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Restaurant Review: The Inn at Barley Sheaf Farm Rates 5+ Yums (Holicong, PA)
The Inn at Barley Sheaf Farm
5281 York Rd., Holicong, PA 18928
(215) 794-5104
Food: 5+ Yums (out of 5!)
Service: 5 Yums
Atmosphere: 5 Yums
Price: $$$$‘Astonishing’ is not a word you see much in restaurant reviews, but in this case it’s required. The meal we had at The Inn at Barley Sheaf was nothing short of amazing from start to finish. Hyperbole, you say? You won’t think so once you’ve eaten here.
We have a dear friend visiting from Delaware, so it was appropriate we take her to a terrific restaurant. Frank and I had been there once before and knew you get what you pay for, which is considerable and worth every penny.
Once owned by playwright George S. Kaufman and located in historic Bucks Country, PA, the Inn sits on over 100 acres of pasture and country gardens. It’s just an hour’s drive from Philadelphia, two hours from New York City, and it offers the very definition of destination dining. Along with the stellar restaurant, the Inn is a bed and breakfast, offering guest suites that feature, in some cases, whirlpool tubs, steam showers with body sprays, private balconies, individual fireplaces and more.
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Restaurant Review: Sergeantsville Inn Earns 4+ Yums and a Spot on the Top List (Sergeantsville, NJ)
By Mark McNease
Where: Sergeantsville Inn
601 Rosemont Ringoes Rd.,
Sergeantsville, NJ 08559
Tel: 609.397.3700
Cost: $$$$
Food: 4+, service 5Since opening under new ownership just months ago, Sergeantsville Inn has reestablished itself as a dining destination. We hadn’t been there for several years, and we wanted to return after the Inn’s reopening following a fire in 2015 that destroyed the interior. We liked the food before, and this time it was nothing short of spectacular.
Located at the corner of Route 523 and Rosemont Ringoes Road in Sergeantsville, NJ, the Inn has been around for generations. It has one of those original stone facades you find in structures built in the 1800s and earlier. First named for the Sergeant family, the Inn has been a private residence, a feed store, and a local fixture in the community since its founding.
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Restaurant Review: Sergeantsville Inn Earns 4+ Yums and a Spot on the Top List (Sergeantsville, NJ)
By Mark McNease
Where: Sergeantsville Inn
601 Rosemont Ringoes Rd.,
Sergeantsville, NJ 08559
Tel: 609.397.3700
Cost: $$$$
Food: 4+, service 5Since opening under new ownership just months ago, Sergeantsville Inn has reestablished itself as a dining destination. We hadn’t been there for several years, and we wanted to return after the Inn’s reopening following a fire in 2015 that destroyed the interior. We liked the food before, and this time it was nothing short of spectacular.
Located at the corner of Route 523 and Rosemont Ringoes Road in Sergeantsville, NJ, the Inn has been around for generations. It has one of those original stone facades you find in structures built in the 1800s and earlier. First named for the Sergeant family, the Inn has been a private residence, a feed store, and a local fixture in the community since its founding.
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Restaurant Review: 4 Comfy Yums for Plumsteadville Inn (Plumsteadville, PA)
By Mark McNease
Plumsteadville Inn
5902 Easton Road Pipersville, PA
Tel: 215-766-7500
$$ – $$$ (depending on what you order)
4 Overall Yums (3.5 food, 4.5 service)Yes, the restaurant reviews are back. In my early blogging days I sometimes got responses from restaurants I reviewed, but that’s not why I’m doing it. I love to eat, and I love to write, it’s that simple
I realized that some of our favorite places to eat are not the sort of fine-dining, 5 Yum establishments I sometimes have the good fortune to rave about. Sometimes they’re just diners, or casual establishments, and I can’t fairly compare them to a $200 meal, excluding tip, that was worth every penny. In the case of Plumsteadville Inn, where we went for the second time last night, they’re just very inviting, popular, often crowded and crowd-pleasing places where you can get good comfort food and great service.
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Restaurant Review: 4 Comfy Yums for Plumsteadville Inn (Plumsteadville, PA)
By Mark McNease
Plumsteadville Inn
5902 Easton Road Pipersville, PA
Tel: 215-766-7500
$$ – $$$ (depending on what you order)
4 Overall Yums (3.5 food, 4.5 service)Yes, the restaurant reviews are back. In my early blogging days I sometimes got responses from restaurants I reviewed, but that’s not why I’m doing it. I love to eat, and I love to write, it’s that simple
I realized that some of our favorite places to eat are not the sort of fine-dining, 5 Yum establishments I sometimes have the good fortune to rave about. Sometimes they’re just diners, or casual establishments, and I can’t fairly compare them to a $200 meal, excluding tip, that was worth every penny. In the case of Plumsteadville Inn, where we went for the second time last night, they’re just very inviting, popular, often crowded and crowd-pleasing places where you can get good comfort food and great service.
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Restaurant Review: 5 Unbeatable Yums at Ferry + Main (New Hope, PA)
By Mark McNease
Shared from LGBTSr.com. Restaurant reviews are based on a 5 Yum scale, 5 meaning put it on your must list, 1 meaning eat at your peril.Ferry + Main
10 W. Ferry Street
New Hope, PA 18939
Website: www.loganinn.com/
Tel: (215) 862-2300
Spend Meter: $$$$
Yums: 5+ (food and service)Some food is so good it’s criminal, and that’s what you’ll be treated to at Ferry + Main, the restaurant inside New Hope’s renovated Logan Inn. The Inn was undergoing upgrades for several years as it was transformed from a well-known local inn to a luxury establishment where everything is meant to impress, and does. The decor, the staff, the atmosphere, and, yes, the prices: the Logan Inn is one of those places where you get what you pay for, in the best ways.
The restaurant is all wood and brick, with arched ceilings and a large working fireplace in one of the two main seating areas. The first time we went there, for Thanksgiving, the place was packed and we were seated in a raised area away from the thick of things. That was better for us, since the acoustics in this restaurant amplify the noise. There’s nothing to absorb sound, so if you’re seated near the kitchen and fireplace, be prepared for the echo of voices bouncing off the ceiling and walls. There’s also a popular bar in the space, which adds to the volume as well as to the ambience. Is that a criticism? Not really. Having lived in New York City for twenty-five years, I’m familiar with loud restaurants. But if they’re offering tables away from the main activity, take one.
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Restaurant Review: Talula’s Garden Gets 5 Philly Yums (and a Best of 2021)
By Mark McNease
Restaurant reviews are based on a 5 Yum scale, 5 meaning put it on your must list, 1 meaning avoid at all costs.Talula’s Garden
210 West Washington Square
Philadelphia, PA 19106
(215) 592-7787
Website: talulasgarde.com
Spend Meter: $$$$
Service: ExcellentImagine finding a new favorite boutique hotel in Philadelphia’s Center City. Then imagine discovering one of the city’s best restaurants barely a block away. It sounds improbable, but that’s exactly the situation we found ourselves in, waking up in that very hotel, having enjoyed what my husband Frank calls “the best meal of 2021.”
The Morris House Hotel is a true gem nestled in the heart of the historic district. Its designation as a historical site means this beautiful, 18th century structure can’t be torn down. It sits like a jewel from another era amid hospital and office buildings, and there’s a quiet defiance to it: I’m old, I’m elegant, I’m not going away. Note: if a modern aesthetic and a streaming vibe are more to your liking, this hotel may not be for you. But if you enjoy a bit of a staid colonial feel decorated to suit the times it was built in, this is a must-try. You can see my full review and slideshow from our last trip HERE.
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Restaurant Review: The Golden Pheasant Inn, 5 Emphatic Yums
This review is reprinted from LGBTSr.com.
By Mark McNease
Restaurant reviews are based on a 5 Yum scale, 5 meaning put it on your must list, 1 meaning avoid at all costs.The Golden Pheasant Inn
763 River Road (Route 32)
Erwinna, PA 18920
(610) 294 9595
Website: goldenpheasant.com
Spend Meter: $$$$+
Service: Excellent
Another Sunday, another outstanding meal. I don’t expect them all to be this good, but when you go to the Golden Pheasant Inn you can count on the standards being high. Located in Erwina, PA, just about twenty minutes from our home in rural New Jersey, the Golden Pheasant is a nearby taste of excellence. My husband Frank and I rode there with our friends and neighbors Phil and Jim. We were going out with them regularly before the pandemic put a stop to life as we knew it. Now that restrictions are being lifted, spring has arrived, and we’re all vaccinated, it was time for another delightful dinner out, this time indoors.
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Restaurant Review: The Golden Pheasant Inn, 5 Emphatic Yums
By Mark McNease
Restaurant reviews are based on a 5 Yum scale, 5 meaning put it on your must list, 1 meaning avoid at all costs.The Golden Pheasant Inn
763 River Road (Route 32)
Erwinna, PA 18920
(610) 294 9595
Website: goldenpheasant.com
Spend Meter: $$$$+
Service: ExcellentAnother Sunday, another outstanding meal. I don’t expect them all to be this good, but when you go to the Golden Pheasant Inn you can count on the standards being high. Located in Erwina, PA, just about twenty minutes from our home in rural New Jersey, the Golden Pheasant is a nearby taste of excellence. My husband Frank and I rode there with our friends and neighbors Phil and Jim. We were going out with them regularly before the pandemic put a stop to life as we knew it. Now that restrictions are being lifted, spring has arrived, and we’re all vaccinated, it was time for another delightful dinner out, this time indoors.
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Restaurant Review: The Black Bass Hotel, 5 Yums with a River View
Reprinted from LGBTSr.com
By Mark McNease
Restaurant reviews are based on a 5 Yum scale, 5 meaning put it on your must list, 1 meaning avoid at all costs.The Black Bass Hotel
3774 River Road
Lumberville, PA 18933
(215) 297-9260
Website: blackbasshotel.com
Spend Meter: $$$$
Service: Excellent
Now that we and our friends have all been fully vaccinated, it’s time to get out there and enjoy each other’s company again. What better way to do that than with a fine meal in a fine restaurant?
My husband Frank and I have been getting takeout on Sundays for many months. It’s the end of my work week (Thursday through Sunday), and I’ve been determined not to cook, clean, or otherwise tax myself after putting in four days at the job. Once the pandemic started a year ago we followed all the precautions and restrictions, and with a few exceptions for outside dining last fall, we’ve been taking it easy with takeout.
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Restaurant Review: The Black Bass Hotel, 5 Yums with a River View
By Mark McNease
Restaurant reviews are based on a 5 Yum scale, 5 meaning put it on your must list, 1 meaning avoid at all costs.The Black Bass Hotel
3774 River Road
Lumberville, PA 18933
(215) 297-9260
Website: blackbasshotel.com
Spend Meter: $$$$
Service: ExcellentNow that we and our friends have all been fully vaccinated, it’s time to get out there and enjoy each other’s company again. What better way to do that than with a fine meal in a fine restaurant?
My husband Frank and I have been getting takeout on Sundays for many months. It’s the end of my work week (Thursday through Sunday), and I’ve been determined not to cook, clean, or otherwise tax myself after putting in four days at the job. Once the pandemic started a year ago we followed all the precautions and restrictions, and with a few exceptions for outside dining last fall, we’ve been taking it easy with takeout.
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Restaurant Review: Martine’s Riverhouse Restaurant, 3 ½ Yums (New Hope, PA)
Reviews are based on a 5 Yum scale, 5 being must-go, 2 being save your money, 1 being call an ambulance.
Where: Martine’s Riverhouse Restaurant, New Hope, PA
Price: $$$
Fun new word: RiverhouseSo it is two words or one? Is the ‘H’ capitalized or not? I found it both ways on their website and their Facebook page. That can happen when you make up words – it’s tough to know which is catchier.
My husband Frank and I made it across the Delaware River to New Hope, Pennsylvania. We parked in Lambertville, New Jersey, and walked over the bridge, since New Hope decided several years ago there would be no free parking anywhere in town. It’s Delaware River Towns Restaurant Week and both communities are nestled on the river. It’s a spectacular place to live. Art and progressive politics are in the air, but there’s something for everyone. Last night that something was dinner at Martine’s.
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Restaurant Review: Martine’s Riverhouse Restaurant, 3 ½ Yums (New Hope, PA)
Reviews are based on a 5 Yum scale, 5 being must-go, 2 being save your money, 1 being call an ambulance.
Where: Martine’s Riverhouse Restaurant, New Hope, PA
Price: $$$
Fun new word: RiverhouseSo it is two words or one? Is the ‘H’ capitalized or not? I found it both ways on their website and their Facebook page. That can happen when you make up words – it’s tough to know which is catchier.
My husband Frank and I made it across the Delaware River to New Hope, Pennsylvania. We parked in Lambertville, New Jersey, and walked over the bridge, since New Hope decided several years ago there would be no free parking anywhere in town. It’s Delaware River Towns Restaurant Week and both communities are nestled on the river. It’s a spectacular place to live. Art and progressive politics are in the air, but there’s something for everyone. Last night that something was dinner at Martine’s.