Big Daddy's Grill - N - Chill

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  Got taken here once with another out-of-towner.  I remember him and me sitting across the table from each other, both reading the menu, both turning it over and scowling that the backside was blank.
  
  Run-of-the-mill Lewistown pub food.  Hot dogs, hamburgers, and salads.  As I recall they don't come with sides.  Portions were unremarkable, prices were fair.  Quality was standard, but I don't see anything here worth recommending.  The usual Central PA beers on tap, but I recall some better beers available by the bottle as well.
  
  The atmosphere itself was very strange - sort of like a bar crossed with a very brightly lit 50's diner.  "No cursing" sign behind the register.  Very generic (Walmart-purchased?) decor.  No personality.  Maybe they're going for a children-friendly bar?  I don't get it.

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  Posted on 10.01.12 Tim C.

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  A number of years ago, I remember this building as a six pack in walking distance of my apartment. They sold cold beer and maybe some subs or sandwiches. It was in this building that I bought my first legal six pack as a 21 year old.
  
  Over the years, this building has carried many names. Its life has lived in many forms. It has been everything from a dive bar to a biker hangout. Each one of those lives were fairly short as the location, parking, management, and form killed it.
  
  I believe most people thought this place would stay vacant after its last business as a dive bar. But a little under a year ago, this place got some new signage that read "Big Daddy's Grill N Chill".
  
  Personally, after seeing that name and the painting of Foghorn Leghorn on the outside wall, I thought..... meeehhhh. Another soon to be failure. I never had much faith in new restaurants in the Lewistown area. I worked in State College at the time. State College is like a food Mecca compared to Lewistown. State College has a small variety of ethnic food and local favorites along with your typical Italian American and chain spots. When you work in that town, you get a good sampling of this.
  
  So, in September of 2011, this was one of the many perks I left behind when I took a job in my home town. As I started working at my new job, one of my coworkers started talking up this Big Daddy's. I still wasn't convinced as I figured it was just another dive.
  
  I took advice in the past about a bar that had "good food". Upon walking in that local bar and ordering food, I felt like a Martian visiting Earth for the first time. It seems I wasn't a softball player or a swinger so it really wasn't my scene. Advice about bars are not exactly my thing because of that experience.
  
  After a few weeks of prodding about this place, I got past the name and the type of establishment and decided to try it. I am glad I did.
  
  This is the first place that will make that location work even with bad parking. In fact, the type of place it is may help with that location. Their food really lends itself to the near industrial park and fishing crowd. So after that story, I hope you stuck around for that actual review.
  
  There is an outdoor patio on the side of the restaurant but I imagine it isn't fun when there is a hatch coming off the river. They occasionally have bands or a DJ on the weekends and they have daily specials. The place is small which can be good or bad depending on what you are looking for. The menu is what I consider "just right". They do certain things well and that is what they sell.
  
  The food is what I would call American Pub food. There isn't much in the way of health food, here. In fact, the one bit of health food they do have are salads. But, they aren't your traditional healthy salads.
  
  The appetizers are your standard. You get the mozzarella sticks, the onion rings, homemade fries, breaded cauliflower, poppers, breaded mushrooms, and so on. The unusual thing that is missing amongst many local menus are the corn fritters. I am told they are solid as corn fritters go. They also have something called a pizza log. I am not sure what that is but plan on trying it eventually. They also have a sampler for the indecisive.
  
  The salads are not your typical healthy bunch. They all are meals in and of themselves. These are not side salads.
  
  The Big Daddy's salad is full of the prerequisite lettuce, tomato, onion, and olives. On top of that is a large portion of ham, cheese, potato sticks, and pepperoni.
  
  The taco salad is full of the prerequisites, taco meat, salsa, and sour cream all in a large baked taco shell. The grilled chicken salad is also a well packed delight.
  
  The wings are one of Big Daddy's true higher points. Locals will love the Hartley's BBQ and sour cream & onion style dry wings. They also have Old Bay wings. The honey BBQ and mild sauced wings are really good with just the right tastes at the right time.
  
  The kids menu has some favorite kiddie comfort foods. They can get sliders, a hot dog, chicken tenders, or popcorn chicken. Each meal comes with a juice box, an ample supply of homemade fries, and  a bag of fruit snacks. The best part is that the meals are only $2.99. My kids love Big Dady's night.
  
  The sandwiches are really nothing special and are the low point of the menu. It is your normal boring pub sandwich menu. There really aren't any regional, local or house specials here. I tried a pizza burger one week and wasn't impressed.
  
  The subs outdo the sandwich menu. The Philly cheesesteak is absolutely loaded with the normal stuff. The baked Italian is really good. The sauce has that balance too often missed in most pubs. There is a good mix of the typical meats in an Italian. The baked regular and hamburger subs are solid.
  
  I give Big Daddy's 4 stars. It's a pub but the best one in town for my money. The negatives are parking, location, and lack of regional or house specialties outside of salads. I really like this place.

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  Posted on 06.27.12 Mike M.

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