EASTON, Pa. — The largest residential project in Easton's history also will be a dining destination, developers announced Wednesday.
The Marquis, at 27 S. 3rd St., which will include 264 apartments, also will have three restaurants, City Center Residential, the property management company behind the project, said.
They are Amigos, a fast-casual Mexican restaurant with a location in downtown Allentown; ZEN, a new bar and lounge concept from the owners of Amigos; and The Joint Coffee Co., a café, City Center said.
“We are thrilled to add three different great restaurants to The Marquis building for our residents and the public to enjoy.”Marquis Senior Community Manager Meagan Walsh
All will all open this summer on the ground floor of The Marquis, which will welcome its first residents in May.
With the announcement, City Centre said it has leased all the building's retail space.
“We are thrilled to add three different great restaurants to The Marquis building for our residents and the public to enjoy,” Marquis Senior Community Manager Meagan Walsh said.
“Amigos, ZEN, and Joint Coffee Co. all have top-notch operators, and each restaurant will add vibrancy to the downtown Easton community.”
Joint Coffee Co. will occupy 1,300 square feet at 3rd and Ferry streets. Amigos will take up the 1,200-square-foot space next door, which connects to the 700-square-foot space that ZEN will occupy.
With the three restaurants’ hours of operation combined, The Marquises ground floor will be open and active from 7 a.m. to 12 a.m. daily. On weekends, Amigos plans to offer late-night service until 3 a.m.
'Very vibey'
Kevin Rodriguez, co-owner of ZEN and Amigos, said the decision to make Zen happen was natural.
Rodriguez and Angel Ramirez said the setup at The Marquis was perfect, with Rodriguez saying “since we’re going to be opening a second location in Easton, we decided, you know what, why not take that retail space that’s available next to Amigos Easton.”
“Our vision there is to have the type of bar that's comfy, where you could sit down, you could have a nice cocktail, have professionals making your drink, have a very vibey place, where you see a lot of plants there, it's kind of dark, it's relaxed, and you have a lot of DJs on the weekends, and deep house,” Rodriguez said.
“We want to bring something different downtown Easton, something that you can’t really find out there.”
For those who get a little hungry after enjoying a few cocktails at Zen, there will be a door which leads directly into Amigos, Rodriguez said.
According to Rodriguez, this latest venture is just another example of how much they love the Lehigh Valley.
“We're serious entrepreneurs. We've had businesses here in the valley for over 10 years. We have a cleaning company, Mr. Greens, we have a two car washes, one in Whitehall, one in Easton, which is called Champion Hand Wash.
"And you know, we've been in hospitality for a long time, and we're super excited to go to Easton and show them our talent,” Rodriguez said.
Already 30% leased
The Marquis is City Center's first apartment community outside Allentown.
The company also announced Wednesday it has leased 30 percent of The Marquises apartments.
The seven-story, $70 million building occupies the block between Pine and Ferry streets, having replaced the aging Pine Street Garage on South 3rd Street.
It features attached parking and high-end amenities like an infinity pool and a private dog park.
Designed by Core States Group, The Marquis offers studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom apartments.
The pet-friendly building also features a lounge with a fireplace, a dog park with outdoor seating, a co-working lounge, a courtyard with a firepit, grills, bocce and cornhole, a rooftop deck, and a vanishing-edge swimming pool with a sun shelf.
While The Marquis will have new restaurants, its apartments provide open gourmet kitchens with a stainless-steel Energy Star appliance package, soft-close drawers, quartz countertops, and subway-tile backsplashes.
Each apartment has luxury vinyl-wood plank flooring, full-sized stackable washers and dryers, and premium finishes throughout.
The building will provide controlled access, community-wide Wi-Fi, and bike storage, as well as onsite professional management, 24/7 urgent maintenance, and concierge services like pet walking.
The Marquis was built by North Star Construction under a joint venture between City Center Group and Bethlehem’s Peron Development.
