BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Paranormal Pizza held a soft opening on Nov. 1 after nearly three years without a home.
After a fire forced the closure of its former location at 554 New St., the vegan pizza parlor reopened at 125 E. Third St. on Bethlehem’s South Side.
Co-owner Marc Kubushefski said he chose a soft opening because he didn’t want to “over-promise and underdeliver,” announcing the reopening just hours before. Even with minimal notice, the restaurant saw heavy traffic the next day.
“November 1, that was crazy,” Kubushefski said. “It was busy as hell in here.”
Paranormal Pizza is open Wednesday through Friday from 4 to 8 p.m. and Saturdays from noon to 8 p.m. Kubushefski said they hope to open for weekday lunch once staffing needs are met.
Paranormal Pizza reopens on Bethlehem’s South Side (Photo: Constantine Lambridis / Lehigh Daily)
As the restaurant settles into its new home, Kubushefski said he’s eager to connect with the surrounding community and welcome new customers.
“We’re planning on reaching out to the Lehigh students to let them know that we’re here,” he said. “Immersing ourselves in South Side Bethlehem is what we’re excited for. There’s a lot of foot traffic here. There’s a younger crowd here than on most of the North Side.”
Paranormal Pizza’s vegan chicken, bacon and ranch pizza (Photo Courtesy: Paranormal Pizza)
During the years Paranormal Pizza operated without a permanent location, Kubushefski said support from other Lehigh Valley businesses helped keep the restaurant afloat.
Paranormal Pizza made a temporary home at Jay’s Local in Allentown and held pop-ups at Roasted on Bethlehem’s West Fourth Street.
Breweries including Bonn Place Brewing Company and Sherman Street Beer Company also hosted the restaurant’s food truck.
“We’re super grateful for the community support that we’ve had through the entire thing,” Kubushefski said. “It was great to know that we still have strong community support after everything. We’ve had a great support system from all the people that continuously supported us and showed up to our pop-ups and other small businesses that supported us as well.”
Constantine Lambridis is a recent graduate of Lehigh University with a double major in Journalism and History. At Lehigh, he served as the Sports Editor and Managing Editor of Multimedia at the school’s student-run newspaper. He is passionate about covering stories at the heart of the community and is an ardent believer in the impact of local journalism.