Pub coming to Allentown Wegmans

Chain's first bar in the Valley is centerpiece of Tilghman Street expansion.

That's because the high-end grocer will add a pub to its Allentown store next year — its first in the Lehigh Valley, a company spokeswoman said Monday.

It's not unusual to find yourself caught up in a large crowd of food-shoppers at the Allentown Wegmans, but soon the popular supermarket also may be known for a different type of crowd: bar-hoppers.

The Pub is open at the Wegmans in Collegeville. Wegmans is planning a similar… (Handout, THE MORNING CALL )

The Pub at Wegmans will offer pub grub like hamburgers, steak sandwiches, fried calamari and onion rings, and of course, brews and libations. The pub will be patterned after the two pubs Wegmans already has in the region, in Collegeville and Malvern.

The pub is part of a 15,000-square-foot expansion and upgrade to the 110,000-square-foot Wegmans, which opened in 1998 at 3900 Tilghman St. The company is planning to start the work in mid-2012 and finish it in phases as early as the end of the year, spokeswoman Jeanne Colleluori said.

The project also will include an expanded kitchen, new prepared food offerings and updated equipment, Collelouri added.

Allentown was the first Lehigh Valley store for the Rochester, N.Y.-based grocer with more than 75 locations, including stores in Lower Nazareth and Hanover Township, Northampton County.

"The Allentown store has been extremely successful and we want to update it to provide the full complement of products and services found in our newer stores," Colleluori said.

Industry experts said Wegmans has built the pub concept on the success of its popular Market Café, which includes cafeteria-like offerings of prepared dishes like sushi, pizza, steak and Thai food.

"Wegmans does a lot with its food service business and this is another way to expand it," said Terri Maloney, editor of Food World, a grocery trade publication in Columbia, Md. "They are very strong in the beer and wine sales side and they try to find different ways to use that … They can add to their abilities and have it in a pub-type atmosphere."

One marketing expert said the pub concept separates Wegmans from its competition.

"I believe we are in such a strong market that the retailers need to do something to create relationships with customers and Wegmans is trying to create those relationships, said Doc Ogden, a marketing professor at Kutztown University. "This is just an expansion of the food service market and it's a fantastic idea. It adds value and they will gain more customers from it."

Wegmans has continually pushed the borders of the term "supermarket" in recent years. That includes adding entertainment such as movie nights and live bands to several of its stores, including Allentown.

Retail experts have said more supermarkets are aiming for an entertainment draw since their hold on the market is being challenged by discounters like Walmart, Dollar General and Dollar Tree.

Wegmans' Allentown store was chosen earlier this year as a "testing sites" for the chain's wine-by-the-glass feature. The vending machine placed in the dining area allows customers to enjoy a glass of vino with their meal.

tyrone.richardson@mcall.com

610-820-6779