They never planned to get out of the food business, but after running their Scranton restaurant for five years, Gene and Miranda Philbin knew it was time for a change and a move.
“It became about survival more than the passion,” said Gene, chef and co-owner of Peculiar Kitchen. The restaurant, which served American comfort food with Asian influences, had its final dinner service on June 30.
Since then, the Philbins have continued catering and cooking for pop-up events at breweries. But they said running a full-service establishment with a bar and waitstaff that coincided with the pandemic opened their eyes to other options.
“If you worked at someone else’s restaurant and didn’t stay there forever… that’s what I did – it just happened to be our own,” Gene said.
Less than four months after the Scranton closing, the couple brought their operation to Luzerne County with a twist on the name and approach: Peculiar Market & Kitchen.
An official grand opening for the new storefront at 69 S. Main Street is set for Nov. 9, but the restaurateurs’ social media followers know they’ve been serving up dishes since the end of October.
“We just thought we’d kind of tiptoe into it and see,” Gene said. “Word got out, and we had an awesome first week.” They wanted to install a sign and awning at the storefront before an official photo-op with the city.
At their new spot, they’ve transitioned to a slate of grab-and-go items and a rotating made-to-order menu, which will still give them time to cater events, Miranda said. Think sandwiches plus their popular bao buns, tuna poke and ramen. Homemade kimchi and pickles, local honeys, sauces and sodas fill the cooler and line the shelves of the market.
Special dinners might be thrown into the rotation in Pittston, too, Gene said. They enjoyed hosting themed evenings at their 39-seat restaurant in Scranton.
The Philbins started cooking in town, but they took their menu on the road with a food truck, and eventually opened their Scranton storefront. But they said they’re happy to be back in town – they’re Pittston residents.
“Between a beautiful street, the art, they’re redoing all the buildings, the new facades. Good leadership... All in all it’s a pretty cool place to be,” Gene said of Main Street. Someone visiting downtown told Gene it reminded them of a Brooklyn neighborhood. “I thought that was pretty cool that they felt cool vibes here.”
New tables in the neighborhood
The nonprofit Downtown Pittston Partnership says the city’s year-round events and walkability are main reasons businesses are finding a home in town.
“Revitalization of downtown is a big component,” said Mary Kroptavich, main street manager at the partnership. The city attracts nearby residents with monthly art walks, seasonal gatherings like La Festa Di Natale and the Tomato Festival, and free movie screenings at the Slope Amphitheater, she said.
And Pittston is about halfway between Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. “We’re right in the middle of it all,” Kroptavich said.
Last year, Canteen Central moved from Kingston to Pittston at 22 S. Main Street, and in January, Bravo Tex-Mex opened its doors at 61 S. Main Street. Bravo's manager Sandra Padilla said owners Carlos and Angel Rosales chose to open after visiting from the Easton area, where they also run a barbershop. The brothers had a mental picture of where they wanted their restaurant, Padilla said. Once they saw Main Street, they knew it was a great match.
Fuji, known for sushi and hibachi on Main Street, opened Fuji Ramen Pittston on Nov. 5 in the former co-op building at 350 Kennedy Blvd. The Downtown Pittston Partnership held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Sunday. Coincidentally, the owners also recently opened Fuji Ramen Scranton at 307 Penn Avenue, the former location of Peculiar Kitchen.
