Restaurant ‘opens’ without reopening
Food landmark is back under new ownership
TELFORD » Almost two years after it was last open, the Towne Restaurant is back.
And that’s still the name on the new sign, although the banner outside carries the longer “Chuck & Vera at the Towne” designation.
“We’re gonna leave the name the same because it has such a good history behind it and I couldn’t see any reason to change it,” said new owner Chuck Watson Jr.
“It has a lot of history here obviously. We don’t want to change a whole lot,” he said.
Under the current restrictions for the coronavirus pandemic, restaurants are limited to takeout sales.
While there is a take-out menu, that’s not all that’s available, Watson said.
“We’ve kind of been adding to things as we go and see what the customers want,” he said.
Two of the things they’ve been getting a lot of requests for are cream chipped beef and pancakes, he said.
The current hours are from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays, but that will change to a 5 a.m. start when dining in the restaurant is again possible, he said.
“We’re specializing in all fresh foods,” Watson said.
There will be a few exceptions to that, such as french fries, he said.
Along with fresh salads, the menu will include things such as cheese steaks and half pound burgers, with daily deliveries from Clemens Meat Market in the Norristown area, one of the few remaining local butcher shops, Watson said.
“For the vegetarians or vegans or anybody with a food allergy, I have one grill separate just for them,” he said. “We basically want to be able to accommodate anybody, so I put in an extra flat top.”
Although breakfast and lunch will be the main features, there’s also been a lot of good feedback to the idea of being open for Friday evening fresh seafood dinners and Saturday night prime rib, he said.
After 39 years of working in the food service industry, this is the first time he’s been in business for himself, Watson said. He and Vera met while working at what was then Vernfield Station and is now the Energy Station, he said.
The more than centuryold building on Main Street in which the Towne is located has been a restaurant for several years, but in earlier years served as Telford’s post office, a barber shop and gathering hall.
For part of his childhood, Watson said, he lived on nearby Reliance Road while attending John M. Grasse Elementary School and Pennridge South Middle School.
“We’re gonna be mostly family run,” Watson said.
That includes himself and Vera, their son-in-law and daughter, and his sister helping some weekends, he said.
“We will be hiring wait staff and other kitchen help as well, so it won’t be just the family,” he said.
Plans to reopen the Towne had already begun when the pandemic hit, postponing the opening date by about two weeks, he said. Initially planned for the first week of May, the opening actually took place on Tuesday, May 19, he said.
The Montgomery County Health Department “went above and beyond” in completing its work and helping make it possible for the business to open more quickly than expected under the circumstances, he said.
Information on Towne Restaurant is available at the Towne Restaurant Telford Facebook page. Takeout orders may be called in to 215-799-2440.