Bullpen Tavern

216 Glen Street
Glens Falls, NY 12801
(518) 745-7811


The next time you are in Glens Falls . . . you should eat at the Bullpen. I happened upon this place while on my way to Vermont, there are not a whole lot of places to stop for a beer and burger. This place is in a great building in their cool little downtown. A revival to it's past glory, perhaps.

The menu is good bar food, and the draft list covers all the bases. Lots of local choices as well. I went with the recommended jalapeno bacon burger, cooked medium rare. The bread was perfect, the bacon nice a crispy, and the jalapenos provided quite a bit of kick.

The cooper sharp cheese (a personal favorite) was melted perfectly.

The battered fries were crispy and addictive. Especially dipped in a side of the chipotle sauce.

Look at how perfectly this burger was cooked. I was quite impressed.

Juicy, well seasoned meat cooked to a perfect medium rare. What's not to love?

I also wanted to try something less traditional for a bar in upstate New York. In this case, I went with the fried shrimp po'boy. The shrimp were battered with Red Hook beer, and tossed in "bang bang" sauce.

The bread did nicely (obviously no Leidenheimer) but it certainly held up to the task. The shrimp had a sweet and spicy, sticky sauce. I was a big fan. Surprisingly good food I stumbled upon here. If you are ever looking for a spot to eat on the way to Vermont, this might be the place.

Kinzer's Station Tavern

3572 Lincoln Hwy East
(Route 30)
Kinzers, PA 17535
(717) 442-8799

Kinzer's Station is located off of Route 30 on the way to Lancaster. I have wanted to stop in here for years, and had planned on it in the spring, but they were closed for a stretch due to a fire. They are back up and running, and I made a Sunday pit stop on the way home from a weekend road trip.

The joint is owned by a really nice fellow named Mike, a South Philly born-and-raised transplant, who bought the place almost sight unseen to get himself out of the city and into a slower-paced lifestyle out in the country. That's my kind of country living: owning a bar/restaurant with Philly originals all over the menu.

They allow smoking, which would have been annoying, but there was barely anyone there, so it wasn't too bad. Bud heavy was the drink of choice.

The food is nothing fancy, Philly area bar food done well. I had a cheesesteak and wings, two of my usual go-to choices.

The cheesesteak was quite good. The meat was well seasoned, and had plenty of cheese spread throughout. The roll was fine but not great. Being there on a Sunday right when they opened, I didn't expect it to be from the same day. Let's face it, I wasn't firing on all cylinders either. For being a day or three old, the roll was still okay.

Pretty well chopped, the meat didn't have any annoying gristly or fatty bites.

One thing you will notice, is they certainly do not skimp on the meat. I was a big fan of the both the quantity and quality.

The wings were also solid. I asked for the cooked extra crispy, and they sure were. The fat was nicely rendered out, and the skin retained it's crunch while I worked my way though them. It did not take long. This is a solid pit stop on your way to/through/from Amish country. A great roadside dive with Philly food done right. I hope to make a stop on a Friday night to get a real feel for the crowd. If I ever get to, I'll report back.

Subway Cafe

1000 Herr Street
Harrisburg, PA 17103
(717) 412-7128
Website

So, as I was saying, I was in Harrisburg for the day and hit a few local spots for lunch and dinner and in between.

The final stop in my culinary adventure was a little corner spot in the heart of the city, just a few blocks from the capital complex.

It is truly on the wrong side of the tracks, but I did not let that deter me. I mean, just look at those awnings and sweet neon signage! What an awesomely retro building. There was no way I wasn't going inside this time machine.

It's a really small mom-and-pop style Italian joint, with a bar that seats around 6 and a dining room with about 12 tables. There's a tiny window between the kitchen and dining room where you see little hands reaching up and placing plates full of hot, steamy foods. The special drink was the "oral fixation" and I had to skip it, but I couldn't help appreciating the artistic flair (see below).

Instead, I partook in their famous "fishbowl" of beer.

It's an enormous 32 oz. goblet of ice cold domestic for only $4.25 - yes, I said $4.25 - that's not a typo. Amazing.

With that deal, the Subway Cafe could only get better from there.

And it did. The side salad was pretty much your usual mix of iceberg and Romaine, but I want to note that the tomatoes were exceptionally ripe, considering these kinds of salads usually show up with pink-to-white tomatoes that are completely inedible. I could feel the love coming out of the kitchen.

The pepperoni pizza with extra cheese came out moments after and I had to put down my fork. Mouthwatering.

All of the pies are personal size, about 11 inches each, and it looks like they're cooked in something like a 10 inch pie pan. The edges sort of sit up, but it's not even close to a deep dish pie. In fact, it's the opposite.

The crust is cracker-style, thin and crispy. The cheese goes right on the dough, so it melds together in a chewy crunch, and is topped with a swirl of sweet and tangy sauce. I had to add the thin pepperoni slices, at everyone's recommendation. I mean, this stuff is heavenly.

Did I mention they run $6.50 a piece with toppings coming in at $1.40? I mean, it eats like a meal, but I eat for 2. Obviously, I was due for another menu item. The daily special board advertised lasagne with meat sauce or meatballs and I chose the former.

My god, this was some of the best lasagne I've ever had. The noodles were fresh and cooked just al dente. They were stacked together so the heavily-meated sauce actually sandwiched the noodles. There was very little ricotta, if any, and I realized how much I like an abundance of sweet, tangy sauce taking over.

It also came with a couple of slices of fresh baked Italian bread. When buttered, it made the perfect mop for any leftover meat sauce. Now, I have to let you know that the lasagne isn't officially on the menu, so I'll pray that when you go, it's up on the board so you can enjoy your own little pile of heaven.

Well, second pile of heaven, because any of the pizza pies will be your first. Buon appetito!

EDITOR'S NOTE: Two days after Philly Phoodie's visit, Subway Cafe was named PennLive's Pizza Party winner for 2013. The idea was to "crown a champion pizza that was a cut above those perfectly fine pies found at neighborhood pizzerias." Couldn't be happier about their title. READ MORE ABOUT IT HERE!

Neato Burrito

316 4th Street
New Cumberland, PA 17070
(717) 770-0390
Website

As part of the Chevy Cruze Diesel trip, there had to be some stops on the way to refuel. Not for the Cruze, because that gets like 40mpg, but for me, because I get around 1 bph (burrito per hour). Neato Burrito is a local chain (think Chipotle) that is known for its funky decor and riffs on Tex-Mex.

This is the second location (the original store in downtown Harrisburg recently moved, so I couldn't visit the flagship) and is located in an old firehouse in New Cumberland.

Curious onlookers.

I hear they have this great neon signage at almost every location.

I guess "eclectic" is the best way to describe this place. I do like the weird stuff on the walls, and the record-covered windows. It's almost like they shop at the Atomic Warehouse (see last post) for the decor.

It's relatively cheap, and there is nothing that stands out on the menu.

I assume this is perfect for those with social anxiety.

I figured a burrito bowl and a burrito would suffice.

This burrito was one of the largest I have ever seen. It was honestly the size of a football.

The jalapeno tortilla came stuffed with chicken, vegan beer chili, cowboy rice (smothered in BBQ sauce), lettuce, cucumber, onion, jalapenos, sour cream, guacamole, and their special salsa, which was basically a sour cream feta sauce. It was delicious. There was so much flavor packed in there, that it made every bite a new adventure.

The burrito bowl with beef (over chips) was disappointing.

Perhaps it was poor picking of toppings (outside of my suggestions, of course), but this particular version lacked flavor. Also, the chips were incredibly weak. In a matter of minutes they looked like boiled lasagna noodles. I think a major issue was skipping the BBQ sauce rice and feta cream sauce on this one.

They really made the burrito near to perfection, and pointed out the flaws in the bowl. I will definitely remember this for next time.