When I started the Kid’s Menu, I was hoping to not only convince other families to try some of my favorite restaurants but to also identify some new restaurants for my family to try.  One of the first suggestions I got was Teds Bar & Grill, 6197 Allentown Blvd, Harrisburg.  Being from the west shore, Teds was not someplace I had been.  So, I packed up the family and made the long trip to Allentown Boulevard.  To be honest, I was nervous when we first saw the place.  It is a square, non-descript building with few windows and a definite “bar” look.  However, when we went in, we found a clean, family friendly restaurant proving again that you can’t judge a book by its cover. 

The interior of Teds is divided into three areas – a bar, a smoking dining room and a non-smoking dinning room.  I assume it has a pretty good bar crowd in the evenings and I saw signs for Karaoke.  So, the rules about going early and during “off hours” is likely applicable. 

It is hard to describe the décor at Teds.  If pressed, I would say that it is “Mediterranean.”  It has fake ivy on the ceiling and Wal-Mart pictures on the wall.  To avoid any smoke, you can sit in the non-smoking dining room which is in fact a separate room.  While there were a number of people smoking in the bar and the smoking dinning room, the non-smoking dining room was fine. 

Teds has a full bar and the menu at Teds is expansive.  Choices range from pizza and hamburgers to steaks and other entrees with an Italian or Greek flare.  The kids meals are good and has the standards – hotdog, pasta, etc.  Other than the vast number of choices, the thing that struck me was the prices – Teds is very reasonable.  Kid’s meals were under $5.  My son had the pasta and it was a very large portion with a great-tasting tomato sauce.  The main entrees were similarly very reasonable and came with a number of side dishes.  Teds has numerous daily drink and food specials.  My other son had the Honey BBQ wings (a special that day) which were very good.  In fact, everything we had was very good and we will be going back to explore the menu some more. 

            The service at Teds, while not Applebee’s efficient, was good.  Our waitress was very friendly and clearly had worked at Teds for some time.  I am sure she is a favorite among the regulars.  I always think that friendly service can really make a restaurant particularly when dining with children.

             Teds is a great example of a local restaurant which from the outside may scare off some families but is really a great family restaurant.  I hope if you haven’t tried it that you give it a shot – particularly those “westshorers” like us who don’t cross the river near enough to enjoy the dining on the east shore.       

With the holiday and my work schedule, I did not have the time to try some of the restaurants suggested by the readers of the Kid’s Menu.  So, I decided to review one of my family’s favorites in Camp Hill - The Appalachian Brewing Company - Camp Hill, 3721 Market Street, Camp Hill, PA. 

ABC has a number of locations.  The original location is on Cameroon Street in Harrisburg in what I believe was the old Water Works building.  The Camp Hill version is located in the building formerly housing Ko Ko Mos.  ABC is, of course, known for its beer but does have a full bar and a fairly substantial food menu and children’s menu.

ABC did substantial renovation to the building including pouring a stained concrete floor to match the original building on Cameroon.  It is divided into a large bar area and a dining room area.  The bar area has high-top tables and a number of televisions.  The bar is a smoking area but I have never found it to be too bad.  The dining room is fairly unremarkable and, quite frankly, kind of boring.  We generally sit in the bar area because our kids enjoy the televisions and it has a much more lively atmosphere. 

ABC is a little more upscale then Your Place and is not quite as “bary” as some of the other places reviewed.  It is very clean and nicely remodeled.  I imagine the bar gets busy during happy hour but I have never seen the place real busy – especially during the lunch. 

The food includes traditional brew pub food but also includes a number of interesting entrees many with a lean towards German food.  We always start with the Pretzel Logs – three large soft pretzels with spicy mustard.  Kids love them.  If you feel adventuresome, order a cup of the cheese soup to dip the pretzels in.  The pizza is also very good and there are a number of interesting sandwiches.  I like the chili.  The entrees are wide ranging from steaks to pasta and chicken and fish.  I have always found the food to be good but maybe not great.  Of course, when coupled with the ABC’s great micro-brews, I have always had a good experience.

The children’s menu is fairly standard with a number of good choices.  Our kids enjoy the “make your own pizza.”  It’s a cheese pizza with a plate of sliced sausage and pepperoni for the kids to sprinkle on.  The kids all get a free plate of cheese, crackers and oranges upon arrival which is a nice touch.   

ABC is a nice spot perfect for families and we enjoy the variety in food and beer it offers.  I hope you will give it a try.

Last week I did my first Kid’s Menu review of Your Place.  As I wrote, Your Place was really the biggest inspiration for the blog.  Probably the second biggest inspiration was Sierra Madre - 4035 Market St., Camp Hill.  Sierra Madre is a prime example of a place which has a reputation that keeps families away but, when you look beyond that, it can be a great place for the family.  We have invited many of our friends with kids to have lunch at Sierra Madre and they have all been surprised that we take our kids.  However, each has enjoyed their visit.

Sierra Madre is located on Market Street and is a Mexican themed restaurant.  A few years ago, it was refurbished and the interior opened up.  There is outdoor seating but I don’t think that is open yet.  The restaurant is divided into two parts.  Around half of the restaurant is the bar area.  The other half is a dining area.  (You do have to walk all the way around the bar to go to the bathrooms if that sort of thing is an issue).  The most interesting part of the dining area is three “cage” or “jail” tables.  These are three tables in alcoves with jail cell doors.  My kids like the idea but the problem is that the tables are very small making it impossible for us to sit there.  Moreover, you can not see the television which is a pre-requisite for my kids. 

Sierra Madre has a full bar and good margaritas.  About half the menu is Mexican themed with the other half being standard fare like steak, seafood and sandwiches – I like the breakfast wrap.  I think it is a place that has a varied enough menu to please everyone.  The two things that stood out to me were the chips and salsa and the children’s menu. 

Nothing keeps the kids happier than chips and salsa.  When you sit at your table at Sierra Madre you are immediately given a bowl or two of the chips.  Unlike most nacho chips you get, the nacho chips at Sierra Madra are thicker and crispier – and just real good.  I have never had them like that before.

Next is the children menu or “Little Amigos” menu.  I really like the children’s menu because it has a lot of choices including cheese quesadilla, macaroni and cheese, chicken fingers, hot dogs, fried shrimp, BBQ chicken bites, grilled cheese and ham and cheese.  Everything comes with fries and an Oreo cookie.  Every kid should be able to find something there.  Also, they do have coloring sheets and crayons.  It has to be good for kids with that type of menu and with crayons.

Sierra Madre is for the most part a bar and it does get fairly busy (and smoky).  As discussed last week, the secret with Sierra Madre is to go during the more kid friendly hours – Saturday or Sunday afternoons.  They get a good happy hour crowd, so a mid-week dinner as early as 5pm could push you into a busier bar time.  When we have gone Saturday or Sunday afternoons, we have usually been the only people in the dinning area and the wait staff has been very friendly and accommodating.  I expect they are not used to seeing younger children at Sierra Madre and work hard to make our visit enjoyable. 

In all, don’t judge a book by its cover and give Sierra Madre a try. 

Alright, I don’t know how to feel about this weeks review.  One day I was driving by the

Ye Olde Ale House, 5002 Carlisle Pike, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050.  On its sign, the Ale House claimed to be “family friendly.”  Having been to the Ale House on occasion for drinks and knowing its reputation, I thought there was no way.  So, I thought I would go there with the family and prove that it is not family friendly.  However, having now been there, I don’t think I can say that. 

I arrived early before my family and sat at the bar for a beer.  I grabbed a menu and found that it had a children’s menu.  I also found a flyer which described a family night every Wednesday during which kids eat for a dollar.  I spoke to bartender and she said that kids love the place and, in fact, some kids ask to have their birthday party at the Ale House.  I also noticed a number of high chairs and boosters.  So, it had all the trappings of a family friendly restaurant.

If you have never been, the Ale House is a non-descript building with beer signs in the window and a large deck in the back.  The interior of the Ale House is large and open but without much personality.  About a fourth of the building is a bar area.  The remaining part is a large open dining room with tables spread throughout.  There is a small area with pool tables. 

The menu is fine with a range of normal appetizers, sandwiches and entrees including steak, chicken and sea food.  I started with the Chicken and Corn soap which was very good.  We just ate appetizers and the popcorn shrimp and cheese sticks were good. 

The “Little Ranch Hand Menu” had Chicken Tenders, Chicken Breast, Spaghetti, Hot Dogs, Grilled Cheese, Hamburgers and Pita Pizza each for around $4 to $5.  Each children’s item came with a choice of apple sauce or fries, a beverage and an oreo cookie.  Not too bad. 

We were the only family there and, at around 6:00 or 6:30, the pool area got very full with what appeared to be a league of some sort.  The dinning room does not have televisions and the music is a juke box.  The whole restaurant is a bit smoky although they do have what look like large filtering machines hanging from the ceiling throughout the restaurant.  The deck looks very nice and may be one of the few places to eat outside in that immediate area.  The service was okay but the tables were so spread out around the large dining room that you did have to wait on occasion. 

I don’t know what to think about the Ale House.  It is significantly more family friendly than I thought and I get the impression they are trying to increase its recognition as a family restaurant.  It is very drab, boring and “bary.”  It is also smoky but not overwhelming.  I think you would definitely want to go on the off times but, overall, I am glad we gave it a try and we will definitely go back – particularly to enjoy the deck.

For my first review, I am going to discuss Your Place, 6054 Carlisle Pike, Mechanicsburg.  Now I have a confession to make.  This is my family’s “fall back” restaurant.  When we can not decide where to go or when we just want a quick easy bite, this is where we go.  I think a lot of you probably have gotten take out from Your Place.  However, our friends with kids seem to avoid eating at Your Place which I can not understand.  Frankly, Your Place was really the restaurant that gave me the idea for this blog. 

For those of you who have been there or know where it is, it is located on the Carlisle Pike right across from an Applebee’s.  On Saturday afternoons, there will be a line out the door at Applebee’s and Your Place will be empty.  It always made no sense to me why you would wait 45 minutes to eat at Applebee’s when across the street was a perfectly good restaurant where you could sit and eat immediately.

For those who have never been, Your Place’s dinning room is basically a large room.  One side is a bar area – smoking is prevalent.  The other half is the dinning area.  This dinning area is divided in two – one side non-smoking and one side smoking.  There is no divide between the two but I have not found it to be smoky.  Quite frankly, if you go on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon for lunch or an early dinner (@3pm – 5pm), you are likely to be the only people there. 

 TIP NUMBER ONE – This is a good point to interject a tip about dining with kids which I assume everyone already know but here goes.  When you are going to restaurants that are either a little fancy or has a large bar clientele, go early or for lunch.  Most of the time, if you arrive early you will be the only one’s there.  This gives the kids freedom to be a little louder and more mobile than they could when the restaurant is full.  Also, the later you go, the more likely that the bar area will get louder, rowdier and smokier.   

            Also, if its summer, try sitting outside on their small patio area.  We have sat there a number of times and have always been the only people on the patio.  The kids love being able to walk around and enjoy the sun. 

            The dining area has a number of big screen televisions usually tuned to sports or news.  If its not busy, they will normally be more than willing to turn the channel to kids shows. 

            The food is fairly basic.  Your Place is well known for its pizza, strombolis and calzones.  However, they also have a full menu of wraps, sandwiches, salads and pasta.  The appetizers are good – cheese sticks, cheese fries, zegi plate and wings.  Watch out for the quesadillas– it is good but ask for the jalapenos on the side as the quesadillas can be spicy.  The kids meals are basic too – pizza, burgers, etc.  I would not call the food gourmet but its good and it’s cheap.  There is a full bar for mom and dad and daily beer specials.      

            The one complaint you often hear about Your Place is the service.  There is no question that service can be spotty and we have seen tables of people get “lost.”  To add to the delay, the kitchen can also be slow.  However, if you come at an off time as discussed, that is not as much of a problem.  Also, because we go there a lot, we seem to get quicker service. 

            In short, we have always found Your Place to be a great place to take the kids.  So next time you are standing in line at Applebee’s or one of the other ten national chain restaurants on the Carlisle Pike, cross the street and try Your Place.     

One of my family’s favorite meals is called little pizzas. We take an English muffin and split it, put some tomato sauce on it, then some low fat mozzarella cheese with some pepperoni slices (hey sometimes you just have to splurge)! However, some healthier toppings would be ham (lean), Canadian bacon, turkey sausage, peppers, olives, or sliced or diced onions.

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