THE GUIDE
PAGE 8
THE GUIDE
Restaurant Review
Cheers!
Why not cross the ethnic borders? If you think it sounds odd that a largely Eastern European dish is nothing short of a menu standout at South WilkesBarre’s newest Irish pub, you need to know more of the backstory. Happy to help. Once upon a time there was a place called The Barney Inn, and even though the letter L did not fall between the B and the a, the place was indeed Irish, if not entirely in menu, then in spirit. Drinking buddies gathered on Barney Street, Notre Dame was always on the telly, and a good, representative mix of food was on the menu, ethnic and traditional American. (Affordable lobster also was a specialty.) Once upon a time there also was a place called The Golden Palace, on the other side of town, in the Parsons section of Wilkes-Barre. Odds are you celebrated someone’s wedding there or mourned someone’s passing at an after-funeral luncheon. If so, you probably had the pigs in the blanket. (Don’t let anyone tell you piggies are little sausages wrapped in pancakes. We around here know pancakes from ground meat and rice wrapped up in cabbage and dressed with a thinnish red sauce.) Anyway, The Golden Palace eventually became A Touch of Class at the Palace, and folks associated with one or both, who also were, at least once, associated with The Barney Inn, continued to churn out delicious piggies among the catering specialties. Now those same folks are back in business at The Barney Inn again, only this time, as the new owners, they’ve changed the name to CrisNic’s Irish Pub. They’ve also changed up the menu, changed out some exterior colors and interior lighting and layout and generally given the place a nice little facelift. But the best news of all? The piggies are on the main menu, so you don’t need to wait for a catered affair to get your fork into some. For $10.95 here, you’ll get three chubby portions of this European specialty we’re sure the Irish must serve regularly somewhere, given the signature ingredients are right within that ethnic wheelhouse. The piggies are made by the owner’s mother – beat that – and the only surprise might be that the sauce is slightly pastier than the brothy red we’re used to. That’s not a bad thing. In fact, we found it quite snappy. We also found the side of mashed potatoes (instant though they were) especially tasty, and that, too, might be a credit to someone’s mom. Once we got done loving the piggies,
IF YOU GO What: CrisNic’s Irish Pub Where: 189 Barney St., Wilkes-Barre Call: 823-52199 Credit cards? Yes Wheelchair accessible? Yes
Remember The Barney Inn? It’s now CrisNic’s Irish Pub, but it still sits proudly, though looking fresh and different, on Barney Street in Wilkes-Barre. DON CAREY/THE TIMES LEADER
Once we got done loving the piggies, we appreciated the pleasant mix of Irish offerings, though all were not available. Irish nachos, yes. Dublin Coddle, no. we appreciated the pleasant mix of Irish offerings, though all were not available when we visited. Irish nachos, yes. A nifty-sounding Dublin Coddle, no. Not yet anyway. The Irish nachos were homemade potato chips dressed in cheese sauce from a can – but good cheese sauce from a can – and bacon, which was precooked and the only minor letdown. While dreaming of a Dublin Coddle, we opted to try some classics for now. First up? A cheesesteak, so we might compare CrisNic’s take to a Barney Inn specialty. Tough call. The Barney Inn was wellknown for a huge sandwich pretty much drowning in butter, and you could mix the chicken and beef on the same bun. Here you’ll get a huge sandwich chock full of diced chicken or beef and generous with the cheese (and the roll will be great, too), but all that butter is now absent, which isn’t a bad thing from a health perspective. Either way, it’s a guilty pleasure, but this version delivers a tad less. A huge $8.95 cheeseburger also was notable for its hand-formed, fresh appeal. The only letdown came on the side: Advertised sweet-potato waffle fries (how pleasantly different) were actually large sweet-potato wedge cuts. The explanation was the wrong potato had been delivered, but the waffle fries were indeed a coming-soon feature. A choice of sliders also sounded nice. Four tiny corned-beef sandwiches –
there’s that Irish appeal again – looked adorable. Our only surprise? They weren’t warm sandwiches with melted cheese. When asked, the staff quickly rectified that. We’d like to suggest these just automatically come hot and melty for a more authentic slider experience. Bar-pie pizza was popular around us and drew raves from customers with whom we inquired. It’s Old Forge-style rectangular, cheesy and light. If when you think pizza you think wings, yeah, you can get those, too, but I happen to like the chicken here in finger form. A “basket” comes on an oval plate, with choice of wing sauce. Butter-garlic and Old Bay did the crispy tenders justice, andhand-cutfrieson thesidewereappreciated. (Hand-cut is where it’s at. Frozen fries anyone can do any time.) But if it’s dinner-dinner you’re into, you’ll have options as well. A $16.95 lobster tail, pure white and tender enough, wasn’t a bombshell but was done nicely for the price. It headed a list that also included chicken, beef and pasta. Note to chicken fans: Most of the white meats here are standalone, with potato and vegetable, not served over pasta. This is no Italian restaurant. Then there’s dessert. Not to be missed, our server said. After confirming the options were homemade, we went for it. A $3.50 passed-around banana cake brought the love, though I was quite pleased with a fudgy chocolate cake with a star-quality sauce. We walked away sated. Sure, also probably said we’d never eat again, but we know how that goes. We’ll be back. Especially when those Irish specialties make their appearance. I have a feeling a Dublin Coddle and I are meant to be. Times Leader food critics remain anonymous.
By SARA POKORNY spokorny@timesleader.com
Limoncello is a popular Italian liqueur made from lemon zests steeped in grain alcohol. Pete Aiello, owner of Simply Homebrew in Drums, wanted to put a twist on it. “Who doesn’t love chocolate?” he said of the chocolate-cello recipe he has used time and again. The recipe is simple, combining half and half, grain alcohol, sugar and chocolate to produce a liqueur that has enough kick without overwhelming and has the consistency of what can only be described as well-mixed cake batter. “Currently you can’t buy grain alcohol in the state of Pennsylvania,” Aiello said. “If you can’t get any from New York, New Jersey, or Delaware, 100-proof vodka will do just fine as a substitute.” The procedure is just as simple as the ingredients and involves taking time to melt chocolate and stir constantly. Aiello said the booze will hold for quite some time as long as it’s refrigerated; he’s kept a bottle for nearly two months. The recipe can be tweaked to make many different kinds of “cellos.” For the melting, Aiello recommends buying the chocolate wafers that come in various colors and can be found at Michael’s craft store. “The wafers come in a bunch of different colors, and if you couple that with all the different flavorings and extracts McCormick makes, you can really use your imagination and do anything,” he said. For example, replacing the chocolate wafers with white ones and adding a 1-ounce bottle of McCormick coconut flavoring makes coconut limoncello. Yellow wafers and banana extract make banana-cello, and orange wafers and orange extract make orange-cello. ••• CHOCOLATE CELLO Recipe by: Pete Aiello, owner of Simply Homebrew in Drums, 788-2311. Ingredients: • ½ cup grain alcohol (more or less to taste) • 4 ¼ cups half and half • 18 ounces of chocolate • 2 cups sugar Directions: Melt chocolate in a bowl over simmering water or in a double boiler. Stir until smooth and creamy. Add sugar, a little at a time, and mix well. In another pan warm the half and half, but do not boil. Mix the chocolate/sugar mixture with the warmed half and half until very smooth, about five to 10 minutes. Add the grain and mix well. Bottle and keep refrigerated. SUBMITTED PHOTO
No, that’s not a bottle of chocolate milk, even though it looks just as creamy and delicious. It’s a bottle of homemade chocolate-cello, a boozy mix concocted by Pete Aiello, owner of Simply Homebrew.