From left to right: owner Jane and Morgan Heimbbecker, marketing director Amber Grace

Le Femme Boutique, located at 1931 W. Tilghman Street in the old Splitendz Salon,  will host its ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday, February 1 at 5:30 p.m. The event is open to the public and will feature free food and wine, a trunk show, as well as an opportunity to meet the owner, Jane Heimbecker, and her daughter and co-0wner, Morgan, both lifelong West End residents.

“We are so happy we’re going to be a part of the 19th Street corridor,” Jane Heimbecker said. “I’m so psyched about the changes coming to the area. I really think that in a few years we’re going to have a great little shopping area here.”

Heimbecker launched a mail-order designer dress business in 2009, but due to its success, realized she needed a storefront to allow it to grow further. Le Femme Boutique features more than 30 designer gown lines, personal service, and private dressing rooms. The store carries one of each dress (so you don’t have to worry about prom body doubles) and can help arrange for tailoring to fit your size. Prom’s only one focus of the business, too. Jane says their dress styles are also fitting for mother-of-the-bride, charity events, or other special occasions where mall offerings may not do.

And listen up ladies: The first 100 people to make a purchase at Le Femme Boutique receive a free pair of rhinestone earrings.

“It’s a big girl thing in here,” Jane Heimbecker says. “We will  have people in here hugging us as they leave. Just you watch.”

Jane also says she’s begun working with other fashion businesses such as Step in 4 Mor and BoutiqueToGo in the area to create a shopping network within the West End.

Interested in applying for a part-time position? Le Femme Boutique is hiring. Stop by the ribbon cutting on Wednesday or give the shop a call at 610.392.6760.

Last Friday night, 88 people sat down to the sold-out inaugural dinner hosted by the West End Gastro Club. Attendees were greeted by live music, food-focused artwork, and candlelit tables, as aromas of the meal to come escaped from the back kitchen of the West End Youth Center. Hold your dodgeball jokes. WEGC founders Luis Loayza and Tim Howells put together an inviting, intimate, and seamless night of food and entertainment.

The menu, designed by Loayza and Howells, rivaled some of the most established restaurants in the Lehigh Valley and included duck confit, shrimp gumbo, wild boar belly, and a riff on Hess’ Patio’s strawberry dessert.

Each dish also arrived with a beer crafted by local Lehigh Valley homebrewers and ranged from a spin on Newcastle Brown Ale to a French-style saison. Guests also brought their own bottles of wine and shared at long tables positioned around the hall.

What’s next for the West End Gastro Club? If you missed out on the amazing food at the first event—or just want another taste—tickets are still up for sale for this Sunday’s pub takeover at Jack Callaghan’s Ale House over at the WEGC FaceBook page. Loayza said he’s encouraged by the turnout and the response he and Howells have been receiving from the community. More guerilla-style dining events await the West End’s gastronomic future, he says.

“The one event that we will be trying to launch for April is a West End chili contest, at the West End Youth Center, with proceeds going the center,” Loayza says.

West Enders, start prepping your chili pots…

UPDATE: Buy your tickets for the event here. Seats are going fast!

Or, feel free to check out the WEGC’s Facebook page or blog.

What is the West End Gastro Club? Frustrated with the lack of respect West End Allentown receives for it’s great restaurant scene and potential to draw in additional eateries, lifelong West End resident Luis Loayza and friend Tim Howells decided to take matters into their own hands stomachs.

“In terms of a restaurant scene, there’s no reason for 19th Street not to be like Main Street in Bethlehem,” said Loayza, hanging out at Jack Callaghan’s Ale House one night last week. “I know the people of the West End love good food. We need something like a gastro club.”

Loayza has spent years working in the restaurant industry as a beverage specialist. He’s currently employed by Starfish Brasserie in Bethlehem with Howells, a chef. “We’ve been talking about this idea of a gastro club for years,” says Loayza. “Now we almost can’t believe it’s actually happening.”

Depending upon the success of the first dinner, Loayza and Howells would like to host monthly dinners at the West End Youth Center, which would seat about 100 people. Their additional ideas include a West End chili cook-off competition, beer pairing dinners, pop-up style restaurants, and pub “takeovers,” where guest chefs would create a special menu for a local pub for a limited time.

“We have so many ideas,” says Loayza. “Now all we need is for people to come out and eat.”

Hungry? We thought so. To hold you over until the first Jan 20th dinner, check out the tentative menu for the event…

Amuse

Sweet potato blini

duck confit/onion jam/fried sage

First Course

Shrimp and grits

tomato jam/chorizo/ quail egg

 Second Course

Tostones

cumin pork/ plantains/ tomato onion relish/ avocado crema

Third Course

Duck with Rice

Seared Breast/ Cilantro-Pea Rissotto/ Roasted Red Pepper Puree/ Crispy Skin

Fourth Course

Cider Braised boar belly

roasted applesauce/potato foam

Fifth Course

Patio Dessert

 strawberry tart/ whipped cream/ pistachios

2012 is going to be a big year for the West End, neighbors. Want to help improve the neighborhood? Consider helping out with this blog! We’re looking for writers, photographers, area historians, or simply people who know about the West End to contribute. Don’t think you have the expertise? Don’t worry. Just email us at AllentownWestEnd@gmail.com and we’ll find a way for you to get involved.

* 19^th Street merchants are sponsoring a wine tasting with Blair Vineyards

* Boutique to Go (522 N 19th Street) will host a Ted Rossi Trunk Show between 11:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m

* Pavlack Law Office (1908 W Allen Street) will offer a divorce consultation between 5:00 and 8:00 p.m. for the first three people to visit the office

* Susan Bella Jewelry (1746 W Allen Street) has marked special items for clearance and they’ll be available all day

* Allentown Appliance (1824 W Allen Street) will give you $100 off any purchase $399.00 and up, between 5:00 and 8:00 p.m.

* Jimmy’s Barbershop (526 N St. Cloud Street) will cut $3 off for first-time customers

* Visit Nails by Linda (1830 W Green Street) for a chance to win a facial at the salon

* Bonnie’s Flower Boutique (526 N St. Cloud Street) for off free delivery

This Saturday, October 1, marks the yearly West End Oktoberfest. The festivities begin at noon and stretch until 10:00 p.m. The Civic Theatre will provide a moon bounce, games, and pumpkin painting for the kids. Adults can enjoy a mug full of fresh, cold beer from the Allentown Brewworks to wash down food items ranging from classic German fare to traditional carnival offerings. Have your mug from last year’s event? Bring it along for a discount on your first fill-up.

This year will also feature not one, but two music stages for polka, rock, and jam bands. The Allentown Fairgrounds was kind enough to provide power for the event to keep the party going. Air Products will also host a liquid nitrogen demonstration at 1:00 and 2:15 p.m. and drawings of the new 19^th Street rehabilitation project will be on display.

Gather your friends, your family, and your neighbors and come out to enjoy the event. The West End Oktoberfest is not only a big money maker for the West End Alliance and the Lehigh Valley Arts Council, but a heck of a good time, too.

This Allentown coffee shop on 19th Street has been welcoming caffeine-seekers into its doors for 12 years running, but it wasn’t until proprietress Dannielle Makdesi took over the property from the former owner three years ago that the place recently began to adopt its own vibe.

“I wanted to create a place where people could feel at home,” says Makdesi. “I wanted a place where people could feel comfortable, buy a cup of coffee, and relax.” Since taking over ownership of the shop, Makdesi, a former accountant, has upgraded the coffee quality, dropped in new furniture, added new food items (try the avocado and artichoke chicken wrap), and even painted the walls orange herself. To further add a splash of character she contacted local artists to help paint the shop’s tables and chairs, each a unique canvas.

Makdesi runs the business herself, along with her daughter and a few volunteers and often works 16-hour days, she says. “It was difficult at first, rebuilding the business. I had to basically start from scratch,” Makdesi says. So she began hosting events to build a clientele and she’s seeing the business build momentum.

Depending on the night, you’ll find  wordsmiths reading at poetry night, college students competing at board game night, local bands rocking to caffeinated crowds, or small congregations of moviegoers enjoying the sidewalk seating (usually with a snack in hand) before or after a flick at the Civic.

“I completely enjoy 19th Street and I want to see it grow. The local business owners—we’re like a family,” says Makdesi. “We complement each other.” When she’s not at Hava Java working her butt off, Makdesi, an Allentown resident, enjoys running at the Parkway, shopping locally, and dining at Henry’s Salt of the Sea.

Regarding the planned rehabilitation of 19th Street and the surrounding areas, Makdesi says: “I think we’re worth it. Although the economy is tough, none of us on this street are scared. We are going to keep on trucking and make this street the Rodeo Drive of Allentown.”

So the next time you’re struck with a coffee jonze, go local. Stop by Hava Java, say hi to Dannielle, and stay awhile. Yes, the coffee’s good, but the feeling you’ll have when you leave is even better.

Hava Java is located on 526 N 19th Street. Poetry night is Tuesday from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Come see live music at the same time on Thursdays and Saturday. And if you’re looking for a chess partner, stop by on Friday nights. Give them a call at 610.432.3045 or check out their Facebook page.

After a rainy afternoon, the sun finally made an appearance in the evening, as did the first of the cool autumnal air. Residents, area leaders, and business owners all milled about the neighborhood, enjoying the live music, free food, and shopping deals. Here are a few photos from the night, but they’re a poor stand-in for experiencing the event firsthand. Take a look, then promise us you’ll come out for the next Third Thursday.

A sign marking the block of 19th Street between Allen and Liberty. Like the new logo?

19th Street storefronts, open for business. Many people at the event window-shopped, then hit the Civic Theatre for an evening movie.

Further up North on 19th, made-to-order hot dogs. This one with extra mustard.

Allentown Appliance rocked the party with dogs on the grill, beer, and live music that drew crowds until the sun came down.

If you have any pictures of the event—or of any of the West End’s happenings or beauty—send them along to AllentownWestEnd@gmail.com and we’ll post them on this blog.

What’s in store? Live music, delicious food, awesome shopping, and the open-for-business attitude that makes the West End an exciting place to spend a few hours. Come out, bring friends and family, meet your local mom-and-pop business owners, and generally just have a good time. Let’s make this event a success, neighbors. From the looks of it, we want plenty more Third Thursdays to come.

“Great things are happening. This plan will help create a destination location in the 19th Street corridor. A lot of things you’ve been talking about for a while are really happening. This is just not conceptual anymore,” Pawlowski said, speaking to a group of about 40 local property owners, realtors, and citizens in Civic’s Theatre 514.

The plan he referenced is the 3-million streetscaping project designed to visually revitalize the neighborhood, beginning with 19th Street between Liberty Street and Allen Street and eventually extending northwards and in other directions should funds provide. Improvements are planned to include the following:

• Adding new crosswalks
• Planting new and replacing existing trees
• Installing potted planters
• Acquiring bike racks
• Enhancing and adding pedestrian lighting
• Upgrading the entrance to the Civic Theatre
• Laying brick accents into sidewalks
• Encouraging sidewalk seating for local businesses
• Installing benches
• Adding a kiosk with information about the West End

The overall concept is designed to give the area a cohesive visual appeal, increase foot traffic, and draw more businesses with improved curb appeal. The designers project that phase 1 construction will begin some time before the end of the year.

Additionally, the Allentown Fairgrounds plans to replace the existing fence around the perimeter of their property with new, more modern fencing. So a big thanks to the fairgrounds too, huh?

There’s still time to voice your comments, suggestions, concerns, or high praise. Feel free to add your thoughts to the comments section and we’ll make sure they’re heard.

Want to hear about all the exciting new developments? Come to the Thursday, September 8^th public meeting of the West End Alliance. It begins at 6:30 p.m. (Note the start time has been delayed from 6:00 p.m.) and takes place in Theatre 514 (514 N 19^th Street). Mayor Ed Pawlowski himself and Allentown’s Director of Planning Michael Hefle will be in attendance to discuss the coming redevelopment plan. You’ll see architectural plans on display for the 500 block of N. 19^th Street and hear about further stages of the development.

Come and show your support for positive change and investment in the West End. Big things are just a few blocks away…