects the issue will be resolved soon and the restaurant will reopen within the next few days. Read more here.
Pennsylvania Rye Company, at 536 Hamilton St. in downtown Allentown, features around 200 different types of whiskey.
Ryan Kneller
Berks buzzRaising Cane’s pauses action on proposed Berks restaurant for 3rd time
SPRING TWP., Pa. – The Spring Township Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday night to continue a public hearing on a proposed Raising Cane’s restaurant to June 22 at 7:15 p.m.
The hearing to discuss amendments to the Spring Ridge planned residential development (PRD) plan was originally scheduled to be held at the end of March, but was continued to late April.
Just as it happened in April, township solicitor Daniel Becker said Amy Farrell, attorney for Raising Cane’s Restaurants LLC, asked for yet another continuance.
Becker asked the supervisors to now place the three requests for continuances into the official hearing record.
The township planning commission was presented with an informal sketch plan in October proposing the construction of a 3,379-square-foot fast-food restaurant on the parking lot of the Kohl’s department store at the intersection of Paper Mill Road and Meridian Boulevard. Read more.
IMAX in Reading unveils upgraded viewing experience with crystal-clear picture, immersive sound
READING, Pa. — Some major upgrades to enhance the viewing experience at the IMAX in Reading were celebrated Thursday with a ribbon cutting.
“I come in and I see that massive 70 ft wide, 40 ft tall screen sitting there smiling at me and I go wow,” says R/C Theatres President & CEO, Scott Cohen.
The owners say the upgrades to the IMAX are bringing the entertainment experience to a whole new level.
“We’re also calling it ‘Reimagined IMAX Extraordinary Awaits’,” says Shelbi Gutowski with R/C Theatres.
The changes will produce a crystal-clear picture that is three times brighter, and immersive sound; not to mention the heated recliners. Full story here.
Fresh fruit season is back, as orchard in Berks set to hold Taste of Weaver’s event
ROBESON TWP., Pa. – Fresh fruit season is making a comeback at local farms across the area, which is a breath of fresh air after a rough couple of months from Mother Nature.
69 News Reporter Sydney Kay stopped by a family-owned farm in Berks County to see how they’ve worked through the harsh seasons.
Work on the farm never stops, especially when you’re trying to keep up with the weather.
“Mother Nature has not been kind,” said Megan Greloch, the events and pick-your-own manager at Weaver’s Orchard.
Always needing to adapt to the elements, Weaver’s Orchard in Robeson Township is on its fourth generation of family farming. Read more here.