ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The Downtown Allentown Market is set to open its door for the last time this month.
City Center plans to shutter the food hall April 17, less than six years after it opened because it “did not meet our long-term expectations,” Vice President Jill Wheeler said Thursday.
“This closing does not diminish the exciting culinary scene emerging downtown."Jill Wheeler, City Center vice president
“This closing does not diminish the exciting culinary scene emerging downtown but marks our strategic shift to helping restaurateurs lease their own spaces with greater visibility and set their own hours,” Wheeler said.
Executives are “grateful for the support of our vendors and customers,” she said.
City Center, the most prominent developer in downtown Allentown, plans to repurpose the 12,000-square-foot space on the bottom floor of its STRATA West apartment complex to “support our residential business,” she said.
Just three businesses remain in the Downtown Allentown Market and will close in two weeks: Johnny’s ArtsWalk Diner, Zahra and Chez’s Delicatessen. Three others left in March.
The Downtown Allentown Market was billed as a new culinary destination in the city when it opened in 2019.
Celebrity chef Robert Irvine, who had a restaurant in the food hall, helped build buzz for it.
The market featured space for nine establishments, though it often operated with fewer.
