Hug your “right outside of Philly” folks a little bit closer today.

Bradley’s Cheesesteaks & Hoagies, located at 119 S. Pugh St., closed its doors after 14 years in business.

The family-owned-and-operated hoagie shop opened in November 2008 at the corner of South Pugh Street and Calder Way in an effort to bring the “soul of Philadelphia” to State College.

Originally, the shop hails from Stone Harbor, New Jersey, and had been in business for more than 20 years. Bradley’s has another State College location at 1669 N. Atherton St.

Owner Ben Lippincott explained that Bradley’s didn’t lose its lease, but “the balance of personal/professional life events were knocked ‘out of sync’ with all the disruptions that the pandemic [presented].”

The North Atherton location and the seasonal location at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park aren’t going anywhere, though.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the owners were hoping to expand to a larger downtown storefront and a third regional location this spring. Those plans are halted, for now.

“It’s harder to predict the future lately, but more than likely this is not a true ‘Goodbye’ to downtown State College, just a ‘So Long, For Now’ as I intend to follow through on my previous plans as soon as possible,” Lippincott said.

Lippincott also shared that his other business venture, the pub next door to the Blue & White Bottle Shop on West Beaver Avenue, is coming along. The bottle shop opened last September, though there were significant delays for the pub related to supply-chain and the pandemic. He expects the most popular Bradley’s menu items to be available downtown again soon at the Blue & White Pub.

“Recently, the Pub is coming along more quickly, and when it fully opens, Bradley’s menu will be available with the addition of Beer & Wine, for delivery,” Lippincott said. “Keep an eye out for updates this semester for opening information.”

The South Pugh Street location is now available for lease through Continental Real Estate Management.

“Small businesses are really about the people, and they make it all worthwhile,” Lippincott said. “To the hundreds of characters that have been a part of Bradley’s on Pugh Street, I thank you. Pugh Street will always be near to my heart because it gave me the opportunity to build a family and home in parallel with a livelihood, but mostly because of the amazing people that it brought into my life, and the honor of being a part of theirs.”