Avalon Bistro & Wine Bar

This place has a great happy hour! I'm on my no-eating-out era, but they had 5$ wine/beer, cheap apps, and 9$ cocktails (which, alas, is what counts for cheap now). Bartender was chill, patrons were mostly not students (except one who was in fact my student, but she was with her parents), and the ambiance is buzzy but not frantic. Weird rotating poster art of celebs. Syntactic logo. All in all, a nice little place. Would (ask about allergens so that I could) eat there if forced! Reminded me a bit of Iron Hill in terms of the bar/table vibes, although perhaps I just miss post-work hangs with my dear pal Janey. 

Overall
Cost: 7/10
Taste: 7/10 (I got a Stella; very good) 

Autumn Arch Beer Project

This is a big open warehousey space on the south side of Newark with lots of creative beers (mainly sours). Sounds amazing, right? Except one of their brews has PEANUTS in it, so I can't actually drink any of them. But that's a personal problem for your girl, so I still end up going here with friends pretty often. Luckily they have local wines (chardonnay, cabernet) too and I drink those with no issue. I do like that you go to the counter to order because it avoids the awkwardness of trying to get a bartender's attention, so if it weren't for the nut thing I'd be very into this joint. Indoor and outdoor seating, dog-friendly, cute. Servers are nice but not "too" nice. Good vibes, just bad for allergy girls.

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 5/10

Buffalo Wild Wings

Surprised I haven't reviewed B-Dubs yet! So many memories there over the last decade, like: my tragic friend calling it BBWs by accident, watching UFCs there with my roomies and exes, and awkward morning soccer games as a third or fifth wheel! But seriously, this place is great: unlike PJ WHELIHANS, they don't have a peanut butter flavor with peanuts on it, and in fact have an allergy menu online somewhere. I basically only get apps (the corn dogs are amazing, as are most of the apps unfortunately for the ol' waistline) or the Asian Zing classic wings, which are sweet and Asian, I guess. And a lil hot too! The snack size is plenty and you get nice celery with it. I will say, they don't post the prices for their drinks on the menu, which is super annoying. But they have lots of options.

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 8/10

Batdorf Restaurant

I came here with my parents for triv, and it was hoppin'! We got there like 30min early and just barely got a seat on their patio, which is big and nice. Everyone was really friendly and my food was great and I felt safe asking about nuts. I got a chicken sandwich with bacon, good times. They also have a decent drink menu. And I think we got 3rd in triv, which is respectable.

Chicken Fajitas: I picked street corn (good!) and rice (OK, but had peas in so not worth the trouble) as the sides; next time I'd get pico instead of rice because these were really dry. The peppers and onions and tortilla and chicken were fine, but there were rando sprouts on it and no moist sauce. It was OK but I think a sandwich or burger (or chips?) would be better. 6/10

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 6/10

North Branch Pizza & Burger Co

The road trip has arrived in Chicago, and next to our hotel (actually in Glenview, north of Chicago) was this pizza/american bar. I wanted to try a deep dish pizza, so sat outside and went for it. It was pleasant to eat outside, and I got a blue moon and chips and guac too. The guac was great, the salsa was weird and tasted like pasta sauce, and the chips were like bag tostitos (fine). The deep dish was good! Buttery and soft crust, with lots of crust. Tasted like Pat's square pizza but butterier and with more cheese, which was good and very filling. 7/10

Then we went back another night, because we are lazy, and sat inside and it wasn't as good. I got some pasta with chicken, which was OK but made me feel a bit ill. I didn't eat the garlic bread that came with it out of fear. I got a pineapple cider which was fun but not super chuggable, since they were out of Crispin pear which is what I actually ordered. The waiter was kind of salty to us, I guess because we were old and un-hip, but I didn't appreciate it one bit. The meal was also really expensive, I guess because of tax but also just expensive to begin with. So the second trip was our last.

Overall
Cost: 4/10
Taste: 6/10

Levengoods of Lancaster

This is a cidery (cider brewery), which is cool because my boyf hates beer and likes only cider. It's also good for gluten free peeps of course. It was a pretty cute place, crowded but nice. The bartender was also friendly. They do have some food (cheese, pretzels) but I didn't want to bother asking about allergy stuff so I didn't get any. I got the dry cider, which was decent (not crazy sweet) and not too pricy (I think 5$ each). Seems good if you like cider!


Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 6/10

Stone Balloon Ale House

I'm so surprised I haven't reviewed Stone Balloon yet, since I've been there quite a few times! They used to be called the 16 Mile Taphouse (taproom?) for like a random year a few years ago, but they always have had pretty much the same ethos. Good fun and lots of fun drink options. I love their beer menu, it's like a tiny version of the Federal Taphouse's massive drink menu, with lots of options and info. They also have a decent selection of 5$ all day cocktails, and lots of good expensive cocktails too. As for the food, I've only ever gotten burger, chicken sandwich, side salad, and side of mac n cheese, but they are all wonderful. They do have some stuff with nuts on the menu. Once I went for a surprise brunch and mentioned my allergies when I ordered the chicken sandwich (just in case yanno) and they brought out monkey bread as the bunch app bread thing, and I didn't eat it and the waitress came back and said it was nut free, without me asking! I was like :O she remembered :O :O what a great waitress, what a great place. I have fond memories of going here with my department buds after colloqs, too. I even ate here with Lars's parents and dog once! Weird!

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 8/10

Pour

Went here before a musical at the Fulton (a musical where a man held my jacket like a baby, but I digress) and had a good time! We asked about nut allergies for the charcuterie options and the waiter was super informative and even mentioned the possibility of certain meats containing nuts because the animals ate nuts or something, which was legit. We got three cheese and two meats and it came with a pickle and some mustards and a bread (which I didn't eat just in case). A mixed bag as far as my taste for the cheeses, but good quality and fun. I got some beer which was good, and then ordered the potato soup which was the soup of the day and was absolutely amazing! Outstanding soup!!!

Overall
Cost: 4/10
Taste: 7/10

The Beer Shoppe

This place is very near Haverford, where I teach, and they also have trivia on Monday nights (7-9pm) so sometimes I go with my friend Jane. They have a little bar/table area in the back, and it's a chill atmosphere, but they also have a TON of cans/bottles of beer in fridges (very PA). Lots of fun sours and things to try. I like the Troegs Boysenberry Sour (nice pink color), the Sam Adams Cherry Wheat, and of course Wells Banana Bread beer. Plus more! And they're fairly priced, too, around 2-4$ each. Food wise it's not a good scene for me, since they have lots of (bagged) packs of nuts available, but also bags of chips and other food I've seen people order but I don't think I would order. Chill place to drink though! And sports on TV!
Overall
Cost: 8/10
Taste/Beers: 6/10

The Three Monkeys

Whew. Went to this place after walking all around NYC trying to meet up with friends, so I was very sweaty and relieved to arrive at a normal bar with a cool group of people (Sandy & co!). This is called a "beer hall" on Google, and I'm not really sure what that is, but it was in effect a slightly hipper BWW-esque sports bar. It might even be a local chain, I'm not sure. They had a cool selection of eclectic beers and a fairly standard pub menu. It was a big place, 2 stories, with fun 90s mashups on the TV as the hour got later. I ordered a Margherita flatbread which was 14$ but actually decent sized, like 6-7 long bread slices. It was decently tasty and filling and also didn't kill me (I didn't ask about allergies here as it was too loud/awkward). For beer I got the Stillwater Insetto, which was a great sour beer (fun pinkish color even) and I'd definitely get it again if I ever saw it. Generally this seemed like a cool place to hang out, and not too ~wacky~ for allergy folks.

Overall
Cost: 6/10 (Very reasonable for NYC)
Taste: 7/10

The Dubliner Restaurant and Pub

Sometimes I take the train to DC for work, leaving very early in the morning. But then the train back isn't until 4.30 and I often have hours to kill. Luckily DC is a pretty cool place and there's plenty of restos near the train station (Union Station) or even inside it. I saw this place on a list of good places and they said Obama goes to it! Pretty cool. I also like Irish pubs because they are casual, rare-to-have-nuts, and have beer I like. Plus, outdoor seating! So this place had all those nice properties, and it was also good food. I got the Irish Beef Stew, which was really great - it had massive chunks of beef, potato, and carrot all in beef gravy. Super filling, no peas, amazing. Also came with a little bread and butter, and I also ordered a nice Yuengling (I'm not really a Guinness girl). It was really nice - the waiter was even Oirish (or fake Oirish) which was endearing. I enjoyed the stew a lot and thought the place was great.

The downside was that I was there with my dad, who got fish and chips (his review: fish good, cole slaw bad) but then he noticed a small piece of plastic on the plate. So of course as parents do he complained to the waiter and promptly stopped eating it. I would have just kept eating, but whatever. The waiter apologised and took it off the bill and said it might have been fish skin or packaging. It did look like packaging, but the fish was def fresh, so whatever. Anyway, that made my experience less good, but mostly due to awkwardness about the fact that we complained. I left a big tip though. I think this is an interesting generational divide, because parent-agers ALWAYS complain about food quality, plastic, hair, etc, and people my age really rarely do. Sometimes if I get the wrong order and I'm allergic to it I will complain, because that's deadly, but it's weird, right? I wonder why.

Anyway! A COOL PLACE!

Overall
Cost: 7/10 (Good for DC, average for a pub, ~$18 per person entree+drink)
Taste: 8/10

P.J. Whelihan's

This place is basically Buffalo Wild Wings - a sports bar with lots of TVs, wings, burgers, etc. However, I am optimistic that the food is better at PJs (even though they don't have an online allergy menu...yet?). They have more than just chicken and burgers, they have salads, steaks, even pasta too. Granted, I didn't try any of those things - we only split some nachos, which were good and had nice white cheese sauce on them (as well as chili etc). I also got 2 blue moons (they were 4$, which is about standard). The waiter was nice, maybe a bit too attentive, but the atmosphere was pleasant and it was easy to see the TV from the table. Yay, world cup season! Anyway, the nachos were good, the menu looks promising, they have daily drink specials, and the place was clean. What more could you really want from a sports bar?

Cobb Salad (no bleu cheese): this was really good! Tasted refreshing and healthy and well-mixed, and just the right size. Dressing was fine but not overpowering, chicken and avo and egg were all good, very happy! 8/10

Pretzel nuggets: Not that many or very filling, but only 5$. Cheese was real cheese which was good. Boyf didn't like the cheese but the nuggets were OK for both of us. 6/10

Frozen Summer drink: This was tequila, bacardi strawberry, lemonade and sugar and whipped cream. It was great even though it made me nervous as usual. Only 5$! 8/10

PJ's ultimate combo: This is an app sampler, with wings (hardly sauced at all so I didn't love, but not terrible); tots (great and moist, I was impressed); mozz sticks (cold and average); and chicken fingers (better than Deer Park but really need dip of some sort). Overall it was more than enough food, very filling! I liked the tots. 6/10

Quesadilla: This was so dry!!! It was just dry chicken, a tiny bit of cheese, peppers and onions. I guess it was fine and didn't make me too ill but just it was so so dry. And it came with only sour cream to dip, no pico or guac? Amateur hour over here! 6/10

Basket of Tater Tots: This was the true neutral of food. Fine and a lot but very boring. 5/10

Loaded nachos (with chili, no sour cream): I ate way too much. I regret it all. Good though. 7/10

Cheese steak nachos: This was way better than I'd thought; the white american cheese is so good and I wish there were more. The lil steak was good too, and the green onions. Chips are fine and salty. but not enough cheese, and too much chips! Also very awkward to eat by yourself in a group. 7/10

Smokin' Pork BBQ sandwich: This was actually pretty good, very filling. It was odd looking and had a soft texture but tastes good, a lil spicy. There was a nice BBQ flavor. The fries were good. The cold slaw was not amazing, too creamy and no zip, but it was passable as a sandwich spread. 7/10

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 7/10

Federal Taphouse

Apparently this is a local chain, but I've only been to one of them, which is downtown and pretty spacious (2 floors, but I've only seen one). It put a bit of a bad taste in my mouth the first time we attempted to go, the hostess seemed super judgey and estimated a longer wait time than seemed reasonable given the amount of empty tables. We came back the next day at 3pm and it was totally empty so we got seats, woohoo. Anyway, it's a cool looking space, and the best part is the beer(/cider) list which is about 100 drinks long, all on tap and described and sorted by type. Very fun, although a little pricy at times. The food menu isn't anything special, mostly sandwiches and pizza and seafood, but it's decent. Our waitress was also really nice, prompt, and best of all, proactive and knowledgable about allergy stuff. Very much appreciated and I'd go back just based on that.

We got poutine as an app, which was good (lots of gravy) but not great. I don't think the cheese curds were actually curds - there was no squeak! They were just hunks of mozz. Still good but not really "poutine". A big amount though, so filling that I hardly ate my meal, which was the mushroom pizza. This pizza is big also and had a white sauce (boo) and thin crust and lots of mushroom (yay). It's really cheesey/alfredo-y, and tasted just like a chicken cheesesteak stromboli from Lisa's. So, it was tasty but not necessarily "pizza"-esque. I got an orange flavored beer from Germany that was bright orange and super fun, tasted pretty good. Overall a nice visit!

Cubano pizza: I split this with my boyf, who thought it was very bad and too mustardy. But I liked it! The pizza sauce is mustard instead of sauce, and on top is pork, cheese, scallion, yellow pepper. So mustardy! Very fun! If you like mustard, you'll like this. (But poutine is still better <3). 7/10

Overall
Cost: 4/10 (about 60$ for 2)
Taste: 7/10

The White Dog Café

My friend Janey took me here after classes ended at Haverford, and it was in walking distance from the college (and her apartment). Who knew! This is a really nice place, with pictures of dogs everywhere, which no one can resist. It was pretty crowded, but not with students, and seemed to have a lot of regulars. We sat at the bar, and they had a solid happy hour, with 4-10$ food and 5$ drinks. I got red sangria, which was good even though the only fruit it had was orange and lime. 2 got me a little tipsy, even! For snacks we got deviled eggs and tater tots. The tots were actually large orbs, 5 or 6 of them, but otherwise normal fried potato. The eggs had 2 with caviar, 2 with bacon jam, and 2 with sweet potato crumble?? Kind of weird, but I asked about nuts and they put "no nuts" on the receipt, so I guess that's fine. I didn't go for the caviar eggs, but the bacon jam ones were really good, and the crumble ones were fine. The egg filling was all mustard, no mayo, but that's healthy so it's fine. Overall it was a nice atmosphere and good company and a solid price, and the bartender did a good job. I hope I have occasion to come back!

PORK TENDERLOIN: My bud Adam came to Haverford to give a talk, so we went here for dinner! It was nice, actually I didn't realise how ~fancy~ this place was. But the pork was good, it was 6-7 small medallions on a bed of brussels sprouts (tastes like cabbage), bacon, sweet potato, apples, and that's it. Not too big, not too small. The pot pie also looked good. 7/10

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 7/10

The Annville Grille

I'm liking this ille-ille symmetry! Anyway, I sought this place out because I wanted to play trivia when visiting my parents. It's in downtown Annville, but there was plenty of street parking. The inside is way bigger than the outside looks; there's a big dining room and a decent sized bar room with tables and booths. This is the location of the trivia (which was great fun). They have a decent drink list, and the prices were 2-4$ a pint, which is solid. All I got to eat was the nachos with chicken (no peanut oil there), but it was quite good, with lots of melty american cheese, chicken, lettuce, tomato and jalepenos. Super filling and a great bar snack. Hopefully I'll go back and get an actual food next time, since we won a gift card!!

Chicken Parmesan: This was good! Basically standard, but came with a salad (fine), two chickens and two breads. Super filling, two meals. Good if you're in a mood for pasta time. 7/10

Coffee: It's coffee. Small but also pretty cheap. 6/10

Overall
Cost: 6/10 (Food was cheap for a bar, around 10 bucks/entree)
Taste: 7/10

Santa Fe Mexican Grill

This is one of those bars on Main Street that I (and undergrads) tend to overlook -- even though it's really good. I guess the drinks aren't especially cheap, but it's conveniently located to campus, the food is good, the service is good.

Also, they have 3$ breakfast burritos that are really good. Especially the ham one. And 1$ cups of coffee! And free chips and salsa! C'mon, man, this place is great.

Edits: OK, the burritos vary in quality. The good chipotle rosa sauce is crucial, and sometimes they do not include it! It seems the earlier in the day you are, the more likely you are to get this key sauce.

Other foods: Tierra: Idk wtf this is (basically bits of meat, cheese, and veggie?) with rice, but it was very good and reminded me of Fiesta Mexico. Olé!
Spinach Enchilada: "Meh." Came with Meh-y corn mush.
(red) Sangria: &yum;

Overall
Cost: 7/10 [wildly variable!]
Taste: 7/10

Home Grown Café

This place perturbs me because it's one of those "gluten-free, vegan + vegetarian friendly" places that have no allergy menu or policy or awareness above the norm. However, it's very popular with my social group, and it is a "chill" bar. They have good brunch food; in fact, their food is good overall, it's just scary because there are definitely lots of peanuts + nuts on the menu. Still, I have mentioned my allergy every time and so far so good.

Burrito Verde (with pork): pricy but good, a tasty pork burrito. Chips were fine (but would have been better with some dip or something, c'mon now).

Philly Steak sandwich: This is garlicy and cheesey and the bun is toasted and it comes with tasty greens, so it was pretty great. 

Side of Mac and Cheese: Not as good as Stone Balloon's, but passable. Comes with penne which is weird. Nothing else in there, I think, just noodles and cheese. It's OK. 5/10

Brunch BLT: This wasn't as good as I remembered - the bread was just white sandwich bread and it looked really flat and sad. I also got home fries instead of greens which was a mistake. They were totally fine, not much flavor but good, and the sandwich was good although not super decadent - could use more tomato and bacon. The egg was fresh tasting. 6/10

Coffee: A tiny cup, but they forgot to charge for it, so I had a good time! 6/10

Grilled Chicken Sandwich: This is solid, it's a BBQ grilled chicken, but the sauce is pretty subtle and it didn't make me feel gross, even with cheese and bacon. I like the greens that it comes with. Our server (Randy) was palling around with my mom, but he did a good job & was good about allergies, which made this taste better. Would get again if hungry. (Baked spinach spread is if not!) 7/10

Strawberry Lemonade: This was a 9$ drink, heh heh, but my parents were paying. Tito's vodka, strawberry puree, lemonade. It was delish! 8/10

Overall
Cost: 5/10
Taste: 7/10

McGlynn's Pub

This place is almost identical to Deer Park Tavern in terms of menu and specials, but it's a little quieter and less college-y. It's a small local chain, so I think there are about 5 of these types of restos. I only started coming because our favorite trivia host started doing trivia here, too! Anyway, it's a nice change of pace, because unlike Deer Park, you get really good service during trivia. The booths are also comfier and more private. And some of the food is slightly slightly different (hot dogs and sausages, more fish dishes)!

So far, I've gotten the cobb salad (v. meaty, identical to deer park's). and the london broil steak (comes with cornbread (v. sweet), garlic "smashed" potatoes, and mushroomies). It's satisfying and meaty but always too oily for me to finish the whole thing! Also they didn't include a house veg like the menu said they would >:( Anyways, if we keep winning trivia, I'll be back here a lot!

prime rib: also a fatty cut, but with a baked potato is a pretty good once-a-month treat ;D

fried eggplant sandwich: tastes pretty good I guess, but the frying breadcrumbs make me a little itchy and ultimately I'd rather eat a pizza or something if I'm gonna eat that much cheese!

pub burger: this was decent, although I still think they're quite dry! I get cheese and mushrooms usually, and the mushrooms are often cold (but who cares). They have a beyond burger also, which comes on a different bun, but I still live in fear that they'll mix them up. It's half price on Tuesday (trivia day) though! And for 1.75 Yuenglings and even 4$ captain+cokes you can't beat the price. You can also get broc instead of fries on the side if you're still missing your veg. 6/10

Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 7/10 [realllly depends what you order: e.g. burgers are dry!]

The Greene Turtle

Their website says "The Greene Turtle shouldn't be defined as a bar or a restaurant"!... well, sorry, but it's a sports bar. you guys. But a nice one, better than Buffalo Wild Wings, kinda like Damon's was (sigh...). Each booth has its own TV so you can watch sports of your choosing in your own little world while sadly drinking alone. I imagine. It was pretty crowded at like 5pm though, so either Little League baseball is way more popular than I thought or this is just a generally hopping place. Anyway we got a table (pops and I) because we don't look like hip alkies. Whatever, teen hostess! >:(

ANYWAYS, I got the baby back ribs because I often get baby back ribs when I'm v. hungry. Comes with cole slaw (decent but not great) and fries (same, but I don't really like fries). The ribs were pretty good; I liked the sauce but they were a little porky for me still. Good tenderness but maybe too tender?! Anyway, not bad. I will try a sandwich or tacos or something next time though! And I should mention that they have a pretty comprehensive allergen guide online, which is great. I also got a strawberry lemonade in a jar - it was 'eh'. Pops got fish and chips, he seemed to think it was "ok" but I think he wanted tartar sauce and he got a weird horseradish sauce so we probably won't go back. haha. I liked it pretty well though.

BBQ flatbread pizza: a mistake! onions and tomato sauce = not what I wanted (what I wanted was Kildare's flatbread, always amazing.)

California Turkey Wrap: Maybe just extra gross because a guy eating with us spit all over my food and it really grossed me out so I couldn't enjoy anything in life, but I thought this was mushy and too whatever-sauce-it-was (mayo+cheese?)-y. The wrap was fine and the turkey was fine and thick and I like the idea of bacon and avo, but whatever condiments were there weren't great and threw it all off. It came with chips and they were fine. 4/10

Overall
Taste: 7/10
Cost: 5/10

Kelly's Bar & Lounge

Apparently very popular (just check the reviews on yelp!) but I didn't see the appeal. A narrow chunnel with a long bar on one side and a bunch of small tables on the other. Not really a place for food, but they do have a lot of cool cocktails and a small selection of decent beers. The prices are OK, especially if you stick to the singular drink special of the night, but nothing outstanding. I didn't get any food there, but I hear it's decent bar fare. My dark and stormy was good, tom collins was eh.


Overall
Cost: 6/10
Taste: 7/10

Laura says: i love kelly's! their cocktails are my (and mostly everyone's) primary reason for going but i also really like their appetizers and i don't think i've ever felt as comfortable in a bar as i do at kelly's. there are booths and a patio and it's not usually too crowded aside from friday or saturday nights.