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Review content:
First of all, I'm in Edinboro for the weekend for my daughter's soccer tournament at Edinboro University. My daughter and her team are staying in the dorms at the university and eating at the school's cafeteria, so I am on my own to find a decent place to eat. Another thing.....I'm thirsty for a beer.
Now, if you stick to the beaten path in this small college town, you'll find a Taco Bell, McDonald's, Burger King, Pizza Hut and a Perkin's Restaurant. There's also a nice takeout pizza joint called John's Wildwood Pizzeria, but it's not a place to sit down and eat and they don't sell beer. There are a few bars in town, including The Empty Keg, The Copper Coin, and the Edinboro Hotel's Boro Bar. But on this particular summer Saturday night these establishments were empty. Which left me with a lot of options, but none of them good. So on a hunch I decided to drive off the beaten path, north from the main intersection in town, to see what might be out there. Well, after I got past a few big leafy trees, I suddenly noticed the enormous Edinboro Lake and a whole hidden paradise that a lot of folks might otherwise miss while driving through Edinboro. Without even driving 1 mile out of town, I found boat rentals, mini golf, batting cages, driving ranges, and an video game arcade. But before I ever made it to the bridge that crosses a cove of the Edinboro Lake, I noticed a little strip mall on my right with a few stores including a Giant Eagle.......and hidden in the near corner was a storefront that looked more like a ""dive bar"" than anything else, with a friendly welcome sign and the name of Charlie's Pizza and Pub. Well, given the outside look of this establishment, (no windows), I might have expected to walk through the doors and found a dark unsavory bar. But since the parking lot was full of cars, I took a deep breath and walked in.
To my amazement, the inside was a deceptively spacious, family-like business, with plenty of booth seating for 20 families or more and bar seating as well. There were wide screen televisions with the Pittsburgh Pirates game on at least one of them, and a staff of around a dozen. They didn't just have pizza either. I was in the mood for a hoagie and to my delight, they had a large menu full of sandwiches as well as other dinners. I ordered a ""Charlie"" which I can best describe as an open face 6"" hoagie much like an italian hoagie. For about $4.50, I got the sandwich and a side to choose from including french fries among others. I got the cole slaw. Since I was alone, I sat down at the bar and ordered a draft Yuengling Black & Tan for $2.00. While I was munching away, sipping my beer, and watching the baseball game on tv, I suddenly heard the familiar sound of live music. Sure enough, in the far corner of the restaurant on a corner stage stood a four member band who call themselves Salmon Frank. Nice folk music type band with drums, lead guitar, upright base and a sweet sounding young lady sharing lead singing duties with the front man and lead guitarist. Not long into their set, the words ""two dollar imports"" are being sung from the vocalists mouth. I turned to the bartender and asked, ""is that just a song, or is their really a $2 special on imports?"" She told me, yep imports are just $2 tonight. I had several $2 imports that night....funny how much better a beer tastes when you get five of them for $10 instead of just two. And by the way......I really hate loud bars!.....but even with live music playing, Charlie's never got too loud! Did I mention all of the smiling friendly faces that Charlie's is staffed with? If be stopping here everytime I'm in Edinboro from now on!
Pros: Great Prices, Great Food, Great Atmosphere
Cons: Not easily found
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