The usual peek at SOME items I'm looking into for Sunday's Retail Watch column. 

Pacific Smoothie -- New smoothie and ice creamery in south Bethlehem. 

Weis Markets -- Update on plans for a supermarket in Fogelsville. 

Route 191 -- A lot retail changes coming to Route 191 in Bethlehem Township.

Canvas Painting Parties -- New art studio moving into downtown Bethlehem. 

RelaxAlready Hair Salon -- New salon in Bethlehem. 

Leftovers:

Pyramid Sports & Performance Center -- New sports center in Lehighton. (Saving for feature)

Saabs -- Farmers market moving into former 48 Hours Video on Route 191 in Bethlehem Township. 

Maryland Fried Chicken -- A cigar/ cigarette store is moving into the former fast food space on Bethlehem's Stefko Boulevard.  (held for details)

Frozen yogurt shop YoFresh Yogurt is planned to open Sunday next to Planet Fitness in the Tilghman Square Shopping Center in South Whitehall Township, owners said Friday.

This is the first local franchise for the frozen yogurt chain, which has dozens of locations in Texas, New Jersey and Nevada.

YoFresh Yogurt is a self-serve operation offering many flavors of the frozen treat and a toppings bar.

Frozen yogurt shops have multiplied in the Lehigh Valley in recent years. 

Other frozen yogurt peddlers planning to open include Menchie's, which is scheduled to open its first Valley shop as June in The Shops at Cedar Point, 3101 Hamilton Blvd., South Whitehall Township, according to its Facebook page.

Razzleberry Frozen Yogurt plans to open this summer next to Men's Wearhouse & Tux in the Lehigh Valley Mall.

Just a Dream Frozen Yogurt opened days ago in the Giant shopping center on Sullivan Trail in Forks Township.

These yogurt shops are riding a national frozen yogurt trend. Industry experts have said frozen yogurt's popularity is boosted by the self-serve concept that some shops employ, allowing customers options galore, from lots of flavors to toppings' bars stocked with granola, blueberries, cookie dough and cereals.

The latest frozen yogurt trend started a few years ago in New York and Los Angeles. The Valley joined the yogurt trend with the 2009 opening of Euro Yogurt in south Bethlehem. Around that time the Valley was losing its remaining TCBY shops.

Moe's Southwest Grill hosts its grand opening Friday, an event with fanfare like freebies for those lucky enough to be among the first in line. 

The fast and casual Tex-Mex restaurant at 3211 Schoenersville Road, Bethlehem, will mark its official opening by giving the first 10 customers a gift card for free burritos for a year.  The eatery opens at 11 a.m.

There's also freebies for those not among the first 10.  All customers on Friday will receive a free side of Queso, officials said.

This is the first Lehigh Valley storefront for the Atlanta-based chain known for its burritos, tacos, salads, quesadillas and fajitas.

The usual peek at SOME items I'm looking into for Sunday's column. 

Pyramid Sports & Performance Center -- New sports center in Lehighton. 

Saabs -- Farmers market moving into former 48 Hours Video on Route 191 in Bethlehem Township. 

Maryland Fried Chicken -- A cigar/ cigarette store is moving into the former fast food space on Bethlehem's Stefko Boulevard. 

Phillipsburg Mall -- Update the retail churn at the Warren County mall.

The Lehigh Valley has added several new steakhouses in recent years. 

Now, activity shifts to Lower Nazareth Township where a LongHorn Steakhouse is being constructed at Lower Nazareth Commons shopping center off Route 248, according to the restaurant's website.

In 2010, the LongHorn opened its inaugural Lehigh Valley restaurant at the former Ground Round in Whitehall Township.  That year, a LongHorn spokesman said the chain was aggressively expanding its footprint along the East Coast.

The company has two dozen locations in the Keystone State.

LongHorn is part of Atlanta-based Darden Restaurants Inc., owner of several rrestaurant chains, including Red Lobster and Olive Garden.  

Darden is known for clustering its restaurants together to cobble resources to slim costs.

This could spark hope for Easton area residents clamouring for a Red Lobster in the area.  The Valley's only Red Lobster is in Whitehall Township, surrounded by an Olive Garden and LongHorn.

LongHorn is just the latest new steakhouse for the Valley.  Chain steakhouse Logan's Roadhouse opened months ago in Airport Center in Hanover Township, Lehigh County.  

(Photo: Longhornsteakhouse.com)

Discunt grocer Bottom Dollar Food opens on Bethlehem's Stefko Boulevard Friday, officials said Thursday.

The store at 719 Stefko Blvd., opens its doors at 8 a.m.  

The first day comes with fanfare like the first 200 customers will receive a free Bottom Dollar Food reusable bag filled with groceries, according to spokeswoman Tenisha Waldo.

Bottom Dollar Food has been expanding throughout Pennsylvania in the last year. The North Carolina-based sister of grocer Food Lion already has local stores in Allentown, Fountain Hill, Whitehall Township, Lower Nazareth Township, South Whitehall Township and Quakertown.

Bottom Dollar's items are national brands like Kraft, Betty Crocker, Pepsi, Green Giant, Kellogg's and Hebrew National, in addition to its private labels like like Smart Option and Hannaford.

The stores include traditional meat and produce departments. They also have a walk-in cooler and the not-so-luxurious self-bagging feature most discount grocers offer to slim costs.

Bottom Dollar Food is among the wave of discount grocers expanding their footprint in the Lehigh Valley in recent years.  Industry experts have said cheap real estate and the sour economy are feeding growth of discount grocers such as ALDI and PriceRite.

Golden Corral is planned to open at Lehigh Valley Mall this summer, according to the mall's website.

Golden Corral plans to build a restaurant at the former Chi-Chi's restaurant spot near Macy's, according to documents filed with Whitehall Township planning officials. 

This will be the only Lehigh Valley location for the buffet chain. 

Golden Corral officials have not responded to numerous attempts to reach them.

Why is Golden Corral so popular nowadays anyway? Could it be the recent saturation of television commercials touting its $10 all-you-can-eat buffet and chocolate waterfall?

Golden Corral used to be on Chestnut Street in Emmaus but closed years ago.

Starbucks is once again planning to open a freestanding location in Airport Center. 

This is like de-ja-vu for many that remember the popular Seattle-based coffee chain initially planned a location in the Hanover Township, Lehigh County, shopping center when it opened in 2009. 

But, the Great Recession forced Starbucks and names such as Macaroni Grill, Petsmart, and FedEx Kinkos to pull back development plans in the shopping center.

In Starbucks case, the coffee peddler stopped growth and shuttered hundreds of its locations nationwide, including a handful in the Lehigh Valley, shoring up resources to cushion lackluster profits.

Things appear to be taking a turn for the better now that Starbucks is finally coming together next to The Gyro Company.

A "Coming Soon" sign adorns its front windows as construction crews were adding signage early Monday afternoon. 

Is this really a good move though?

Starbucks is already served in the Target store in the shopping center and there's a Starbucks on nearby Shoenersville Road. 

Starbucks upset some Parkland area residents when the chain shuttered nearly all locations in the area in 2008 amid its nationwide retrenching.  Why not reopen a location in Lower Macungie?

Starbucks has atleast 10 locations in the Lehigh Valley, many of which are inside area malls and Target stores.  

(Photo: The Morning Call, 2008)

The usual peek at SOME items I'm looking into for Sunday's Retail Watch column. 

Studio Fitness -- New fitness center in Bethlehem. 

Forgotten Treasure Chest -- The refurbish and re-purpose merchant has opened in Easton.

RelaxAlready Hair Salon  -- Salon has returned to Bethlehem after a stint in Hellertown. 

Starbucks -- Coffee chain is adding to its Lehigh Valley footprint. 

Leftovers: 

Mama Nina's -- Checking reports that downtown Bethlehem eatery has changed hands. 

Mobile Genius -- Downtown Allentown's popular iPhone repair store is opening a location at Montgomery Mall. 

1760 Pub & Grille -- Opened at former Maxx Regal at corner of Routes 222 and 100 in Trexlertown. 

The region's first Chipotle Mexican Grill is planned to open sometime in June, officials said.

The popular taco and burrito chain is moving into the former Corner Bakery space at Lehigh Valley Mall, mall officials said Wednesday. 

Chipotle is a Denver-based chain known for its burritos and assembly-line ordering.  The company has more than 1,200 spots across the country, including the closest to the Valley so far -- Reading and North Wales, Montgomery County.

Chipotle helped make burritos and burrito bowls very popular in recent years, spurring a lot of merchants to peddle similar fare in the Valley.

Cafe Central has closed. 

The breakfast and lunch eatery in the Alvin H. Butz Corporate Center at Hamilton and Ninth streets opened roughly a year ago.  Cafe Central was among a wave of cafes that opened in the city's downtown last year, including The Noshery and Coffee Works. 

The Noshery, a Mediterranean-theme eatery in PPL Plaza, shuttered late last year.  The Noshery and Cafe Central were heralded by downtown office workers who lamented the slim pickings of coffee shops in the area.

The usual peek at SOME Items I'm looking into for Sunday's Retail Watch column. 

Charles Paul Gem Designs -- Staple South Whitehall jeweler is going out of business. 

Dollar General -- Burgeoning discount chain planning new store in Allentown. 

Mama Nina's -- Checking reports that downtown Bethlehem eatery has changed hands. 

Keystone Pub & Grill --  Pub has opened at former Lone Star Steakhouse & Saloon on Grape Street in Whitehall Township.

leftovers: 

Mobile Genius -- Downtown Allentown's popular iPhone repair store is opening a location at Montgomery Mall. 

1760 Pub & Grille -- Opened at former Maxx Regal at corner of Routes 222 and 100 in Trexlertown. 

Emmaus Diner is up for sale. 

A deal is already in the works and the eatery could reopen within weeks with several changes, including its name, according to Gus Kartsotis of The Frederick Group, the real estate firm involved in the deal.

Kartsotis declined to identify the potential buyer, but said plans would reopen the restaurant in June with a new name and changes to the menu.

Emmaus Diner closed weeks ago, a move that comes as its owner faces charges for allegedly helping rip off an elderly borough woman of everything she owned.

Emmaus Diner has been at 1418 Chestnut St., since at least 1985, often considered an Emmaus institution.

The eatery made newspaper headlines months ago when its owner Hristos “Chris” Dimou, 49, was accused with two others in a scheme that netted $260,000 from 90-year-old Queen E. Hersh, according to court records.

Colleague Manuel Gamiz Jr., reported that District Judge Donna Butler said in February the theft of $260,000 from Hersh and the thought of losing her home likely contributed to her deteriorating health and, possibly, her death.

Hersh died in December 2008, months after she received a foreclosure notice in the mail and learning she had been taken for more than $260,000, authorities said. Her home on Greenleaf Street had been paid off for more than 20 years, authorities said.

Dimou, of Upper Milford Township, is charged with dealing in proceeds of unlawful activities, reckless endangerment, criminal conspiracy, theft, theft by deception, theft by failure to make required disposition of funds received and receiving stolen property.

(Photo: Emmausdiner.com)

The usual peek at SOME items I'm looking into for Sunday's Retail Watch column. 

Tummy  Yummy -- New eatery has replaced the former Dynasty Chinese Restaurant on State Avenue in Emmaus.

Emmaus Diner -- The shuttered eatery is up for sale. 

Wearever Wardrobe -- New boutique opened on Main Street in Emmaus. 

Just A Dream Yogurt -- Frozen yogurt eatery opening May 12 on Sullivan Trail in Forks Township. 

Mobile Genius -- Downtown Allentown's popular iPhone repair store is opening a location at Montgomery Mall. 

1760 Pub & Grille -- Opened at former Maxx Regal at corner of Routes 222 and 100 in Trexlertown. 

Burgeoning pizza chain Pizza Hut is looking to open a shop on Route 309 in North Whitehall, according to documents recently filed with the township. 

Pizza Hut wants to open a drive-through and pick-up location at 4445 Route 309.  

The chain is awaiting approval from North Whitehall planning officials.

This adds to a lot local development activity by Pizza Hut in recent years.  Pizza Hut, which is the largest pizza chain in the country, has been busy in the Valley with a few new locations and relocation of existing storefronts.

Pizza Hut was mentioned in Retail Watch last month when it moved its Lower Macungie restaurant to the Dorneyville Shopping Center in South Whitehall Township.

The chain also recently relocated its Palmer Township restaurant from the 25th Street Shopping Center to the former Crazy Jakes' BBQ Pit space on Freemansburg Avenue.

A Pizza Hut opened last year in the new Pennsylvania Plaza strip center in Allentown.

Pizza Hut has at least 10 locations in the Lehigh Valley, which makes it second to Domino's, which has at least 12 locations in the region.

(Photo: The Morning Call)

Years ago, a frozen yogurt shop in the Lehigh Valley almost always meant TCBY. 

TCBY shuttered its last Valley shop last year, but the Valley is far from lean on frozen yogurt shops.

The region has been targeted for several up and coming frozen yogurt chains that could be up and running just in time for the warm summer evenings. 

The latest to announce a new shop is So Fun! Yogurt, which is planned to open soon at Kmart shopping plaza on Route 191 in Bethlehem Township, according to James Balliet of KW Commercial-The James Balliet Commercial Group, the firm involved in the deal.

This adds to the chain's inaugural shop that opened last year in the Lower Nazareth Commons on Route 248 in Lower Nazareth Township.

Other frozen yogurt peddlers planning to open Valley spaces soon include Menchie's frozen yogurt, which will open its inaugural Valley shop by May in The Shops at Cedar Point, 3101 Hamilton Blvd., South Whitehall Township, according to its franchisee.

Richard Ryan, of Coopersburg, has said he is planning to open as many as three shops in the Valley.

YoFresh Yogurt is set to open in the spring next to Planet Fitness in the Tilghman Square Shopping Center in South Whitehall Township, its owners have said.

YoFresh Yogurt also recently inked a lease for space in the Schoenersville Center on Schoenersville Road at the border of Bethlehem and Hanover Township, Northampton County, according to Robert Thompson, of KW Commercial-The James Balliet Commercial Group.

Another addition is Just a Dream Frozen Yogurt, which is opening soon in the Giant shopping center on Sullivan Trail in Forks Township. 

Menchie's and So Fun! Yogurt are among several merchants, many of whom have been around for only a few years, riding a national frozen yogurt trend.

Industry experts have said frozen yogurt's popularity is boosted by the self-serve concept that some shops employ, allowing customers options galore, from lots of flavors to toppings bars stocked with granola, blueberries, cookie dough and cereals.

The frozen yogurt trend started year ago in New York and Los Angeles with such names as Pinkberry.

The Valley has yet to get a Pinkberry, but the region joined the yogurt trend with the 2009 opening of Euro Yogurt in south Bethlehem. About that time the Valley was losing its remaining TCBY shops. The last TCBY closed last year on Route 191 in Bethlehem Township.

(Photo: The Morning Call, 2012)

Primo Hoagies is opening a location soon in the shopping center at 25th and Butler streets in Wilson, according to James Balliet of KW Commercial-The James Balliet Commercial Group, the firm involved in the deal.

Primo has been expanding its footprint in the Lehigh Valley in recent months. 

Last year, the chain opened a location at 1403 N. Cedar Crest Blvd., South Whitehall Township.

Primo is a Philadelphia-style hoagie chain started decades ago at 1528 Ritner St. in South Philly.

Primo has since added many locations throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. There's also a location at 2410 Catasauqua Road, Bethlehem.

Emmaus Diner has closed. 

The exact reason is unknown, but the closure comes as its owner faces charges for allegedly helping rip off an elderly borough woman of everything she owned. 

Emmaus Diner has been at 1418 Chestnut St., since at least 1985, often considered an institution in the quiet Lehigh County borough.

The eatery made newspaper headlines months ago when its owner Hristos "Chris" Dimou, 49, was accused with two others in a scheme that netted $260,000 from 90-year-old Queen E. Hersh, according to court records. 

District Judge Donna Butler said in February the theft of $260,000 from Hersh and the thought of losing her home likely contributed to her deteriorating health and, possibly, her death.

Hersh died in December 2008, months after she received a foreclosure notice in the mail and learning she had been taken for more than $260,000, authorities said. Her home on Greenleaf Street had been paid off for more than 20 years, authorities said.

Dimou, of Upper Milford Township, is charged with dealing in proceeds of unlawful activities, reckless endangerment, criminal conspiracy, theft, theft by deception, theft by failure to make required disposition of funds received and receiving stolen property.

(Photo: Emmausdiner.com)

Last year, Mountainside Restaurant shed its staple fine dining ambiance for a more modest sports bar theme to coincide with new management.

The concept was short-lived since the place recently shuttered at 2270 S. Pike Ave., Salisbury Township. 

Owners said on the restaurant's Facebook page that they were unable to reach an agreement with owners of the property.

"This does come at a difficult time because things have really begun to turn around and move in the direction I think myself and the patrons would have enjoyed," owners said on the page. 

Last year, longtime friends Joe Popovich and Tim Butz assumed management of the 135-seat restaurant, which for years had been known for its white linens and fare like chicken cordon bleu, surf and turf, tenderloin tips and lobster tail.

The two said the fine dining concept has faded in the lackluster economy, while the sports bar theme seemed promising. The two changed the eatery's menu and upgraded the interior with pub-style seating, pool tables and 25 flat-screen televisions. 

(Photo: The Morning Call, 2011)

Wegmans supermarket in Allentown recently started an 18-month renovation project that will expand offerings.

But, it comes at a cost that could have some crying. 

The supermarket recently removed its Wkids fun center where people can leave their kids to play while they shop.

Spokeswoman Jo Natale said the store's Wkids space will be reconfigured for a different use. 

Natale said the chain's Wkids option is not available at all locations, especially newer and renovated stores. 

"It’s a service that parents certainly appreciated, but in the end, is used by a limited number of shoppers," Natale said. 

Locally, the service is available at the chain's Hanover Township, Northampton County store.  The Wegmans in Lower Nazareth Township does not have a Wkids, according to its website.

Construction crews are building a 15,000 square-foot addition to Wegmans' Allentown store.

The addition gives space for more cash registers and restrooms, wider aisles, more parking and expanded meat, seafood, dairy and floral departments, Natale has said.

A pub will be added later, offering grub like hamburgers, steak sandwiches, fried calamari and onion rings, and of course, brews and libations. It will be patterned after the two pubs Wegmans already has in the region, in Collegeville, Montgomery County, and Malvern, Chester County.

Moe's Southwest Grill opens its first Lehigh Valley location next month, a spokeswoman said Monday. 

The fast and casual Tex-Mex restaurant is planned to open May 10 at the former Bistro Burgers and Kabobs space at 3211 Schoenersville Road, according to spokeswoman Ashley R. Johnson. 

This is the first Lehigh Valley storefront for the Atlanta-based chain known for serving fare like burritos, tacos, salads, quesadillas and fajitas. 

Moe's has roughly 400 restaurants across the nation, including one on Easton Road in Warrington, Bucks County, the nearest to the Valley.

In 2010, Five Guys Burgers & Fries moved into a long-vacant storefront in the Trainer's Corner Shopping Center on Route 309 in Quakertown, which was originally planned to be a Moe's Southwest Grill.

(Photo: Moes.com)

Second-hand bookstore chain Read Green Books is closing all locations this week, including stores in South Mall and Palmer Park Mall, according to its Facebook page.

Palmer Park and South Mall stores will host its last day of sales on Saturday, according to workers who answered store phones Wednesday.

It was not immediately known why the chain is going out of business. Co-owner Shawn Kuhn did not respond to phone calls and emails seeking comment Wednesday.

Read Green Books was founded in 2010, opening its inaugural store at the former Waldenbooks space in South Mall. The chain later opened stores in Palmer Park Mall and Logan Valley Mall in Altoona, Blair County.

Read Green Books’ growth came as chains Waldenbooks, Borders and Barnes & Noble were shedding stores to adapt to consumers shifting to e-book readers like Nook and Kindle.

Read Green Books benefited from bookstore chain closing stores, stocking its shelves with many of its books and decorating its stores with recycled shelving and other Waldenbooks furniture.

Kuhn has said the store's $5 or less price tag for a book competed well with e-books.

(Photo: The Morning Call, 2010)

Starfish Brasserie has been an anchor of downtown Bethlehem for more than a decade, well known for its interesting seafood dishes and loyal dinner crowd.

The eatery at 51 W. Broad St., will be closing on April 14 due to its recent sale, owner Kris Sandholm said Wednesday.

Sandholm said he has sold the business to an undisclosed buyer that will keep it as Starfish and reopen it as early as late May.  Starfish opened in 2000.   The roughly 1,000-square-foot restaurant and its liquor license was listed for sale last year for $199,900, according to real estate website Loopnet.com

(Photo: The Morning Call, 2008)

The former Perkins restaurant building on Third Street in south Bethlehem has sat lifeless since July 2010. 

For weeks, the vacant space has been rumored to become Perkins again.

The rumors are correct: Perkins is reopening soon, according to Joe Kelly, Bethlehem's community and economic development director. 

A reopening date was not immediately known.  Phone calls and emails to Perkins spokeswoman Vivian Brooks were not returned Monday afternoon.

Brooks has declined to say why the Perkins closed in 2010, only saying that there's "a lot of criteria to consider when closing a restaurant."

The restaurant opened in 2000 and had been popular with Lehigh University students.

The restaurant's reopening gives a bit of good news for Perkins, the family restaurant chain that emerged from bankruptcy protection last year, but not before shuttering dozens of its roughly 600 locations due to reduced consumer spending and higher costs for ingredients such as sugar and eggs.

In recent years, the company also closed locations in the Lehigh Shopping Center on Union Boulevard in wes Bethlehem and Third Street in Easton.

Perkins currently has five locations in the Lehigh Valley. 

(Photo: The Morning Call, 2000)

The usual peek at SOME items I'm looking into for Sunday's Retail Watch column.    

Salt & Pepper Family Restaurant -- Eatery replacing former Lehigh Valley Diner on MacArthur Road. 

Keystone Pub & Grill -- Update opening plans for sports pub on Whitehall's Grape Street. 

Sole Mio Italian Grille -- Eatery moving into the space formerly The Hilltop at 204 W. Madison St, Easton.

Girlfriends Boutique -- Downtown Bethlehem women's clothing store opening a second location. 

Treasure Chest -- New store coming to downtown Easton.

Dynasty -- New eatery taking over former Dynasty Chinese Restaurant at 620 State St., Emmaus.