July 5th, 2011
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Author: The restaurant renaissance in Ambler that began modestly in 1998 with the opening of Trax Café alongside the Ambler Train Station is no longer a well-kept secret. Like Manayunk, Chestnut Hill and Doylestown before it, Ambler has become a genuine restaurant destination.
And between Sunday, July 10, and Friday, July 15, during the first annual Ambler Restaurant Week, food lovers from all points can discover for themselves exactly what the buzz is all about.
It’s been a quiet evolution. At the beginning of the new millennium, only Trax Restaurant & Café, now in its 13th prosperous year with chef-owner Steve Waxman, and KC’s Alley & Bar, still owned and operated by the entrepreneurial Kevin Clib, were virtually the only places in town one could get a meal worth remembering.
Jimmy Rubino’s Ralph’s of South Philadelphia came along in 2002, followed by the Mexican restaurant La Cava two years later. Neither is still operating.
But two restaurants that opened in 2004 — Bridget’s 8 West, now a modern American steakhouse also owned by Clib, and Shanachie Irish Pub & Restaurant, delighting guests with its sophisticated Irish fare and the lively music of co-owner Gerry Timlin and other Celtic folksingers — are still doing great business and satisfying different sets of clientele along the way.
The last few years have seen a veritable boom in restaurant openings, including People’s Choice favorite Fireside Bar & Grille (2006) on Bethlehem Pike; Saffron (2009), a cozy Indian restaurant just steps away from Act II Playhouse; Dettera (2009), an upscale contemporary American restaurant offering fine cuisine and an impressive wine list that almost match its spectacular architectural features and stunning décor; From the Boot (2009), an Italian restaurant that replaced Jimmy Rubino’s and the Agave Grille & Cantina; and, earlier this year, Massa, a Greek/Mediterranean BYOB and, with its grand opening planned for the week before restaurant week, Rosey’s BBQ, the second outlet (after Jenkintown) for Chad Rosenthal’s hub of Memphis rub.
Each of these restaurants, and more, will be offering various dinner specials and prix fixe meals throughout the week.
Ambler Restaurant Week is the brainchild of Ambler Flower Shop owner Gene McGonigle, who organizes many events for Ambler Main Street.
According to Allison Wolf, who helped orchestrate the event, “It came together quickly. We just thought that with all the great restaurants we have in Ambler, why not showcase them in a nice neat package? And the restaurateurs have been totally on board and were very helpful in coming up with a plan.”
Chef Waxman, who has been an integral part of the Ambler community throughout his days at Trax, said, “Ambler’s come a long way since 1998. It’s a thriving little town. It has momentum.
“Act II Playhouse brings in people,” he continued. “So does the Ambler cinema. We can really feel the difference.”
Waxman recalled the Ambler Progressive Dinner of 2006, in which many of the borough’s best restaurants cooperated in a pleasant walking tour of Ambler that centered on having appetizers at Bridget’s and KC’s Alley, then entrées at Agave before dessert at the Shanachie.
He said that the progressive dinner brought people into town “and built some business, but it was just a bite. But restaurant week came about pretty organically, with Gene [McGonigle] and Allison [Wolf] driving the bus and Irene Baker doing most of the publicity for us. Continued…
“The restaurants of Ambler get along pretty well,” he explained. “We certainly recommend Dettera or some of the other restaurants. I’ve eaten at Saffron a few times and other restaurants in town. So I’m not surprised but very happy about the attention we’ve gotten.
“I’m sure we’ll do something together again.”
Allison Wolf concurs: “We plan on making this an annual affair. We’re really trying to make it fun. It’s not just the restaurants, but other merchants in the borough are joining in the fun.”
She was referring to strolling musicians playing along Butler Avenue, Ambler’s main street, on Thursday and Friday night, July 14 and 15, the stores staying open late and many artists featuring their work in restaurants, retail stores and the like.
“And on Wednesday of restaurant week,” she continued, “Mermaid Art Studio is offering parents a safe place to drop off their kids. For $25, the kids can do arts and crafts while the parents go off and enjoy the restaurants. Or they can do flower arrangements at the Ambler Flower Shop or Veronica’s Flowers.”
The event will be followed on Saturday, July 16, with a grand Art Stroll from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. More than two-dozen participants will offer live music, fine arts and crafts and retail specials throughout the borough. Details can be found on the Ambler Main Street website: www.AmblerMainStreet.org.
Wolf said she is especially gratified by Kevin Clib’s volunteering to donate $5 from every guest’s order at both Bridget’s and KC’s Alley to Ronald McDonald House. But all the participating restaurants are featuring amazing specials.
Here are some of the highlights: Dettera, Trax and Massa will offer three courses for $30, Bridget’s offers three courses for $32, while Shanachie and Finn McCool’s will offer four courses for $30, and KC’s, Saffron and From the Boot are offering three courses for $20.
Fireside is offering one half-priced appetizer throughout the week, and look for Rosey’s BBQ’s grand opening from July 7 to 9, with live music and specials the week before Ambler’s ambitious and appetizing first restaurant week.
— Look for some sample menus on page _
Ambler Restaurant Week
takes place
Sunday, July 10, through Continued…
Friday, July 15, at various
participating restaurants
throughout Ambler borough.
For particulars, contact
each individual restaurant or visit
The restaurant renaissance in Ambler that began modestly in 1998 with the opening of Trax Café alongside the Ambler Train Station is no longer a well-kept secret. Like Manayunk, Chestnut Hill and Doylestown before it, Ambler has become a genuine restaurant destination.
And between Sunday, July 10, and Friday, July 15, during the first annual Ambler Restaurant Week, food lovers from all points can discover for themselves exactly what the buzz is all about.
It’s been a quiet evolution. At the beginning of the new millennium, only Trax Restaurant & Café, now in its 13th prosperous year with chef-owner Steve Waxman, and KC’s Alley & Bar, still owned and operated by the entrepreneurial Kevin Clib, were virtually the only places in town one could get a meal worth remembering.
Jimmy Rubino’s Ralph’s of South Philadelphia came along in 2002, followed by the Mexican restaurant La Cava two years later. Neither is still operating.
But two restaurants that opened in 2004 — Bridget’s 8 West, now a modern American steakhouse also owned by Clib, and Shanachie Irish Pub & Restaurant, delighting guests with its sophisticated Irish fare and the lively music of co-owner Gerry Timlin and other Celtic folksingers — are still doing great business and satisfying different sets of clientele along the way.
The last few years have seen a veritable boom in restaurant openings, including People’s Choice favorite Fireside Bar & Grille (2006) on Bethlehem Pike; Saffron (2009), a cozy Indian restaurant just steps away from Act II Playhouse; Dettera (2009), an upscale contemporary American restaurant offering fine cuisine and an impressive wine list that almost match its spectacular architectural features and stunning décor; From the Boot (2009), an Italian restaurant that replaced Jimmy Rubino’s and the Agave Grille & Cantina; and, earlier this year, Massa, a Greek/Mediterranean BYOB and, with its grand opening planned for the week before restaurant week, Rosey’s BBQ, the second outlet (after Jenkintown) for Chad Rosenthal’s hub of Memphis rub.
Each of these restaurants, and more, will be offering various dinner specials and prix fixe meals throughout the week.
Ambler Restaurant Week is the brainchild of Ambler Flower Shop owner Gene McGonigle, who organizes many events for Ambler Main Street.
According to Allison Wolf, who helped orchestrate the event, “It came together quickly. We just thought that with all the great restaurants we have in Ambler, why not showcase them in a nice neat package? And the restaurateurs have been totally on board and were very helpful in coming up with a plan.”
Chef Waxman, who has been an integral part of the Ambler community throughout his days at Trax, said, “Ambler’s come a long way since 1998. It’s a thriving little town. It has momentum.
“Act II Playhouse brings in people,” he continued. “So does the Ambler cinema. We can really feel the difference.”
Waxman recalled the Ambler Progressive Dinner of 2006, in which many of the borough’s best restaurants cooperated in a pleasant walking tour of Ambler that centered on having appetizers at Bridget’s and KC’s Alley, then entrées at Agave before dessert at the Shanachie.
He said that the progressive dinner brought people into town “and built some business, but it was just a bite. But restaurant week came about pretty organically, with Gene [McGonigle] and Allison [Wolf] driving the bus and Irene Baker doing most of the publicity for us.
“The restaurants of Ambler get along pretty well,” he explained. “We certainly recommend Dettera or some of the other restaurants. I’ve eaten at Saffron a few times and other restaurants in town. So I’m not surprised but very happy about the attention we’ve gotten.
“I’m sure we’ll do something together again.”
Allison Wolf concurs: “We plan on making this an annual affair. We’re really trying to make it fun. It’s not just the restaurants, but other merchants in the borough are joining in the fun.”
She was referring to strolling musicians playing along Butler Avenue, Ambler’s main street, on Thursday and Friday night, July 14 and 15, the stores staying open late and many artists featuring their work in restaurants, retail stores and the like.
“And on Wednesday of restaurant week,” she continued, “Mermaid Art Studio is offering parents a safe place to drop off their kids. For $25, the kids can do arts and crafts while the parents go off and enjoy the restaurants. Or they can do flower arrangements at the Ambler Flower Shop or Veronica’s Flowers.”
The event will be followed on Saturday, July 16, with a grand Art Stroll from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. More than two-dozen participants will offer live music, fine arts and crafts and retail specials throughout the borough. Details can be found on the Ambler Main Street website: www.AmblerMainStreet.org.
Wolf said she is especially gratified by Kevin Clib’s volunteering to donate $5 from every guest’s order at both Bridget’s and KC’s Alley to Ronald McDonald House. But all the participating restaurants are featuring amazing specials.
Here are some of the highlights: Dettera, Trax and Massa will offer three courses for $30, Bridget’s offers three courses for $32, while Shanachie and Finn McCool’s will offer four courses for $30, and KC’s, Saffron and From the Boot are offering three courses for $20.
Fireside is offering one half-priced appetizer throughout the week, and look for Rosey’s BBQ’s grand opening from July 7 to 9, with live music and specials the week before Ambler’s ambitious and appetizing first restaurant week.
— Look for some sample menus on page _
Ambler Restaurant Week
takes place
Sunday, July 10, through
Friday, July 15, at various
participating restaurants
throughout Ambler borough.
For particulars, contact
each individual restaurant or visit
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