A Penns Valley restaurant is reopening at a new location. Here’s a look at what’s new
After a two-month closure, Streamside Family Restaurant and Pizzeria is set to soon celebrate its “grand reopening” at a new Penns Valley location — and customers should notice plenty of changes.
A fully renovated interior, at the former site of South Philly Cheesesteaks (2782 Earlystown Road), first greets customers with a rustic theme involving a dark hardwood floor accented by lighter tables and chairs. A hand-crafted counter away from the entrance sits in front of a large chalkboard menu and offers visitors a variety of choices they didn’t have at the previous location.
After all, when Streamside conducted business 6 miles east in Gregg Township, its small kitchen couldn’t hold a grill or deep fryer. Once that lease ended in March, the couple opted for a location with a significantly larger kitchen — one that now employs 30 people, offers several new menu items and boasts the flexibility for some surprises in the future. (Potential breakfast buffet or pizza buffet, anyone?)
“We try to make it homey and friendly and a place you want to be,” added Jennifer Seles, who co-owns the 54-seat restaurant with her husband Rudy.
Streamside Family Restaurant opened in 2022 and quickly earned a reputation for its pizza and stromboli. While those menu staples remain, in addition to their salads and subs, Jennifer and Rudy now possess a lot of additional offerings in time for their grand reopening Saturday. (They held a soft opening May 22.)
Among the additions:
- Burgers: The beef comes from Eu-Joy Acres in Centre Hall, and a cheeseburger platter with fries costs $11.99. Jennifer is also planning on some future bison burger specials, with the bison sourced from Brush Mountain Bison near Spring Mills.
- Build-your-own fries: Choose from three toppings — such as bacon, mozzarella, hot sauce, ranch, sausage, cajun seasoning, etc. — for $5.99, or use the same ingredients as a specialty pizza (i.e. Chicken Bacon Ranch, Philly Steak, etc.) for $7.99.
- Fried appetizers (and chicken fingers): In addition to fries, Streamside now also offers breaded cauliflower and cowboy corn nuggets, which were described as corn inside of a deep-fried jalapeno with cheese. The appetizer offerings are intended to evolve, Jennifer said. Chicken fingers are also on the menu now, and a platter with fries costs $9.99.
- Return of wedge salad: Streamside discontinued its wedge salad at the previous location because it just didn’t have the needed fridge/freezer space. Because that’s not an issue anymore, it’s back at $8.99. (Chicken is an additional $3).
- Additional specialty pizzas: Three new specialty pizzas include Pickle (pickle, bacon, ranch, crushed red pepper, mozzarella); Cajun (pepperoni, sausage, onion, ring peppers, cajun seasoning, mozzarella); and Bigg Makk (Thousand Island dressing, ground beef, lettuce, onions, pickles, cheddar cheese blend). All specialty pizzas are $16.99 for a small (12 inch), $18.99 for a medium (14 inch) and $21.99 for a large (16 inch). (A large plain cheese pizza is $15.99.)
- More desserts: Streamside offers cheesecake (Oreo and plain) from the Cheesecake Factory. But it’s also selling some crustless cheesecake that happens to be gluten-free and comes from another bakery — including a lemon cheesecake, a sweet potato cheesecake and a flourless chocolate fudge cake. Those are $4.99.
Jennifer makes it a point to address customers’ dietary restrictions as best she can. Outside of hamburger rolls (for now), both the pizzas and subs can be made without gluten. Vegan cheese is on-hand if anyone requests it. Some sugar-free desserts are available. And salt is rarely added to dishes — outside of the pizza dough and sauce — as customers are encouraged to add their own to taste. (The main seasonings Streamside uses are garlic and pepper.)
The Seleses’ goal is to serve the entire community, and that means making sure no family member is left out when it comes to eating out. That also means Streamside doesn’t mind serving outside cake for birthdays, or even hanging a birthday banner — as long as the restaurant receives a heads-up.
Blame Jennifer’s late father for that mentality. Every day, as soon as he woke up, he’d either head to Bellefonte’s Hot Dog House or Rony’s Place for some coffee and/or toast. His trips were just as much for the company and conversation as they were for the light breakfast. They were about community.
“We want that,” Jennifer said. “We want people to come in and just feel like they can sit down and have a cup of coffee.”
Streamside Family Restaurant offers takeout and is BYOB. The daily special, before 4 p.m., is $4.99 for two pizza slices and a drink.
The front entrance is for staff only, and customers are asked to use the entrance in the back of the building. (More parking is also available in the back.)
The restaurant is open Wednesday through Sunday, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday-Saturday and 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Those hours will likely change in the summer, with the possibility that Streamside could open on Mondays.
This story was originally published May 31, 2024 at 12:07 PM.
