Chestnut Hill Grill and Brewery

Two places. One night. We made arrangements to see Betsy and Joe for dinner. First they came down to Katie and Todd's house to see the grandchildren. Because of Covid this was actually the first time they had seen Violet. We hung around the house with the kids for a couple of hours and then decided to head up to Chestnut Hill for dinner.

I had talked with Dan and he wanted to meet us for dinner too. I made reservations at the Chestnut Hill Grill that's located in the Chestnut Hill Hotel. We've had dinner there several times in recent years and it is always good. Our dinner was for 5:30 pm. A little after 4 we got into our separate cars and drove up Germantown Avenue. We thought it would be easier for Betsy and Joe to drive home directly from the restaurant rather than taking us back or vice versa. It was hard getting a parking space in the lot but Betsy and Joe lucked out as someone was pulling out as they arrived. We parked around the corner on the street near the Water Tower Park.

We left Mt Airy a little after four because Joe wanted to first stop by the Chestnut Hill Brewery to see his nephew who recently took a job as a chef there. The Brewery is located next to the Hotel and is in a market area with several restaurants and shops. It is sort of like a little Reading Terminal Market with an enclosed patio eating area shared by all of the food places including the Brewery which has a good pizza and pub food business besides making beers. We have been to that market a few times with Katie and Todd but had never actually gone into the Chestnut Hill Brewery taproom which is in an adjacent building and has a very nice bar.

We sat at the bar in the taproom and hung out for awhile with Joe's nephew Dan who made us a snack with our beers. I had their new IPA that celebrates their five years in business brewing... Five Years of Beer IPA. They had a very nice selection of beers and a good menu too.

At about 5:25 we headed over to the Chestnut Hill Grill & Sidewalk Cafe. They seated us in a booth near the bar. Dan was sitting at the bar when we came in and immediately joined us in the booth We ordered another round of beers. I was surprised they had Flower Power IPA from Ithaca Brewery on tap and couldn't resist ordering one. It had been a while since I had a draft of this old favorite.

The dinner and the service was wonderful. Becky had a grilled chicken salad and I had catfish tacos. I also had a Big Wave Golden Ale draft from Kona Brewing. The five of us had a great time in our booth. Afterwards we had wanted to go back to the Brewery because Joe wanted to see his nephew again. We thought we would have one more before heading home. It was around 7 pm but the taproom was overflowing crowded as was all of the outdoor seating in the area too. It certainly did look like the Friday

night on a holiday weekend that it was. People were everywhere. We tried a couple of nearby places but then headed back to the Chestnut Hill Grill where three of us got a seat at the bar. Me and Dan were standing but that was OK. That place soon filled up too. We had one beer, mine was a Blood Money IPA from Conshohocken Brewing, and then we went home. Betsy and Joe drove back to Palm, PA and Dan walked down to another bar. Me and Becky went back to Katie's house where we had soda waters before going to bed early. It was a long but not late night.