By David Jones

I want to try something a little different this week for my review.  In June I played a lot of par 3 golf with my buddies in New Holland.  If you’ve never been there, they have a municipal 9 hole par 3 course that cost $5 to play.  Each additional round is just $2.  The course is well maintained and a lot of fun.

I say this because it’s been our practice this past June to stop in Gap along Route 41 for pizza on the way home.  For those of you from the area you may remember our old friends at Pizza Box who have been moved south on Route 41 due to the new by-pass road construction at the intersection of Routes 30 and 41.

The new location is very nice.  It’s a clean and modern environment and they offer a lot more than just pizza.  I’ve had sandwiches here that are quite good.  But, for now I want to talk a little about their pizza.

They have the thin crust that I like so much and it’s just a tad crunchy or crisp.  They use their largest size (jumbo) for their slices.  I usually get 2 slices of pizza at most places, but Pizza Box can fill me up with just one and that’s saying something.  If you have an appetite for 2 you can get 2 slices and a soda for $4.50 and that’s a pretty good deal.

I talked about the place so much for several weeks that Lin wanted to go one Friday night for dinner.  So we went and I got 2 slices (one I took home) while Lin went for the Buffalo Chicken Salad.  The salad was made with fresh ingredients and was large enough to provide for another lunch for Lin the next day.

At a total price of $15, including tax and tip, that’s a pretty fair dinner for two (and lunch the next day).

Now, I know pizza discussions bring out a real conversation with most friends of mine.  I’ve found that everyone has their favorite and people seldom show such devotion to food as they do to their favorite pizza.  So, I don’t expect everyone to like the pizza at The Box, but if you like thin crust at a good price, give it a try.

Another experience Lin and I had just this past week was eating out late.  When we go out to eat we are usually part of the early crowd near 5:00 p.m.  However, coming home from the airport this past week we were looking for a meal after 9:00 p.m. and your options start to diminish as the night winds down.

We made our way on a Wednesday to Kennett Square and Half Moon Restaurant and Saloon.  This place has been well established on the main drag for years now.

Their specialty is ‘game’ meat.  You can find kangaroo, boar, bison and elk all on the menu here.  They like to promote their elk burgers.  In our visit we were just glad to find a kitchen actually offering the full fare till 10 p.m. and for us, a burger this late was a little too much.

I decided to go with a Caesar Salad ($8) and a cheese plate ($17) for my dinner.  The salad was a nice size and had the greens covered with the dressing just the way I like it.  If you want the anchovies that’s an extra $.50.

In many instances Lin and I will share a cheese plate as an appetizer or a dessert with a drink, but in this instance I thought it would be nice to finish off our recent trip to Seattle with a lighter late night snack.  I

was quite surprised when they brought out a HUGE plate!  A full 18 pieces of crispy bread, 5 local cheeses, thinly sliced duck, mustard, jam and spicy pickles.  Even with a little help from Lin I actually ended up taking half of the plate home and that is very unusual for me.  Lin had the elk chili ($7).  This was another very big serving.  It also had a little spicy kick to it that Lin enjoys and some shredded cheese on top.

Half Moon has quite a selection of craft beers with a full 23 on tap and many more by the bottle and can.  They also have a very nice selection of wines at fair prices.

I went with the 2XStout from Southern Tier Brewery.  A nice full beer with 7.5% alcohol at $7 for 16 ounces.  Lin went with Canyon Oak Cabernet, also at $7 a glass.  With a total of 3 drinks, our bill came in at $65 including tax and a 20% tip.

Half Moon is a vibrant and fun place to enjoy menu items you don’t see too many other places.  Of course, if this isn’t your style you have many choices in Kennett Square.  Most of us know by now about the renaissance of Kennett being driven by restaurants and microbrew pubs.  It’s a fun place to visit with lots of interesting shops and choices for eating.

Since we just returned from a week’s vacation in Seattle I’d like to close this week’s journal by telling you Seattle is a wonderful city for many reasons, but if you are a foodie like us, you have got to put Seattle on your bucket list.

This is a food lovers’ dream and the scenery with Mount Rainier in the background everywhere you go is simply spectacular.  Seattle is a place we’ve wanted to visit for years and now that we finally made it we’ve resolved to return as soon as we can.  It’s a truly wonderful place to visit.

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A 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.