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Sunday marked the start of the second, can we say, annual Restaurant Week?
“Yes it will be an annual event!” said Business Improvement District Executive Director John O’Brien. “Last year was our first time doing this event since I have been with the BID and my hope is to do it every year around this time.”
The event was started last year to call attention (and people) to West Chester’s diverse restaurant scene as businesses continued to struggle through the peaks and valleys of COVID surges. (“The summer is great and then you get hit with the cold weather months and Omicron,” Erin Taggart at Mae’s told me at the time.) Fortunately this year COVID caseloads have been milder but mid-winter remains a downtime for the industry.
“It’s a slower time of year, so participation is key,” said John.
PLAN YOUR WEEK:
How does it work? During the event participating restaurants will offer a special multi-course prix fixe menu at a price point of either $30, $40, or $50 per person. For example, Greystone is offering a choice of six raw oysters or a cup of soup for the first course, a salad, fries, or select seafood apps for the second followed by a third-course main – think, salmon with mashed potatoes or fish and chips – all for $50 per person. Mae’s, on the other hand, is giving you a choice of an app – the fried arancini with fermented garlic honey and spicy tomato sauce sounds delish – followed by the main course and a dessert for $40 per person. Each restaurant is doing it slightly differently so you will need to check menus for specifics.
Note the price is for the food only. It does not include tax, tips, or beverages.
So, who’s in? There are 24 restaurants participating this year. That’s down slightly from last year which saw 25 participants (but that may just be because we lost a few.) Despite the loss, there are plenty of newcomers for you to try including Santino’s Tap & Table, an Italian restaurant on Market Street that opened in December, and brand new Manje Caribbean Cuisine. It just opened a few weeks ago. Also new to the event is Bar Avalon which opted out of participating last year.
Who’s out? If you were thinking this could be a good way to finally catch the hype on Andiario, it’s not. They are not participating. Neither is Limoncello, Split Rail Tavern, Teca or Roots Cafe, as well as many of the other mainly takeout places. You can find the full list of participating restaurants here.
When should I go? Restaurant week runs from Feb. 26 through Mar. 5. You’ll want to check the timing and availability with each restaurant and then make your plans for dinner. There are a few places offering lunch options, but for the most part, the menus will be for dinner.
What’s the best way to make sure I get what I want? “Make reservations ahead of time,” John said. Downtown West Chester also shared a helpful post on Facebook that includes menus for many of the participating locations.
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