A popular restaurant and nightclub in downtown Bethlehem has changed hands, with the new owner implementing renovations, a curbside pick-up menu and tentative on-site dining plans for when state officials deem it safe to resume.
Corked, at 515 Main St., on March 16 was sold to a group of Lehigh Valley businessmen, headed by majority partner Chris Tiscio.
The 200-seat restaurant, occupying The Morning Call’s former Bethlehem bureau, was established in 2013 by father and son Nicolo and Joe Grisafi and their partner, Lee Yeh.
The Grisafis are now focused on their other Lehigh Valley restaurants — Joe at his newly opened Pizza Joint in east Allentown and Nicolo at South Whitehall Township’s 2 1/2 -year-old Vivo Italian Kitchen, which he operates with his other son, Paolo.
Corked’s transfer of ownership was finalized on the day that Gov. Tom Wolf implemented statewide COVID-19 mitigation efforts, subsequently closing restaurants’ dining rooms.
“We took over the day the economy shut down,” Tiscio said. “I’ll never forget that.”
Tiscio, of Bethlehem, and his three partners were attracted to the Main Street space primarily due to the high-energy atmosphere that downtown Bethlehem restaurants, shops and tourist attractions create.
The group used the temporary shutdown of the business’ dining rooms to upgrade its facilities, including adding new furniture, televisions and a sound system.
The restaurant and nightclub, now known as Corked 2.0, also received lighting enhancements, including new LED, computer-controlled lighting that can “change the mood in any room,” Tiscio said.
“We’re hoping to bring Corked back to its roots,” Tiscio added.
In addition to changing the restaurant’s appearance, the partners also modified the menu, adding several made-from-scratch items such as salads with house-made dressing, Tiscio said.
A curbside pick-up menu, which debuted three weeks ago, consists of items that will be on Corked 2.0’s full menu when it reopens for dine-in service.
Highlights include shareables such as charcuterie and bruschetta caprese, salads such as Caesar and mozzarella tomato, “from the grill” selections such as grilled marinated chicken and a Corked burger, entrees such as grilled maple salmon and chicken Parmesan and sides such as edamame and loaded fries.
Items that will be added to the full menu later include pizzas, risotto, scallops and vegan options, among others.
“[The response] has actually been pretty good,” Tiscio said of the condensed menu, which is available for curbside pick-up and delivery through DoorDash 4-8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday. “Our signature item is the truffle burger, which has been very popular. The smoked gouda mac and cheese and slow-roasted short rib have also been big sellers.”
Much of Corked’s original staff has been retained, including executive chef Allan Dotterer, Tiscio said.
Once the business can resume dine-in operations, it will open at 4 p.m. Thursday through Sunday for dinner service, with brunch also being offered on Sundays.
“As soon as the nightclub can reopen, it’s ready,” Tiscio added. “It will have the same DJs from New York and Philadelphia at 10 p.m. We’ll also have a house DJ, DJ Aretto, who’s been here forever.”
Like many Lehigh Valley restaurateurs, Tiscio and his partners have been brainstorming about how dining service will be carried out once state officials give the green light for restaurants to resume such operations.
Despite not knowing details surrounding the state’s plans, Tiscio is already anticipating using disposable menus, requiring staff to wear masks and seating customers at tables that are at least 6 feet apart.
“We’ll probably fill every other table, so we don’t have anyone near each other,” Tiscio explained. “But I don’t know what’s going to happen. I’m assuming we’ll be filling about 25 percent of the place. And seeing as we’re not going to have nightlife, we could put tables in the lounge area in order to spread everybody out.”
If state officials decide to allow on-site dining to resume outdoors at first, Tiscio notes that Corked 2.0’s facade features floor-to-ceiling windows that open to a sidewalk patio, accommodating about 30 patrons.
“We’re also thinking about doing [disposable cups] for cocktails,” said Tiscio, noting sales of to-go alcoholic slushies should begin within the next week and a half.
To view Corked 2.0’s curbside pick-up menu, visit the business website, corkedbethlehem.com, or its Facebook page, Corked Bar, Grill, Nightclub. Orders can be placed by calling 610-625-9463.
