{"id":242502,"date":"2026-07-13T19:47:09","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T19:47:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/242502\/"},"modified":"2026-07-13T19:47:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T19:47:09","slug":"restaurant-week-anchors-indie-month-in-downtown-scranton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/242502\/","title":{"rendered":"Restaurant Week anchors Indie Month in downtown Scranton"},"content":{"rendered":"

About a dozen restaurants will showcase their best offerings starting Friday as Scranton Tomorrow officials continually work to support and spotlight local businesses.<\/p>\n

During the Summer of Scranton Restaurant Week, eateries will serve three-course meals at three different prices \u2014 $19.99, $29.99 and $39.99, said Liz Baldi, business development director for Scranton Tomorrow. Some restaurants will offer menu options at each price point, Baldi said.<\/p>\n

Started four years ago after a suggestion from the owners of Bartari on Adams Avenue, the event continues to evolve, Baldi said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted to make it a little more elevated this year and add some themes for America250PA and celebrating our nation\u2019s birthday,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Sam Agolino, president of Bar Pazzo, 131 N. Washington Ave., feels events like Restaurant Week help attract more customers to the establishments.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt brings more people in at a better price point,\u201d he said. \u201cThey\u2019re going to come and try it, and hopefully we\u2019ll get some repeat business.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bar Pazzo\u2019s house-made gelato \u2014 described by Agolino as unique to the area \u2014 will be part of the restaurant\u2019s menu, he said.<\/p>\n

Agolino credits Scranton Tomorrow\u2019s employees for helping drive traffic to local businesses, contributing to more stores opening in the area.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are a lot more restaurants now than when we first started 10 years ago,\u201d he said. \u201cYears ago, there wasn\u2019t really anything to do downtown.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other restaurants participating include the 16th\u202fWard, 306 Penn Ave.; Alter Bar, 116 N. Washington Ave., Suite 100;\u00a0 AV, 320 Penn Ave.;\u00a0 Bar Pazzo, 131 N. Washington Ave.; Fork \u2018N\u2019 Bowl, 305 Penn Ave.;\u00a0 Picciocchi\u2019s Pasta, 114 Wyoming Ave.;\u00a0 P.J.\u2019s 1910 Pub, 100 Adams Ave.;\u00a0 The Roof at Oppenheim, 409 Lackawanna Ave.; Robata Sushi and Hibachi, 244 Adams Ave.; and Warney Cellar and Tap, 515 Center St.<\/p>\n

The American Independent Business Alliance started Indie Month \u2014 formerly Independents Week \u2014 as a national support-local movement in 2005. Scranton Tomorrow, a nonprofit community and economic development organization, has organized the promotion locally since 2019.<\/p>\n

Additionally, Scranton Tomorrow developed a Guide to Downtown on its website \u2014 scrantontomorrow.org\/guidetodowntown<\/a> \u2014 featuring more than 75 retailers, from restaurants to salons to entertainment venues.<\/p>\n

A report from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development found that for every $100 spent at a small business, $73 goes back into the local community.<\/p>\n

\u201cDollars spent at a small business primarily stay local, compared to a chain store or big-box store,\u201d Baldi said. \u201cLocal businesses are the backbone of a strong and vibrant community. They\u2019re the first to step up to sponsor something, or donate something, or help raise awareness for causes, so we\u2019re doing initiatives that spotlight each individual business.\u201d<\/p>\n

Baldi stressed constant collaboration between business owners has contributed to the thriving retail landscape, which has turned into more of a neighborhood.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re always willing to work with one another and they understand the concept that if someone is doing well, then everyone\u2019s doing well,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Baldi also believes several big events in downtown Scranton this summer \u2014 including a visit from the Union Pacific\u2019s Big Boy 4014 locomotive and the FIFA Fan Zone for the World Cup \u2014 energized local shops.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s sparking a lot of creativity,\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019re putting more effort into designing their outdoor eating areas, they\u2019re putting sale racks for retail on the sidewalks, and they\u2019re putting a lot of effort into social media marketing trying to capture new audiences.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AA pedestrian walks near The Garden Restaurant on North Washington Avenue in downtown Scranton Monday, July 13, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG \/ STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
\n\"RobataRobata Sushi and Hibachi is seen on Adams Avenue in downtown Scranton Monday, July 13, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG \/ STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
\n\"TheThe entrance to Bartari is seen on Adams Ave. in downtown Scranton Monday, July 13, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG \/ STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
\n\"AA man crosses N. Washington Ave. in downtown Scranton Monday, July 13, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG \/ STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"About a dozen restaurants will showcase their best offerings starting Friday as Scranton Tomorrow officials continually work to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":242503,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[60,201,182,28,178,180,179,181],"class_list":["post-242502","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-scranton","tag-business","tag-lackawanna-county","tag-local-news","tag-pennsylvania","tag-scranton","tag-scranton-headlines","tag-scranton-news","tag-top-stories-stt"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/242502","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=242502"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/242502\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/242503"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=242502"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=242502"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=242502"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}