debuted in July 2024<\/a> and represented a culinary comeback for Moniak.<\/p>\n ![\"The](\"data:image\/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAQAAAADCAQAAAAe\/WZNAAAAEElEQVR42mM8U88ABowYDABAxQPltt5zqAAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==\")
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The Wicked Chef owner John Walter Moniak poses inside his restaurant at 279 Cetronia Road in South Whitehall Township in July 2024.<\/p>\n
Ryan Kneller<\/p>\n
Moniak originally opened the eatery at the same location in October 2019 before closing the business less than a year later in July 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n
At the time, Moniak cited the pandemic\u2019s \u201cdevastating effect\u201d on his business as the reason for ending operations.<\/p>\n
Four years later, he was back in the same kitchen cooking up the same \u201cwicked\u201d delicious sandwiches, salads and sides.<\/p>\n
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The Wicked Chef offers \u201cfresh homemade food with a twist.\u201d Pictured is the “Twisted Chicken” sandwich.<\/p>\n
The Wicked Chef<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m super happy to be here, in the same spot where The Wicked Chef started,\u201d Moniak told 69 News in July 2024. \u201cCooking is my passion, and when the opportunity came along to do it again, I thought to myself, \u2018I\u2019m not getting any younger. I\u2019m going to do what I love.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
The Wicked Chef serves up hand-crafted, creative fare, including \u201cThe Mojo\u201d sandwich (smoked pulled pork, beef brisket, applewood-smoked bacon, pickled red onions, zesty Carolina barbecue sauce and pickles on an onion ciabatta roll), \u201cThe Gobbler\u201d sandwich (fresh ground turkey breast, smoked gouda, roasted red peppers, arugula and balsamic roasted tomatoes on a brioche roll) and \u201cThe \u2018Mac\u2019 Gowan\u201d (traditional mac and cheese \u201ckicked up to the next level\u201d with smoked gouda and a blend of extra sharp cheeses, topped with applewood-smoked bacon and balsamic roasted tomatoes).<\/p>\n
There are also nods to Moniak\u2019s Polish heritage, including placek ziemnoaczany (potato pancakes, served with sour cream and chunky homemade apple sauce).<\/p>\n
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The Wicked Chef offers\u00a0placek ziemnoaczany (Polish potato cakes, served with sour cream and chunky homemade apple sauce).<\/p>\n
Ryan Kneller<\/p>\n
Other menu highlights include smoked brisket hash (smoked brisket atop a bed of home fries with a poached egg and drizzle of lemon cr\u00e8me fraiche) and smoked pork or brisket “Nacho Libre” (fresh tortilla chips, cheddar cheese sauce, sliced jalapenos, black olives, pico de gallo and sour cream).<\/p>\n
Moniak, who holds degrees in culinary arts and food service management from Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island, leads The Wicked Chef\u2019s culinary team.<\/p>\n
The business has been a family affair with his late father, John Moniak Jr., his wife, Georgiann Moniak, and son, Chase, assisting with operations over the years.<\/p>\n
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Ryan Kneller<\/p>\n
Within an hour, the closing announcement had garnered dozens of reactions and comments, primarily from individuals extending warm wishes to the ownership and staff.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo sorry to hear of your father\u2019s passing and that you are closing,\u201d one person commented. \u201cWe love your food. Best wishes for your next chapter!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile we fully support your family and your decision, we also recognize how greatly you will be missed,\u201d another person wrote. \u201cAbsolutely irreplaceable.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The Wicked Chef<\/p>\n
The Wicked Chef also debuted a food truck<\/a> last year, and its future is unclear.<\/p>\nIn response to one person\u2019s comment inquiring if the food truck will continue, the business replied \u201cstill in the air, but probably not.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"S. WHITEHALL TWP., Pa. \u2013 A family-run eatery will soon end operations in Lehigh County. The Wicked Chef,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":89143,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[119,121,120,748,7570,1515,44225,44219,44223,44222,44220,44226,44228,44218,44221,44224,433,157,44217,35848,28,44227,33762,664,44216],"class_list":["post-89142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-allentown","tag-allentown","tag-allentown-headlines","tag-allentown-news","tag-chase","tag-chef","tag-food","tag-food-service-management","tag-food-truck","tag-food-truck-last-year","tag-fresh-homemade-food","tag-fresh-tortilla-chips","tag-georgiann","tag-georgiann-moniak","tag-john-moniak-jr","tag-john-walter-moniak","tag-johnson-wales-university","tag-lehigh-county","tag-lehigh-valley","tag-lehigh-valley-chef","tag-online-announcement","tag-pennsylvania","tag-providence","tag-rhode-island","tag-south-whitehall-township","tag-wales-university"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89142","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=89142"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89142\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/89143"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=89142"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=89142"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=89142"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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