The Wooden Match, a gastropub and cigar bar where great flavors, great music, and great company come together, will host a visit from America's Best Restaurants in early May.
America's Best Restaurants will bring its "ABR Roadshow" to the restaurant on May 6. This national media and marketing company focuses on highlighting local, independently owned restaurants. The episode will be aired on social media channels at a later date. Housed in the historic former Bethlehem Station, a train depot that served travelers in the Lehigh Valley for nearly a century, The Wooden Match has been open since 2010.
The business was originally founded by Cigars International, an international retailer of cigars and tobacco accessories. While it is now owned by Vincent Randazzo, the popular eatery continues its iteration as a cigar bar, along with a gastropub menu, live music, and special events. Guests can enjoy primers such as bone-in or boneless wings (with choice of sauce), "A Sweet Dill" (Match IPA-breaded house pickles and chipotle ranch), "Hoss pierogies" (deep fried or sauteed, caramelized onions, sour cream and red wine demi glace) and "Leave The Gun.... Take the Burrata" (house-made burrata dip, tri-color peppercorns, basil chiffonade, roasted grape tomatoes and grilled naan), along with sandwiches and burgers such as a "Donut Delite" (10-ounce prime beef patty, Cooper sharp, applewood-smoked bacon and grilled glazed donuts), "Pride of Philly" (shaved ribeye, caramelized onions, white cheddar cheese sauce and Egypt Star Bakery French bread), "Don't Call Me Chicken" (breaded fried chicken, applewood-smoked bacon, chipotle ranch, red onion, shredded romaine and toasted Egypt Star Bakery French bread) and "Pigs in Zen" (10-ounce prime beef patty, guava barbecue, slow-cooked pork, applewood smoked bacon, dill pickles, pepper slaw, cheddar and toasted brioche roll).
Other menu highlights include a variety of salads, wraps, and entrees, including "Porky Pig" (peppercorn-dusted, French-cut, bone-in 16-ounce pork chop, fresh herbed compound butter, parmesan risotto, and shaved Brussels sprouts with bacon lardons) and "Deliverance" (Faroe Island salmon, hot honey butter, shaved Brussels sprouts with bacon lardons, and parmesan risotto). An extensive cigar menu and full bar, with a wide array of craft beers, are also available.
The Wooden Match, featuring a dark, vintage vibe, is on the National Register of Historic Places along with the adjacent former freight house, now home to a wine and cheese bar, Artisan Wine & Cheese Cellars. The historic site served travelers in the Lehigh Valley for nearly a century. Passenger service to Bethlehem began near the site in 1868, and a few years later, the Central Railroad of New Jersey constructed a train station in 1873. Hundreds of thousands of people — including notable figures such as presidents Teddy Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman — passed through before passenger service ended in the 1960s, the historical account continues.
Popular menu items that may be featured on the episode include the "Fatman Scoop" appetizer (Hoss pierogies, Cooper sharp cheese, shaved ribeye, red wine demi-glace, caramelized onions and an over-easy egg) and the Harry S. Truman "Campaign Stop Ribeye" (French-cut, bone-in 20-ounce ribeye, parmesan risotto, shaved Brussels sprouts with bacon lardons and truffle chive butter).
America's Best Restaurants will be filming on location from 3 to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, May 6. The restaurant will announce the finished episode premiere date on its Facebook page and feature it on America's Best Restaurants' website. Restaurants featured on the ABR Roadshow were selected based on their customer reviews, menu items, social media presence, and level of involvement with their communities.
The Wooden Match, at 61 W. Lehigh St., is open daily. For more information, call 610-865-1777 or visit thewoodenmatch.com.
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