Restaurants w/Taste
By Frank D. Quattrone
On a spring-like Friday evening at the end of December, the Springtown Inn was bursting with laughter. Couples celebrating a birthday were taking photos in front of the twin fireplaces in the main dining room. Other patrons marveled at the original fieldstone walls, dating back to the inn’s founding nearly two-hundred years ago. Still others were digging in to generous portions of familiar favorites — Clams Casino, Prime Rib of Beef, Filet Mignon au Poivre, Pan Seared Salmon—from the New American menu.
By any measure, it was clear that the loyal clientele from Springfield Township, where the inn is situated, along with guests from as far off as Willow Grove (a full hour’s drive away), were enjoying an evening’s hospitality at this first-class restaurant. Once a major stagecoach stop along the route from Allentown to Philadelphia, the Springtown Inn has blossomed into a community center, hosting weddings and other private catered affairs as well as theme nights.
There are Family-Style Meals on Mondays, with rotating comfort-food themes. There is Steak Night every Thursday, where patrons can enjoy fine cuts of meat butchered on the premises by Executive Chef Dave Dilisa. And there are Seafood Sundays, with a changing array of denizens of the deep served with potato, vegetable, and side salad.
For all its historical, architectural, and culinary attractions, the Springtown Inn also exudes an unmistakable down-to-earth warmth emanating from Douglas and Carol Tweed and Bobbie Gianguzzi, the trio who purchased the inn in December 2018. A carpenter by trade, Doug Tweed says, “We want to keep up the traditions of a quaint country inn; but it’s also approachable, affordable and handicap-accessible.”
Carol Tweed, who was a server at the restaurant for six years before becoming a co-owner, is as gregarious as they come, chatting with guests and inviting them to try one of the fine wines from new vineyards she loves to explore as the inn’s practical sommelier. On the evening of our visit, I was enticed to try the terrific Pessimist Red Blend from the Doau Family Winery in Paso Robles, California. With a name like that, it had to be great, and it was.
Meanwhile, manager Bobbie Gianguzzi, with thirty-five years in the restaurant business, had been working at the inn for twenty years before becoming a co-owner. Inspired by her mother, Bobbie has become a world-class pastry chef, offering up perhaps the biggest and best Strawberry Shortcake anyone has ever seen, among other mouth-watering sweet treats. Bobbie says the inn’s regular patrons revel in the friendly, Cheers-like ambiance, calling it “their dining room or their bar seat. They’re very spoiled,” she says with a laugh. “But without them, we’d never have made it through the pandemic. We really appreciate their loyalty.”
The menu too is a key lure. At the helm is self-taught Executive Chef Dave Dilisa, a veteran of the Carversville Inn, who says he has learned from all the fine chefs he has ever worked with. In addition to butchering the restaurant’s meats, Dave also makes the pastas from scratch, a rarity these days. He is ably assisted by Sous Chef Mick Osborne, who once worked at the Greystone Inn.
This team of two has fashioned a familiar menu with enough surprises to delight the most jaded palate. Our appetizers were both flavorful and fun. Eve’s Triple (Seafood) Sampler was an ample, artful array of smoked trout, smoked salmon, and poached shrimp, served with capers, horseradish cream, and crostini. But who would have expected a country inn to offer Thai Brussels Sprouts? One of my favorite dishes of the night, the homely sprouts were infused with spice through a sriracha honey coating, accompanied by Thai pickled cucumber, zesty roasted peanuts, and satay sauce. We also sampled the French Onion Soup, laced with sherry and topped with Swiss cheese and garlic croutons.
Our entrées were also terrific. Eve ordered the inn’s signature dish, Filet Mignon Oscar, a grilled eight-ounce filet perched atop perfectly grilled asparagus and a potato croquette, topped with jumbo lump crab meat and Hollandaise sauce, a marvel of culinary architecture and flavor. My twin Seafood Cakes were a scrumptious blend of scallops, whole baby shrimp, and lobster (an inspired variation on crab cakes), served with roasted root vegetables and Basmati rice.
With understandable pride, Bobbie personally delivered the desserts to our table: an irresistible Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie and (just as tall as Eve’s magnificent Filet Oscar) the piece de resistance — Strawberry Shortcake, with a generous layer of fresh strawberries nestled between two layers of cake and drizzled with fresh cream and strawberry sauce.
With its Old-World ambiance (including eight active and decorative fireplaces and original stone walls), inspired touches on its New American menu, and the warm, polished attention of Amy, our elegant server (who takes her work as seriously as European professionals), it’s no wonder that laughter permeated the Springtown Inn. Go there! There will be much to savor on that long drive home.
Springtown Inn is located at 3258 Main Street, Springtown, PA 18081; 610-346-7262; www.springtowninn.com. Open for dinner only Sunday and Monday, 4–8 p.m.; Thursday to Saturday, 4–9 p.m. Closed Tuesday and Wednesday. Available for weddings and catered events in three private rooms upstairs. Full-service bar. Reservations recommended.