A fast-casual restaurant known for its tasty cheesesteaks and nostalgic vibes is in the midst of a transitional period in the Lehigh Valley.<\/p>\n
The Allentown location of Wiz Kidz, a 1980s- and ’90s-themed restaurant offering cheesesteaks, fries, pierogies and more, permanently closed in December at 751 Union Blvd., while the business\u2019 original Bethlehem location is temporarily closed at 65 E. Elizabeth Ave., co-owner Mo Taylor told 69 News.<\/p>\n
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Wiz Kidz’s original location is pictured on East Elizabeth Avenue in Bethlehem.<\/p>\n
Ryan Kneller<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been working over the last six months on restructuring the ownership and things of that nature, and we just ultimately decided that that [Allentown] location was one that we were not going to continue,\u201d Taylor said.<\/p>\n
Taylor and his partners – Cristian Duarte, Jerry Straub and Matt Weaver – opened the first Wiz Kidz location in 2018 at 65 E. Elizabeth Ave. in Bethlehem.<\/p>\n
The former Allentown location opened in July<\/a> and represented a strategic shift for Wiz Kidz, which closed its 3.5-year-old location on Freemansburg Avenue in Bethlehem Township<\/a> in April to expand operations in the western portion of the Lehigh Valley.<\/p>\n The former Freemansburg Avenue location and the business’ original location on Elizabeth Avenue in Bethlehem operated about five miles away from each other, and the partners noticed a lot of overlap in terms of delivery orders, Taylor said.<\/p>\n The goal in opening the Allentown location was to serve more people throughout the Lehigh Valley, Taylor added.<\/p>\n Wiz Kidz’s former Allentown location is pictured at 751 Union Blvd.\u00a0<\/p>\n Ryan Kneller<\/p>\n The future of Wiz Kidz\u2019s original Bethlehem location is uncertain as the restructuring of the business\u2019 ownership continues to play out.<\/p>\n \u201cWe definitely want to continue that [Bethlehem] location,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cIt\u2019s really going to depend on ownership and management and what the structure is going to look like.\u201d<\/p>\n Taylor also noted that there are possibilities that the Bethlehem Wiz Kidz location could reopen under a different owner or ownership group or that it could not reopen at all.<\/p>\n If the Bethlehem eatery does reopen, it will likely be within the next few weeks, Taylor said.<\/p>\n Updates will be shared on the business\u2019 social media pages, Taylor added.<\/p>\n Wiz Kidz<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re kind of in the middle of a holding pattern, but the one thing that I would say is regardless of what way things go, gift cards \u2013 whether they\u2019re branded Wiz Kidz or The Bayou \u2013 can be redeemed at The Bayou,\u201d Taylor said.<\/p>\n Taylor and his partners have operated as the Bayou Boys Hospitality Group, with the name stemming from their nearly 12-year-old restaurant, The Bayou, serving a unique \u201cblend of traditional Southern flavors and modern American cooking” on Hawthorne Road in Bethlehem.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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