A beloved brewery and restaurant is preparing to infiltrate the Lehigh Valley food scene. Iron Hill Brewery will be opening in the Lehigh Valley Mall in early 2024, reports The Philadelphia Business Journal.
Iron Hill will be taking over the space Bravo! Cucina Italiana vacated last autumn. The bar and restaurant is planning to open the doors at 950 Lehigh Lifestyle Center in March or April of 2024. The new location will be Iron Hill’s first in the Lehigh Valley.
The Whitehall location is the latest step in Iron Hill’s expansion plans. The chain is aiming to open two new restaurants a year for the foreseeable future. This marks an alteration from the brand’s far more aggressive 2022 goal of opening five locations annually, over the span of five years.
Iron Hill CEO Chris Wescott explains the amended business plan, stating “One or two locations a year while the world continues to settle down, and the business community continues to settle down, we feel is the right pace of growth at this time.”
The company is focusing on smaller, suburban markets for future restaurants. It is specifically pursuing locations in Baltimore, Northern Virginia, and North Carolina.
Iron Hill Brewery made its debut in 1996, in Newark, Delaware. The restaurant has grown to include 21 locations spread across New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Georgia, with the vast majority operating in the Greater Philadelphia area.
Iron Hill recently amended and updated its food menu. The Lehigh Valley location will feature this new selection, which provides beer pairings for many dishes. The food menu offers a wide range of pub favorites, including nachos, tacos, burgers, and hearth baked pizzas.
