Yay, it's after Lent, so I can finally enjoy a steak on a Friday if I so desire.
My husband and I chose to drive out to Clymer to eat at Stoneybank Restaurant. You will find it on the left hand side as enter Clymer -- almost right across from Sheetz. The building itself is made of, um, stone.
When we entered the restaurant we ended up being greeted by who we believe to be the owner/executive chef. From what I understand, he cooked for many years at the Indiana Country Club (don't quote me on that exact statement, though). We were seated right away in the main dining area, which is designated as non-smoking. A very separate bar room exists for those who want to smoke or simply enjoy a few adult beverages.
The decor is very simple and down to earth. It's enough to make you feel comfortable but still has a nice feel to it.
Our waiter was really friendly, but you could tell he wasn't very experienced. I cut him some slack in that department. It's a tough job. Heck, I barely lasted 3 weeks doing it myself years ago. He wasn't a bad waiter -- he just forgot to bring us our bread/butter and forgot to bring a pen with the bill for the table next to us.
The menu has a nice assortment of classic American food plus weekly specials. These specials are typically based on seasonality and availability. They had a decent wine list of which I selected the more expensive of the two cabernet which had a nice hint of oak. Very tasty.
We both ended up ordering steak -- filet mignon, in fact. What's cool is you can upgrade your steak with different added seasonings/toppings. My husband had his plain while I had mine peppercorn crusted. Our dinners came with a tossed salad, choice of potato and veggies (and bread/butter, but ours was missing...no big deal because I would have overate it anyway). I chose onion rings with my steak while my husband went for the classic baked potato.
The base for the salads was iceberg and topped with red onion, green pepper, green olive, tomato, cucumber and carrot coins. Everything was fresh and their balsamic vinegarette was very tasty.
Both of our steaks were well-done (we ordered them medium-well), but they were still very, very tender and moist. The peppercorn crusting on mine was outstanding. I'm a total pepper monkey and this certainly gave me my fix. We had a nice California-style veggie blend of broccoli, cauliflower, orange carrots and yellow carrots. Very well seasoned and cooked perfectly.
Now, my onion rings were OUTSTANDING. I haven't had them in years, so this was a real treat for me. They were very thick cut onions which were perfectly sweet and caramel-ly on the inside. The outside crust was very, very crunchy. My guess is they used Panko breadcrumbs. I could have eaten a whole plateful of these babies. Excellent!
We passed on dessert this time (the onion rings were my treat), but the coconut cream pie is phenomenal!
Obviously, we'll go back. The prices are reasonable and the food is pretty darn good. Enjoy!
Monday, April 7, 2008
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Another Lenten Meal -- Donatello's
As you can see, the date of this post and end of Lent, I'm still a little behind in my blogs.
It was a Friday night, and we were looking for a place to dine where we knew we could get substantial meatless meals. We had a gift certificate for Donatello's (on Ben Franklin Rd near Lowe's) we needed to use, so we thought no better time like the present.
It's a small establishment in a strip mall. We did have to wait for 10 minutes, but for a Friday night during prime time, I thought that was very reasonable.
The menu consisted of various Italian appetizers, entrees, pastas, desserts and specials. It's also BYOB if you should desire. Of course, I left our bottle of wine at home! We were attended to almost right away and in general, the service was good.
My husband opted for the baked cheese ravioli while I went for the pasta primavera with a pink sauce. You have your option of soup or salad. We ended up choosing the salad, but that's only because there was meat in the wedding soup (which is to die for). Breadsticks were readily brought to our table. They're almost like Pizza Hut breadsticks but not as greasy. I had to be careful not to eat too many so I didn't spoil my appetite for dinner. The salads were your typical dinner salads. Fresh and adequate.
My husband's cheese ravioli looked pretty good. The dish was very hot as they had pulled it out of the oven to melt the cheese. He readily finished the dish -- no leftovers to take home.
I ordered my primavera with penne pasta. The pink sauce was very tasty and rich and there were plenty of veggies to provide some filling fiber. My only complaint (and this has happened before at the restaurant) is that the penne was cooking for 1 minute too long. I like more of a tooth feel to my pasta in general. I don't know if they precook and nuke their pasta or what -- I certainly hope they don't. But next time I dine there, I'll be requesting my pasta be cooked al dente.
We were too full for dessert, so we passed.
Overall a good dining experience. I think what draws us to Donatello's is their red sauce. It's not to sweet, not too spicy and just really well-balanced overall. We will certainly go back for me.
It was a Friday night, and we were looking for a place to dine where we knew we could get substantial meatless meals. We had a gift certificate for Donatello's (on Ben Franklin Rd near Lowe's) we needed to use, so we thought no better time like the present.
It's a small establishment in a strip mall. We did have to wait for 10 minutes, but for a Friday night during prime time, I thought that was very reasonable.
The menu consisted of various Italian appetizers, entrees, pastas, desserts and specials. It's also BYOB if you should desire. Of course, I left our bottle of wine at home! We were attended to almost right away and in general, the service was good.
My husband opted for the baked cheese ravioli while I went for the pasta primavera with a pink sauce. You have your option of soup or salad. We ended up choosing the salad, but that's only because there was meat in the wedding soup (which is to die for). Breadsticks were readily brought to our table. They're almost like Pizza Hut breadsticks but not as greasy. I had to be careful not to eat too many so I didn't spoil my appetite for dinner. The salads were your typical dinner salads. Fresh and adequate.
My husband's cheese ravioli looked pretty good. The dish was very hot as they had pulled it out of the oven to melt the cheese. He readily finished the dish -- no leftovers to take home.
I ordered my primavera with penne pasta. The pink sauce was very tasty and rich and there were plenty of veggies to provide some filling fiber. My only complaint (and this has happened before at the restaurant) is that the penne was cooking for 1 minute too long. I like more of a tooth feel to my pasta in general. I don't know if they precook and nuke their pasta or what -- I certainly hope they don't. But next time I dine there, I'll be requesting my pasta be cooked al dente.
We were too full for dessert, so we passed.
Overall a good dining experience. I think what draws us to Donatello's is their red sauce. It's not to sweet, not too spicy and just really well-balanced overall. We will certainly go back for me.
Sunday Evening Watering Hole Food -- Canyon Pizza
So it's a Sunday evening and my husband and I really needed some food as we were enjoying a few libations at one of our favorite local watering holes. The only problem is this place didn't have food. Fortunately, they keep a folder of menus of local places that deliver. We saw the vast menu for Canyon Pizza and thought we would give it a try.
My husband said that ordering and delivery were on par. He ordered a pepperoni pizza wedge which is said we pretty darn good. I wasn't in the mood for pizza, so I went with their garden salad and extra hot boneless wings. The salad was fresh and very sizable. I was very pleased to see packets of Newman's Own salad dressing in there. Now for the wings. I ordered the smallest size and there were a ton in my container. They were nice and crispy on the outside, but slightly overcooked on the inside. I can deal with overcooked as opposed to undercooked! The thing that would make me order these again would be the extra hot sauce. It totally delivered on heat and flavor! My lips were burning and my sinuses were clearing...exactly what I was anticipating!
Would we order from here again? Sure. I'd actually like to order a large batch their boneless wings in assorted flavors for parties. And besides, I'm always looking for pizza places where I have some good non-pizza selections on their menu!
My husband said that ordering and delivery were on par. He ordered a pepperoni pizza wedge which is said we pretty darn good. I wasn't in the mood for pizza, so I went with their garden salad and extra hot boneless wings. The salad was fresh and very sizable. I was very pleased to see packets of Newman's Own salad dressing in there. Now for the wings. I ordered the smallest size and there were a ton in my container. They were nice and crispy on the outside, but slightly overcooked on the inside. I can deal with overcooked as opposed to undercooked! The thing that would make me order these again would be the extra hot sauce. It totally delivered on heat and flavor! My lips were burning and my sinuses were clearing...exactly what I was anticipating!
Would we order from here again? Sure. I'd actually like to order a large batch their boneless wings in assorted flavors for parties. And besides, I'm always looking for pizza places where I have some good non-pizza selections on their menu!
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Bob's Pizza -- A truly Indiana thing
Ah, Bob's Pizza. My sister was in town and she said we absolutely had to go to Bob's Pizza. Naturally, I just had to take her there.
Bob's is located on North 4th Street across from Bilo. It's a little tricky getting in and out of the parking lot but that's only a small price to pay for what's inside. The building itself is, um, ugly for lack of a better word. Painted brown cinder blocks. Flake board interior. I would have to say this would qualify as a dive. And yes, I've already emailed Guy Fieri begging him to come visit this fine establishment on his Food Network show.
The menu? Well, pizza by the square slice, some subs including the famous "Wopaho" sub (come on Guy, you MUST come out to see what that's all about) and cinnamon rolls. You can get your Bob's 2 ways with (pepperoni) or without (pepperoni). You can get your Bob's to eat in-house at one of their tables or take it out.
Now, if you get it for takeout, it is packaged with the bottom half of a box and a paper bag. By the time you get the pizza to your car the grease would have already made the paper bag transparent. Now you know you're getting good food!
We chose to eat right at Bob's. I enjoyed looking at the Pens pics on the wall. All three of us (me, my husband and my sister) got 3 slices with pepperoni. You can either take a seat after you order or stand and watch them pull these large rectangular pans out of the pizza ovens, cut the pizza and slap the pepperoni on. I personally enjoy the show.
The pizza itself is unique. The crust is a little thicker than most, but it's also soft. The sauce is awesome...rumor has it only a few know the recipe. Parts of the cheese on top brown up which adds some nice texture. Then the pepperoni. OMG the pepperoni. You get 3 slices per square and let me tell you it's the best pepperoni I've ever had. My guess is it's a little fattier than most (hence the transparent take-out bags).
Now my husband is a Philly transplant and never really cared for Bob's...until this eating occasion. YAY! I've converted him! And my sister was absolutely tickled to have a true Indiana treat.
Will we go back? Oh yes. At 80-cents per square you can stuff yourself silly for little money!
And remember...only cool people eat square pizza.
Bob's is located on North 4th Street across from Bilo. It's a little tricky getting in and out of the parking lot but that's only a small price to pay for what's inside. The building itself is, um, ugly for lack of a better word. Painted brown cinder blocks. Flake board interior. I would have to say this would qualify as a dive. And yes, I've already emailed Guy Fieri begging him to come visit this fine establishment on his Food Network show.
The menu? Well, pizza by the square slice, some subs including the famous "Wopaho" sub (come on Guy, you MUST come out to see what that's all about) and cinnamon rolls. You can get your Bob's 2 ways with (pepperoni) or without (pepperoni). You can get your Bob's to eat in-house at one of their tables or take it out.
Now, if you get it for takeout, it is packaged with the bottom half of a box and a paper bag. By the time you get the pizza to your car the grease would have already made the paper bag transparent. Now you know you're getting good food!
We chose to eat right at Bob's. I enjoyed looking at the Pens pics on the wall. All three of us (me, my husband and my sister) got 3 slices with pepperoni. You can either take a seat after you order or stand and watch them pull these large rectangular pans out of the pizza ovens, cut the pizza and slap the pepperoni on. I personally enjoy the show.
The pizza itself is unique. The crust is a little thicker than most, but it's also soft. The sauce is awesome...rumor has it only a few know the recipe. Parts of the cheese on top brown up which adds some nice texture. Then the pepperoni. OMG the pepperoni. You get 3 slices per square and let me tell you it's the best pepperoni I've ever had. My guess is it's a little fattier than most (hence the transparent take-out bags).
Now my husband is a Philly transplant and never really cared for Bob's...until this eating occasion. YAY! I've converted him! And my sister was absolutely tickled to have a true Indiana treat.
Will we go back? Oh yes. At 80-cents per square you can stuff yourself silly for little money!
And remember...only cool people eat square pizza.
9th St Deli Perfection
I've had 2 recent visits to 9th Street Deli (corner of 9th and Philadelphia), so I thought I'd combine the reviews. 9th St = Indiana. Hands down. My family knows the original owners and they would be proud to know that the new ownership has maintained the same excellent quality and service they established years ago.
This is not a place for fancy ambiance. The original bistro tables line the side wall whose shelves house assorted snacks and penny candies. If you look above you will see lots of college pennants. At this point they're all probably vintage.
Their menu is full of various subs and sandwiches both warm and cold. You will find assorted sides in the deli case. If you look at the white board in the back you will find the daily specials and soup selections for the day.
In both of my recent visits I ordered the turkey and cheese sub. You can load it up with "everything" (lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, pepper rings and choice of dressing) which is what I did. This was the "half" sub which is actually a foot long. That was plenty for my husband and I to eat for a meal. The advantage to getting everything is that I get the pickles my husband doesn't like and he gets the pepper rings I don't like -- works out perfectly!
The real key to this sub is the roll. I don't know where they get their rolls from but if we were ever to open a cheesesteak shop I'd quickly find out. It has a nice crispy exterior, a soft but sturdy interior and a corn meal dusted bottom. The turkey meat was plentiful and tasty. All of the toppings were very fresh. I love having shredded lettuce on my subs!
On one occasion I picked up a small container of their macaroni salad. Beautifully creamy and delicious.
If you're looking for other items on the menu to try, let me suggest their regular sub, steak and cheese, 1/2 pound hamburger and chili.
We'll go back to 9th Street again and again. A foot-long, high quality sub costs roughly $5 and is definitely enough for 2. How can you beat that?
This is not a place for fancy ambiance. The original bistro tables line the side wall whose shelves house assorted snacks and penny candies. If you look above you will see lots of college pennants. At this point they're all probably vintage.
Their menu is full of various subs and sandwiches both warm and cold. You will find assorted sides in the deli case. If you look at the white board in the back you will find the daily specials and soup selections for the day.
In both of my recent visits I ordered the turkey and cheese sub. You can load it up with "everything" (lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, pepper rings and choice of dressing) which is what I did. This was the "half" sub which is actually a foot long. That was plenty for my husband and I to eat for a meal. The advantage to getting everything is that I get the pickles my husband doesn't like and he gets the pepper rings I don't like -- works out perfectly!
The real key to this sub is the roll. I don't know where they get their rolls from but if we were ever to open a cheesesteak shop I'd quickly find out. It has a nice crispy exterior, a soft but sturdy interior and a corn meal dusted bottom. The turkey meat was plentiful and tasty. All of the toppings were very fresh. I love having shredded lettuce on my subs!
On one occasion I picked up a small container of their macaroni salad. Beautifully creamy and delicious.
If you're looking for other items on the menu to try, let me suggest their regular sub, steak and cheese, 1/2 pound hamburger and chili.
We'll go back to 9th Street again and again. A foot-long, high quality sub costs roughly $5 and is definitely enough for 2. How can you beat that?
Monday, March 10, 2008
More blogs on their way
I definitely have some catching up to do! Stay tuned for the following reviews:
9th St. Deli
Bob's Pizza
Canyon Pizza
Donatello's
9th St. Deli
Bob's Pizza
Canyon Pizza
Donatello's
Friday, February 22, 2008
The Lenten Cheese Pizza from Sanso's
Well, it's that time of year where I actually do something Catholic and abstain from meat on Friday's during the Lenten season. Usually this means fish, but I like to mix it up a bit. My husband works in Greensburg, so on his way up Rte 119 from Blairsville I asked him to pick up a good ole plain pizza from Sanso's in Homer City. Sanso's is right on 119 and has an AWESOME deli store and a six pack/pizza shop.
My husband had no problems with the ordering process or the timing of the pizza.
The crust is in between a thick and thin...just enough dough, but not too much. Now what makes their pizza unique is the marriage between the sauce and the cheese. There's a tang to the cheese which is counterbalanced nicely with the sweetness and spice of the sauce. We apparently enjoyed it considered with polished off a large pizza between the two of us!
We typically stick to Tom's for our usual pizza needs, but sometimes you have to switch it up. And Sanso's certainly fit the bill!
My husband had no problems with the ordering process or the timing of the pizza.
The crust is in between a thick and thin...just enough dough, but not too much. Now what makes their pizza unique is the marriage between the sauce and the cheese. There's a tang to the cheese which is counterbalanced nicely with the sweetness and spice of the sauce. We apparently enjoyed it considered with polished off a large pizza between the two of us!
We typically stick to Tom's for our usual pizza needs, but sometimes you have to switch it up. And Sanso's certainly fit the bill!
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