For the first round of the NFL playoffs, we decided to go out with two other families – so we had 6 adults and 7 kids.  We were looking for a good, old fashion pizza and beer place.  We decided on Gullifty’s Restaurant, 1104 Carlisle Rd, Camp Hill, PA 17011. 

            For those of you who haven’t been, Gullifty’s is located in a strip mall off of I-83 South near New Cumberland.  There are two floors – the dining room upstairs and a bar area downstairs.  I have never sat in the dining area.  I had been to Gullifty’s downstairs area for concerts on a couple of occasions and would not have thought to take the kids there.  We called ahead and although they won’t take reservations we were assured there would be seating in this basement area which was fine for us because it has numerous televisions to watch the game.

            The downstairs has a large wooden bar and two seating areas.  There is also a pool table and (my kid’s favorite) a pop corn machine with free pop corn.  I was surprised it wasn’t busier but there were a number of families. 

            The menu is large and ranges from pizza to seafood.  I think it used to be owned by the same people who own Highway Pizza which is a well known State College restaurant.  We had the pizza and wings which were very good.  The service was also good and very accommodating to the kids.

            The kids menu also has a lot of selections all of them priced between 2.59 and 2.99.  The selections include normal stuff like burgers, hot dogs, pasta, pizza and mac & cheese.  The menu also has interesting things like peanut butter, jelly and banana sandwiches, scrambled eggs and peanut butter and jelly pizza.  They also serve kid’s dessert – ice cream, heated brownie and “dirt” (chocolate pudding with crushed oreos and gummy worms.)

            I really am glad our friends thought about going to Gullifty’s.  My wife and I have often talked that there is not a place in our neck of the woods which has good pizza/wings/beer and is fun for the kids.  Gullifty’s meets that definition.

Coakley’s Restaurant & Pub, 305 Bridge St, New Cumberland, Pennsylvania is one of those local restaurants that sometimes get forgotten by those of us not living or working right nearby.  In fact, in writing this review, I mentioned it to a number of friends.  To a person, each friend said something to the effect of: “We really enjoy Coakley’s every time we go but we haven’t gone in a long time.” 

For those that haven’t been, Coakley’s is located in downtown New Cumberland.  From the outside it looks like an Irish Pub and has two entrances.  The “Pub Entrance” leads to a bar area which is long and skinny and has a very nice wood bar running along one wall.  Past the bar is a dining room area which I think used to be an open patio.  Coakley’s sells what I believe to be the coldest beer in town and has a full bar and great selection of beers.  It is probably not the kind of bar area for families just because there is very limited seating.  I have not sat in the back area which has televisions and could be better suited for families. 

The other entrance leads to a “Dining Room” area.  The first thing to strike you about Coakley’s dining room area is that it seems to have been cobbled together from an older home.  There are a number of separate rooms and various nooks and crannies.  We sat in a little room with one table which could seat around 10 people.  The kids enjoyed having our own area.

Aside from the maze-like set up, the dining room area has a very stuffy feel.  It is very quiet which can be trouble with energetic kids. However, on the days we have gone it is not overly crowded – so there wasn’t too many people to bother. 

The wait staff is very professional but maybe (like the dining room) a little stiff.  Our waitress was prompt and attentive but not a load of laughs.   

The menu is fairly large.  It starts with sandwiches and runs to seafood and steak entrees.  I have always liked the food at Coakley’s.  We started with a spinach/crab dip which was great.  The entrees (mostly steaks and the seafood) were also very good.   The kid’s menu is short but covers all the bases – hot dogs, mac & cheese, grilled cheese and pasta. 

Actually, I think the best stuff on the menu is the soups and sandwiches and Coakley’s is open for lunch.  If you go for lunch (or dinner) try the Irish Breakfast Sandwich – it is my favorite.  

If you want to check out the menu – they have a website at www.coakleys.com.