January Tidbits: Openings, closings & beer

Whew. The holidays are officially over and we can start focusing on other food happenings in Bucks and nearby. Are you ready?

Openings

The Sergeantsville Inn has reopened! When a terrible fire engulfed the Inn last March there was much sorrow in the community for this landmark. But now renovation is complete and the Inn is open for lunch and dinner. And while the building may be renovated, the menu of the 300-year old inn will remain the same. Hours: Lunch – Wednesday-Saturday 11:30 am to 3 pm, dinner on Tuesday, 5 pm-9 pm, Wednesday and Thursday 5 pm-10 pm, and Friday and Saturday 5 pm-11 pm. Sunday dinner is served all day from noon-8 pm. The inn is closed on Mondays.

Welcome to Proper Brewing Co., Bucks County’s newest brewery and brewpub. The eatery opened officially in November in downtown Quakertown in the historic Palace Theatre on West Broad St. In addition to serving a rotating selection of their own craft beers, they also serve Pennsylvania wines and strive to source their ingredients from local farms.

The food menu features sandwiches, small plates and entrées that change regularly (see their Facebook page for updates). To give you a taste, here’s some dishes from a recent menu: the Proper Session Plate with local bologna, salami, Irish cheddar, and Pepper Jack cheeses; a San BernAdero Pulled Pork sandwich with jalapeno, ranch, house slaw and local bacon; and for an entrée, the Brewhouse Bolognese made with grass-fed, 28 day aged sirloin, pork confit, and portabella mushrooms in a red sauce. And there’s music too! They are open Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 4 pm to 11 pm, Fridays from 4 pm to 12 am, Saturdays 12 pm to 12 am, and Sundays from 12 pm to 8 pm.

What’s new?

This past summer I got to meet Frank and Jeanne Cretella, the new owners of the Logan Inn and the Hotel du Village. Nice, nice people, and very down to earth. Frank and Jeanne began with a hot dog stand in Staten Island. Now their company, Landmark Hospitality, owns Liberty House Restaurant in Jersey City, Stone House at Stirling Ridge in Warren, NJ, and Celebrate at Snug Harbor in Staten Island, in addition to the Ryland Inn in Whitehouse, NJ. They have done a beautiful job renovating the Hotel du Village, just north of New Hope, including the rooms at the inn.

Now, after officially purchasing the Logan Inn, they’ve got big plans for the historic property, including constructing two additional permanent structures that will add 17 new guest rooms and a pebbled courtyard. They also plan to work closely with New Hope’s Historical Architectural Review Board and Doylestown Architect Ralph C. Fey, AIA, to keep true to the history of the Inn.

Save the date: On Saturday, February 27, the Bucks County Taste Dinner Club will be holding an event at the Hotel du Village, “Let’s Get French,” a classic French dinner. Sign up for our email list here.

NoLa has a lot of “new” going on. Chef Brian Held’s BYOB restaurant in Stockton announced a new menu and new hours last month. The new menu has a decidedly Italian theme: Goat Cheese Ravioli, Lamb Ragu, Beef Carpaccio, Potato Gnocchi, Calamari Arrabiata, Couscous Gorgonzola Gratin and more, many featuring fresh, house made pastas. The restaurant is now open Tuesday through Saturday at 5:30 pm, and Sunday at 5 pm for dinner, and Sunday brunch from 9 am to 2 pm.

Goodbyes

As you may already know, Basically Burgers in Doylestown closed its doors in November. It was rather sudden and there was much dismay among their loyal customers. So I caught up with owners Wes and Jay Goddard to get the low down – and to see how they are doing. “There just wasn’t enough business to support a family,” explains Wes, “And I think the burger craze has died down.” Jay agrees, adding that parking is always a challenge in Doylestown.

Wes also wanted to get back to his creative side. That’s why he and Jay started their own business, Goddard & Goddard Renovation. It’s the kind of work Wes did before they opened Basically Burgers, and he’s been yearning to get back to it. “It’s also an opportunity to work with my son again,” says Wes. Jay says they are busy now with several projects (“we do everything but HVAC and masonry”). Feel free to contact them on their Facebook page. As for what will become of the space, that’s up in the air. Someone did buy the business from the Goddards but is not sure what kind of restaurant will go in there.

Another farewell to Hearth, the vegetarian restaurant in New Hope, just catty corner from the Logan Inn. We enjoyed many a meal there, with interesting and hearty vegetarian, vegan and fish dishes. We wish Steve Frank, proprietor, the best in whatever the future brings.