Franzone's Lunch

I met up with some fellow Franzone's lovers to get a pie. Just looking at it makes me hungry. I asked the surly waitress for a cup of extra sauce, and to my surprise, she totally came through! Yes, this pizza is about the thin crispy crust but really, the sweet sauce is definitely what makes it. And having extra sauce to dip the slices into, gah, the best thing ever!Franzone's Pizzeria
200 W Ridge Pike
Conshohocken, PA 19428
610-825-0323

Coyote Crossing Conshy

Went to a little happy hour at Coyote Crossing the other night. It's literally a hop, skip, and a jump from work. I was here once before, years and years ago. I don't remember being all that impressed with the food, but I remember the margaritas and how strong ass they were. I didn't drink that night, but I did eat because I was pretty starving by the time I showed up. Chips and pico de gallo. Good chips. Very good chips. Very crunchy and not greasy. The pico was alright, a little on the plain side. Not at all spicy, which is not a good thing.
There are some chicken fajitas. They weren't anything spectacular, but they were pretty good. The chicken was mighty tasty and perfectly cooked. The fixins didn't excite me very much. And now I'm looking at the tomatoes and thinking damn, I ate them. Please salmonella gods, please spare me.
Shrimp quesadillas. These little suckers were surprisingly good. Next time, I'll get a designated driver and drink a margarita. Seriously, one if probably all I'll need. They have outdoor seating too. But it started storming right after I got there that night so everyone that was outside had to scurry it back inside. Their music selection needs to be a little less schizo. It was a random mix of tejano dance, disco, and Michael Jackson.

Boathouse Nachos

Oh Boathouse, how I loathe you so. I went to a happy hour the other day with a whole boatload of people. It was buy a pitcher, get free wings night. Not a bad deal, really. In fact, I actually might like their wings. But wings weren't quite cutting it, so A and I decided to split some chicken nachos. These weren't good at all. Not at all. But because I was drinking and hungry, I still ate them. The chips were soggy, the ingredients were not evenly distributed, or even nearly evenly distributed. They just weren't very good. I didn't pick the Boathouse. I would never pick the Boathouse. And I'll never eat these nachos again.

Pepperoncini Birthday Lunch

It was Big Kev's birthday on Friday, so we took him out to Pepperoncini. He had seen my earlier post about this place, and was so swayed by my stupendous food blogging, that he personally selected it for his birthday lunch. That's the power of this blog, people! :-)
R got a pasta dish. What was he thinking? He knew about the sandwiches, but he got pasta anyway. For shame! This was the Linguini Mastriciana, which came with pancetta, shallots, diced tomato, and extra virgin olive oil in a white wine sauce. While I'm sure it was good (he said it was), when it comes to lunch here, it's all about the sandwiches! R got the chicken cutlet sandwich, which came with roasted red peppers, sweet garlic-herb mayo, and hunks of fontina cheese. And yeah, it's on those conshohocken bakery rolls that are to die for!
The birthday boy got the roasted pork sandwich. The waitress had recommended it as one of the best items on the menu on our first visit. Big Kev loved this. This was the biggest sandwich of them all.
D got the chooch burger. It's a burger, and it's huge, and it too, comes on that awesome conshohocken bakery roll. I like how they hollowed out the top it so you can fit it on top of all the stuff.

I got the sandwich special, which was a sausage parm. Yes, it was good! As opposed to last time when the sandwiches came with boring chips, this time we got homemade potato chips, or what seemed to be homemade chips. These were superb. I even ate the ones off D's plate cuz he wasn't eating them. No point in wasting them!

Service was good, as usual. We got there pretty early and we were the only people there. But pretty soon, the place filled up. For such an unassuming hidden place, lots of the locals that work here seem to know about it. I truly think this is one of the best places to eat in Conshy.

Pepperoncini Restaurant & Bar
72 Poplar St
Conshohocken, PA 19428
610-941-7783

Pepperoncini

I drive the same way to work every day, down Elm St. And every day, I pass by an unassuming restaurant called Pepperoncini. I've never ever thought of going into this place. Not once. But for a few weeks, people at work have been talking about it. R wanted to escape the office Thursday, so we decided to stop by. Are we ever glad we did!

The place is totally cute. And there's a nice little bar inside too. They have a simple lunch menu, with sandwiches, pasta, and pizza. R got the italian sausage sandwich with broccoli raab. Do you see how big this is? And the bread... the glorious bread! It's crusty and crispy and chewy with the perfect amount of sesame seeds. I'm in love with this bread. It's from the Conshohocken Bakery. I'm totally going there to pick up some of this awesome bread.

As for me, I got the hot roast beef sandwich. Totally good. So big that I couldn't finish it. We both totally love this place now, as much as we love this bread. The service was great, our waitress was super friendly and helpful. The place was filled with a nice professional lunch crowd. Yey for secret little spots in Conshy!

Pepperoncini Restaurant & Bar

72 Poplar St
Conshohocken, PA 19428
610-941-7783

Why Does Everyone Think Blackfish Only Serves Seafood?

Whenever we go out to lunch at work, we end up at places like the Great American Pub (bad), the Boathouse (worse), or Chiangmai (good). I've been wanting to go to Blackfish for awhile, and I finally got a chance to go. I had a little lunch date with my old teammates. Yeah, that's right, I have old teammates now. Whoo hoo! But I digress...

It's an adorable little BYOB tucked between the Pub and the Boathouse. You'd never know that something like this would be on Conshy's main strip. The place is really bright and clean and simple. You can't smoke there. There's no frat boys. There's al fresco dining.

The lunch menu is sparse, and surprisingly, with only one seafood choice. I'd been hearing about their burgers, so I had to get one. In fact, we all got the burger. Then everybody asked why we ate burgers at a seafood restaurant. They didn't see the menu! I also heard that their pot pie and the shepherd's pie were also quite awesome. That's for next time.

Even the drinks came in big wine glasses. Fancy schmancy. Their tables were very very shiny and black. R couldn't stop pointing that out.

The burger? Mine was loaded with extremely thick bacon and caramelized onions. Oh, how I love caramelized onions. This burger was ginormous, and delicious. It came between a brioche bun. All in all, this burger almost rivals the burgers at Good Dog. But I said almost. I'm still devoted to the Good Dog burger, but this comes a close second. The fries were also pretty damn good. I asked for my burger to be well done (I always do, sorry) and it defintely was well done. In fact, it was a little charred, but that's ok, I like things charred.

Service was good. We got there pretty early and were the only ones there for a bit. But eventually, the place filled up with business-type folk wearing khakis and polos. It's a nice and peaceful respite from the keg parties going on next door.

Conshy's Main Strip - Tony and Joe's

It ended up being a crazy week of pasta for me. We stopped by Tony and Joe's for lunch during the week. You wouldn't know it from the outside, but it's not just a pick-up joint here... they actually have an adorable little dining area inside.


T went with the eggplant parm. Biggest plate of eggplant parm I've ever witnessed in my life. HA! Those veggies aren't just plain... they were loaded with garlicky and buttery goodness!


R went with her trusty old standby - ravioli.


I ordered the rigatoni. The only rigatoni on the menu was rigatoni abruzzi... which was supposed to come with sausage in a spicy sauce. I ended up with plain old rigatoni with a red sauce. It was fine and all, but plain as all get out. I don't know what happened... You also get garlic bread, which was pretty good. And soup or salad... we all got salad. My russian dressing was really really weird. Service was pretty good. All the pasta was made to order so it took a bit of time, but not tremendously long. It's a nice hidden option on Conshy's main strip.

Great American Pub - Conshy

We had a newbie join our team, so we took her out for a first day lunch last Monday. After we all voted against the Boathouse, we ended up at the next worst thing next door, the Great American Pub.



I didn't want to traumatize the new girl by taking photos of everybody's food, so I just stuck with mine. I got the chicken corn chowder, which was a special of the day. It wasn't very chowdery. It was more like cream of chicken soup with some chicken and a very few pieces of corn thrown in. Not horrible, but really, it was kind of a misnomer.


I got the gulf coast salad, which had lettuce, croutons, bacon, and tomatoes, tossed with a combo of thousand island and caesar dressings. This was alright, nothing spectacular, but a safe choice. It was basically a bacon salad with some veggies thrown in. I'm not sure which I like less, the Boathouse or this place. Honestly, I think it's a tossup.

The Oakmont Pub

One of my favorite places within (almost) walking distance from my house is the Oakmont National Pub. It's a nice, relaxing, and unpretentious neighborhood spot, with a surprisingly good selection of beers and some good food. The spot used to be an actual bank, hence the "national" in the name. Some time during my childhood days, this used to be another restaurant. Then one day it burned down. And from the ashes rose up the Oakmont.

When you walk in, there's a sizable bar, the kitchen in the middle, and some booths on the side. There is also an outside dining area, which they call their "outdoor beer garden." I wouldn't go quite that far, but it is outdoors, and during the cold months, it's enclosed and heated. There is also a very small dining area upstairs, which overlooks the entire downstairs.

They have regular bar fare, burgers, salads, some pasta dishes, seafood, veal, and some of the most humongous cheesesteaks you've ever witnessed in your life. They also have a great selection of beers on draft (no bud or miller lite pints here) as well as a full booze bar.




J ordered the french onion soup as an appetizer. He almost damn near burned his mouth off. But he still liked it. He also got the meatloaf. It came with mashed potatoes, gravy, and some beautiful looking garlicky green beans.

I went with something I'd had before and liked, turkey pot pie. I still liked it, but it was a bit saltier than I would have preferred. I probably also wouldn't have minded if the puffed pastry was cooked a bit more. But otherwise, still good.

We were sitting upstairs, but the service was just fine. They did not forget about us up there. We're in the burbs, so you can still smoke here, which is a bummer, but I guess you just have to deal with it. On a surprising note, there was strangely good music playing here the whole night. I certainly did not expect to hear Teagan and Sara, Spoon, Modest Mouse, and the like from the stereo at the Oakmont. I thought for sure it would just be some sports game or country or black eyed peas all night. I really like this place. I will like it even more when it goes non-smoking. So hurry up Ed Rendell!

Boathouse... again!

I ended up at the Boathouse again for a post-work thing. Why do they always pick the Boathouse? I know there aren't many options in Conshy, but why? Why?


Shockingly, I actually liked my food this time. I got the fish and chips, and while the chips were blah, the fish was actually great! It was a good sized filet of tilapia encrusted with panko breadcrumbs and fried. It was surprisingly good. I also had a Rising Moon beer which is made by the folks at Blue Moon. Also surprisingly good, smooth, and almost too easy to drink. It's a good thing I didn't stay very long or I could have drank way too many of these.

Boathouse Lunch

Why is it that we always end up at the damn Boathouse for lunch? Well, we rarely go out to eat... there's very few selections in downtown Conshohocken, and it's damn skippy close. I wish there were more choices around here.

D got the french onion soup (I'm totally into french onion soup) and hot popcorn shrimp. That toast looks a little burnt, no? I tasted one of these shrimp... um... it was popcorn shrimp covered in tabasco. Not really something I would ever choose to eat again. I love me some hot sauce, but it should be a seasoning, not the seasoning.

R got a mushroom sandwich. This sandwich would be my ultimate nightmare... I don't like mushrooms (except for a select few kinds) so to have it be the main ingredient of a sandwich... eeg. But I snagged some of her fries.


I got one of the specials, which was a spinach salad with blackened mahi mahi. It came with a dijon dressing, but I passed on that since I don't like mustard. This salad was alright. Perfectly acceptable, but nothing exciting. Seriously, their food isn't that great. It's a good thing they sell booze here...

Conshy Chinese

I usually don't go out for lunch during the week. We get few a couple days a week, and for the rest of the week, I brown bag it or grab something quick from Wawa. The other day, R wanted to grab some chinese, so I thought I'd go along. We hopped on over to Golden Dragon in Conshy, which is in Plymouth Square shopping center, where the REI is. It's one of these non-descript chinese joints with no windows. And on the inside, some booths along the edge with red fabric, some tables, and chinese zodiac placemats.


R went simple with wonton soup and an eggroll. Soup? Just fine and dandy. I went with one of the $6 lunch specials - beef with broccoli. Came with soup and eggroll, and fried rice. The eggroll wasn't too great, it was more weird. Random shredded dried stuff on the inside, couldn't really tell what it was. But yes, I ate it anyway!

The entree was quite fine. A bit salty for me, but otherwise, a perfectly acceptable lunch special offering. The veggies were quite fresh. I even had so much that I got to eat it for dinner... I love leftovers! The service was ok too, it's a total family run place. The two ladies working the joint that day looked exactly alike, and had the same funny curly short hairdos. Are there better chinese restaurants around? Hell yes! But it's fine for a quick lunch bite.

Work Lunch Outing

I typically don't go out to eat lunch during the week. Sometimes I'll go and grab food, but most of the time when we're not being fed, I will bring my own. Last week my team went out for our "last supper" lunch. We're getting a new boss. It's quite a traumatic thing. It deserved some team commiserating. Since we're in Conshy, there weren't many options, and noone wanted to make a decision, so we ended up at the Boathouse. It's not an exciting place, but it's somewhere to go.

D got a burger of some kind. There's bacon on it. Can't go wrong with bacon! K got a chicken BLT sandwich? Looks pretty good, eh? The kept poaching his fries, they were good. Again, bacon on his sandwich, another winner.

R went with the chicken pesto sandwich. It's got feta cheese on it. I'm not a fan of feta cheese, but otherwise, the sandwich sure looks good. See, it comes on a fancy "rustic focaccia" roll. I went with the good ol soup and sandwich combo. It was the soup of the day - shrimp and roasted corn chowder. Pretty good I must say. The salad was a big house salad. Much bigger than I expected. Good croutons. I picked the sesame ginger dressing. It wasn't as much dressing as it was a marinade, so it was a bit on the strong side. I shoulda gone with vinaigrette. I had my first leinenkugel that day. You know what, I enjoyed it. Probably a bit too much...

So so sushi lunch

Went out to lunch today, which is a rarity. I always bring something on the days that we don't get fed. Our new training queen (as my boss calls her) took us out to Spamps Restaurant. It's a strange place, with an even stranger name. Swanky and definitely geared towards the professional crowd. It labels itself as Steaks, Seafood, and Sushi. And they're right, they don't have Japanese food, they just have sushi.

I didn't really want sushi, but everyone at work had been raving about it, so I decided to give it a go. I had a spicy california dreaming combo, which came with soup, salad, and 2 rolls. Not a bad deal for only $10. It wasn't bad, but not nearly as good as others said. But I guess it's good for Conshohocken standards. Sagami it is not! The soup was ok, but a little too strong and salty. The salad was not really what you would typically get at a sushi restaurant. First off it was mesclun greens. We all know that a house salad with ginger dressing at a sushi restaurant means iceberg. Iceberg people, simple iceberg. The rolls themselves weren't bad either. But nothing to write home about. So all in all, ok.

So for dinner I got extra lazy and decided to make a frozen dinner. Not a microwave meal or fish sticks, but one of those new Bertolli frozen pasta dinners. I'd gotten a few while they were on sale (I'm always willing to try anything once, provided it's on sale!) so I gave it a go. Just threw it in a skillet onto the stove for 10 minutes and I was done. I went with the Chicken Alla Vodka & Farfalle. For the second time today, it wasn't bad. Much too salty for my liking (I'm not a fan of salt). The asparagus were surprisingly fresh tasting. The chicken was real strips of chicken breast, and also tasty. The pasta was nice and al dente. So for me, I would even say I liked it, except for the overly salty part. I think these things have the commercial where the Italian restaurant chefs/workers are sitting around at their empty restaurant. Annoying ass commercial, but they're not half bad. I have one more to try and I'm looking forward to it!