Jones Food Street Journal – Station Taproom

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Station Taproom

By David Jones

Station Taproom 4We took a little ride this past Friday evening for dinner. We went to Downingtown to the Station Taproom, so called because it is right across the street from the Train Station.

If you are like us you will most likely have to park there too because there is very little parking next to the Taproom. It’s not a problem though and in our experience it was even the best place to park.

The Taproom is not big. There is seating for about 36 at tables and another 12 along the bar. On the Friday evening we were there every table and stool was filled and there were plenty of patrons standing and drinking. This makes for a VERY loud room.

The kitchen is also open to the dining room so you add that noise to the crowded room. Normally, I wouldn’t like this at all, but for the Taproom it seems to work.

Station Taproom 3Another sight I’m not used to is young people at the bar with little children on their laps. In fact, children had a strong presence during our visit and I would characterize the whole environment as a youthful crowd.

The tables and chairs are okay. They are basic wood and somewhat comfortable. The tables are pretty close together so we were getting bumped from time to time by servers and diners at the next table. The décor is bright and fun with lots of pictures for sale on the wall.

It struck me that they had pictures of Victory beer on the wall for sale, but not one of the taps was Victory. They did have several Victory choices by the bottle, but in all my travels in the past 2 years and all of the brewpubs I’ve visited it was striking to not find Victory on tap in the hometown of Victory.

That being said, the Station Taproom has a nice selection of brews on tap and by the bottle. I had a 12 ounce Hardywood Coffee Stout from Richmond, VA. At $8 for 12 ounces it is fairly expensive, but I did have 2, so I guess it wasn’t too much to pay!

When it comes to the menu the Station Taproom is very creative. You will find one-of-a-kind items here. They have a very nice selection of small plates and entrees. They also have very nice soups and salads.

IMG_4772On Friday, they had quite a few special features. If anyone from the Taproom is reading this article let me offer this advice. Have the servers mention the price when they go through the special features. It’s so annoying to have to ask the prices of each special.

Our particular server could also slow down. She had the rapid-fire delivery of an auctioneer. We had to ask her to repeat each special several times until we could actually make out what she was saying. She was very nice and cheerful though and showed wonderful patience with us.

Lin went with the Pulled Pork Sandwich. Happy Hour is from 4:30 to 6:30 and during that time the pulled pork is half price at $5. That does not include the fries that come with it regularly when it sells for $10, but it did come with delicious cole slaw and a pickle. It is a very good sandwich and a good bargain at $5.

I decided on 2 small plates, though I was tempted by the 10oz strip steak, which was a special for $18. I had Mushroom Toast ($8), with a very nice mushroom cream sauce and a fried egg on top. I saw this being served to another table and that made my decision. It just looked so good. I would easily get this again.

IMG_4774My second small plate was a Short Rib Quesadilla ($13). This has a very nice avocado sauce drizzled on it and the salsa mix was nice and spicy. We never got to the dessert. With the beer and food we got we had more than enough.

Overall, I really liked this place and I’m looking forward to a return visit. I know I mentioned quite a few quirks earlier in this review, but somehow, the Taproom pulls it all together and serves a very nice experience.

They do not take reservations. We got there at 5 p.m. and got a table right away. By the time we left a little after 6 p.m. people were waiting, so just keep that in mind if you decide to go. They also have no table that seats more than 4, so if you have a larger party this is probably not your best choice.

The Station Taproom is a totally different experience than most of the other local Chester County pubs, so I wouldn’t want to compare it to others and instead just say it’s worth a trip to Downingtown.

Our total bill was $51. This included a 20% tip and $7 in discounts due to Happy Hour.

6.19.2015 Station Taproom

Station Taproom: 207 W Lancaster Ave, Downingtown, PA 19335

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9.29.2013 David JonesA native of Chester County and a 1968 graduate of Octorara Area High School, David Jones earned a Masters Degree in Medical Ethics from from Villanova University. Mr. Jones served as CEO of both Mayview and Wernersville State Hospitals and later worked directly with then Governor Rendell to modernize and right-size Pennsylvania’s entire state hospital system. Jones and his wife Lynn make their home in Parkesburg and dine out frequently across Chester County and the Delaware Valley.

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Top image courtesy of Station Taproom.

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