Revolutions at Penn Treaty

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(The following is a special series on Bluejeanfood.com written by guest contributing writer and correspondent for “Small Bites Radio” William Knowles. He highlights his passions of trying something new whenever the opportunity presents itself, or possibly something old, but new again since it has been a while. I hope you enjoy his very special perspective that I am sure many of you can relate to. Follow him on his exciting journey “Around Town”)

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On the night of Wednesday, September 28th, I attended the red carpet VIP opening night party at Revolutions at Penn Treaty, the new entertainment complex located at the corner of Frankford and Delaware Avenues.  Featuring bars, a restaurant, bowling alleys on both levels, and interactive gaming, the city is gaining another lively nightlife spot that is helping to revitalize the Fishtown area of the city.

Randy Alexander, the head of Randex Communications, was eager to show off this new gem for adult fun and recreation.  A fantastic buffet of food greeted us as we entered the main doors, which in turn lead to the lower-level bowling alley, and soon to be famous Flair Bar.  This is where bottle tossing, cocktail mixing bartenders will be showing off their mixology skills, and will be a spot for competitions to be held for those all over the country to demonstrate the art of  the unique process known as flair bartending.

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Proceeding upstairs, one will encounter another bowling alley, along with other recreational activities such as pool tables and table shuffleboard.  One of the most popular stops of the evening was to the house gaming arcade, which featured many interactive video games such as electronic beer pong, carnival type skill competitions, and old school fun like air hockey, basketball shooting, and ski ball.  Like games at the boardwalk down at the shore, wins equal ticket accumulations, which can be turned in for prizes.

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Also located upstairs is a giant sports bar, with a beautiful view of the Philly skyline through the warehouse windows.  Live entertainment in the form of bands and DJs will keep the joint jumping every evening.  Burger and Beer Joint, a growing chain of gourmet burger restaurants, has its first Philadelphia location settled here as well.  The menu features a list of build your own burger choices, as well as their in-house creations, which all look phenomenal. Wings, pizza, and salads are also available, along with desserts.

Being a lifelong resident of this area, I am continually impressed by some of the new ideas that have come to fruition for making nightlife fun and enjoyable in the city. This particular area has experienced enormous growth over the span of the past several years, starting with the Sugar House Casino.  The opening of The Fillmore music venue last fall, along with the Punch Line comedy club that opened in the summer, shows the good that resident developers have done simply by converting old abandoned warehouses into something viable for the public to utilize.  Revolutions at Penn Treaty is the icing on the cake for a spot that badly needed improvement, and now will become one of the top destinations for entertainment seekers in the area.

Revolutions is now open to the public, and you should check it out as soon as you can.  I will be back with more soon, “around town”…

Woodbury Station Café – Woodbury, NJ

Woodbury Station Café – Woodbury, NJ

I always find old train stations to be an interesting look into the past. What I find most interesting about the old train station that sits in Woodbury, New Jersey is that is has been transformed into a dining destination called Woodbury Station Café (WSC). I did not expect too much from WSC, but I can say that I was thoroughly impressed.

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I would go with a simple dish of chicken marsala, but WSC provided an delicious spin on an old favorite. Everything was cooked to perfection, with fresh giant chunks of mushrooms, asparagus, and potato wedges to go along with juicy chicken breasts topped with one of the better marsala sauces I have had in quite some time.  Add to the mix a friendly and efficient service throughout the meal, and WSC has me planning to visiting them again sometime soon and hoping next time to catch a glimpse of a train riding by during my stay.

09-25-16 Small Bites with Glenn Gross and Derek Timm of Bluejeanfood.com

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We have current season of Hell’s Kitchen on FOX contestant Chef Aziza Young, then we have Chef James Laird the owner of Restaurant Serenade and recent contestant on Bobby Flay’s show on the Food Network Beat Bobby Flay, also we have in studio Jesse Morgans the Mid-Atlantic region President of Prepared Food for Whole Foods Market and he will talk about the recent opening of Whole Foods Market – Wynnewood and Whole Foods Market Philly that is getting a new store, joining him in studio will be Chef Arjun Thakar and Vaishal Soni the owner of Masala Kitchen : Kati Rolls & Platters who were just featured on FOX 29 Good Day Philadelphia with Karen Hepp, Scott Williams, Bill Anderson,and they will bring in food and their sauces that they are selling, and last but certainly not least to finish out our United Nations lineup of guests this week is comedian Jimmie Lee AKA “The Jersey Outlaw”. WOW, Oh, not enough? Then don’t forget we will have our segments as usual from Chef Barbie Marshall who was named Pennsylvania’s most influential chef by Cooking Light and a Gordon Ramsay Hell’s Kitchen finalist as well, food news update from Courier-Post nightlife correspondent and The New York Times recognized John Howard-Fusco, and joke of the week from legendary joke teller Jackie “The Joke Man” Martling of The Howard Stern Show fame. WHAT A SHOW! SO be sure to TuneIn worldwide or catch the following day on iTunes.

http://wildfireradio.com/food/small-bites-episode-26/

Schileens Pub – Westville, NJ

Schileens Pub – Westville, NJ

You can drive through the tiny town of Westville, New Jersey so fast that if you blink once, you may have missed the entire town on your journey. Well I am here to tell you that when you are getting near this mini-municipality you may want to keep your eyes open to see the sign for Schileens Pub (SP) and turn in and enjoy some of the best roast beef sandwiches in South Jersey.

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They bring out some fresh hand cut roast beef on a perfectly puffy Kaiser roll with American cheese and delicious Au jus on the side. The sign outside SP at times keeps a tab on the number of roast beef sandwiches that have been sold there, which numbers in the hundreds of thousands, and after you have one you can see why they have sold so many and then wonder why the number sold is not in the millions, because I could have eaten ten of them by myself. They are that good.

The service was quick and efficient, and they are certainly a close knit neighborhood pub as the majority of patrons were welcomed on a first name basis. Their motto is “There are no strangers here, Just friends that never met yet” and I certainly felt that way the day I visited and left happier than I arrived.

 

Hugo’s Frog Bar & Chop House at SugarHouse

Hugo’s Frog Bar & Chop House at SugarHouse – Philadelphia, PA

Had a quality delicious meal with amazing service accompanied by talented and entertaining live music at Hugo’s Frog Bar and Chop House. Then I had the opportunity to play some exciting games of chance while enjoying some drinks with a breathtaking view at SugarHouse.

#FrogInPhilly

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#WinAtSugarHouse

09-18-16 Small Bites with Glenn Gross and Derek Timm of Bluejeanfood.com

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This week we have author Irene Levy Baker aka Irene At Spotlight PR to talk about her newly released book 100 Things To Do in Philadelphia. Then we have Jill Gilber the owner of Gilber Travel and one of Philadelphia’s most respected and decorated Food Recipe Competitors who has won countless events in studio. Also we have coming in Cassie Hepler the owner of ExplorePhilly and partner with Whitney Ullman on Explore-nj.com as well as working for Philly Record and running website Cassie Hepler – Photographer, Model, Actress, and Writer. To top it all off, as usual we will have segments from Chef Barbie Marshall was was named Pennsylvania’s most influential chef by Cooking Light and a finalist for Hell’s Kitchen, food news update from Courier-Post nightlife correspondent and The New York Times recognized John Howard-Fusco, and joke of the week from legendary joke teller Jackie “The Joke Man” Martling of The Howard Stern Show fame.

Here is link to stream, download, or get on iTunes

http://wildfireradio.com/food/small-bites/small-bites-episode-25/

Bo Ne Restaurant – Woodbury, NJ

Bo Ne Restaurant – Woodbury, NJ

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I would have never thought to visit Woodbury, New Jersey to have some amazing Vietnamese food. Sitting in a small non-descript building close to the hospital is Bo Ne (BN). The staff makes you feel like family from the minute you step inside until the time you leave. They were very attentive to what everyone ordered and wanted to make sure you know what was in each dish and described them to make sure you would like it, or recommend something else that may be more to your liking. They hit the nail on the head for everyone that came. My meal would be their Thai chili glazed chicken wings that were FABULOUS and could be one of the best non “buffalo” style wings in South Jersey. Then I had the beef stew noodle soup that was fresh, flavorful, and delicious from first bite all the way to the last bite which was even more impressive than the first after all the different ingredients had time to simmer together to form on of the best bowls of this version of Pho around the area. There may not be much around the area to visit besides the hospital, or things to do, but BN is reason enough to make a visit to this part of South Jersey.

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The Inn at Pocono Manor – Pocono Manor, PA

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The Inn at Pocono Manor – Pocono Manor, PA

I was lucky enough to visit The Inn at Pocono Manor (IPM) which mixed luxury, history, and nature seamlessly all into one. They have been open since 1902 and are on the National Registry of Historic Places. They have a little bit of everything for everyone and a wonderful staff. You could relax and enjoy your time around the resort all day with a movie theater, very nice arcade room, activities, indoor and outdoor pools, a fun little playground for kids, and multiple restaurants. If you need to get a little deeper into nature, they have a few nature trails that were easy to walk, and a Sports Centre that had lots of things to do for every age and skill level. Best of all, at IPM many of the outdoor sports to do were included free of cost from fishing, archery, and the bb gun range. Then for those interested, for an additional charge a golf course, stables with horseback riding, or a full service spa is available on the resort property as well. Add this to being in a central location that within a 15-30 minute drive you have luxury shopping, antique shopping, small towns to explore, multiple indoor water parks to choose from, lakes, state parks to hike, and nice restaurants to dine at; IPM truly was a wonderful break from city life and the noise that comes with it. I highly recommend giving IPM a try. Below are a few pictures of my meal at “The Exchange”, one of the restaurants available to dine at onsite at IPM and I thoroughly enjoyed every course.

Spotluck APP Launch Party with Philly Weekly at Uptown Beer Garden

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(The following is a special series on Bluejeanfood.com written by guest contributing writer and correspondent for “Small Bites Radio” William Knowles. He highlights his passions of trying something new whenever the opportunity presents itself, or possibly something old, but new again since it has been a while. I hope you enjoy his very special perspective that I am sure many of you can relate to. Follow him on his exciting journey “Around Town”)

On Thursday, August 25th, I was invited to attend the launch party with Philly Weekly for the Philadelphia based version of the Spotluck app. A fun and innovative way to help you choose a local pub or restaurant with special deals, the app will soon become a popular download for those who enjoy trying new cuisine in and around the city, at a discounted rate…

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Originating in the Washington, DC area some two years ago, this unique technology has grown to begin expanding to other areas, and we will be the beneficiaries. By spinning the Spotluck roulette, you will instantly download a discount to the featured eateries on the wheel. Wherever the wheel stops will garnish you an even bigger discount. Over 100 local spots have signed on to take part in the program, as the overwhelming popularity in the DC area has created a win-win for restaurants and consumers alike.

To raise awareness for the Philly area launch, a massive party was thrown at the Uptown Beer Garden, located at 17th and Market Street’s. Previously featured here on Around Town, the locale has become quite a hot spot for events such as this, and the turnout showed the excitement that this app will generate. Free beer was provided to all by Neshaminy Creek Brewing Co., and prizes given out to various game participants (including those spinning the real-life, giant Spotluck wheel onsite). Swag with the bright green company brand was handed out, and all guests got to see firsthand the benefits of the app and how to most effectively utilize it.

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Spotluck CEO and co-founder Cherian Thomas is putting forth a unique and refreshing way to partner with the city’s restaurants, and taking full advantage of a technology that will only continue to grow and change the way we do things. Not to mention that he throws a hell of a party to celebrate a launch! Try downloading the app now to see for yourself, and let it decide for you where to eat your next meal. You may stumble upon something new that you will enjoy, and may not have necessarily tried in the past…

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See you next time “Around Town”…

08-28-16 Small Bites with Glenn Gross and Derek Timm of Bluejeanfood.com

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1732 Meats sponsors Small Bites with Glenn Gross and Derek Timm of Bluejeanfood.com on Wildfire Radio. We will have in studio respected Philly blogger Marilyn Johnson of Philly Grub, Philly Mobile Food Association and Vendy Awards recognized #1 fan and food truck ambassador John Cohl, Philly based actor John DiRenzo of Plaza 7 Talent (PA & NYC) to chat about iPic Theaters iPic Fort Lee food from City Perch Fort Lee Sherry Yard, also we will have Michael Murphy of The Dude Hates Cancer – Philadelphia, PA, and then a call in we have NBC News NBC Latino recognized Chef Hugo Campos of PCK Philabundance and don’t forget we will still have segments from Pennsylvania’s most influential chef by Cooking Light and Hell’s Kitchen finalist Chef Barbie Marshall, and joke of the week from Jackie “The Joke Man” Martling.

Be sure to TuneIn or catch the following day on iTunes and don’t forget LIMITED TIME ONLY!!! Enter SmallBites at checkout of 1732meats.com and receive 15% OFF your ENTIRE ORDER of 1732 Meats.

To stream or download click link

http://wildfireradio.com/food/small-bites-episode-24/