If Ozgood’s is on your dinner calendar, skip lunch that day. Go light on breakfast, too. This laid back, Main Street restaurant in Robesonia is like a pot of gold at the end of a hungry rainbow. The portion sizes rock. The flavors of every single dish, from soup to cake, shout out loud. Which is why it’s a perfect outing for anyone with a man-sized appetite.
Here’s where the burgers and baby back ribs hold court. As do the wings, steaks, seafood, chili, and…a seemingly endless menu of entrees and sandwiches.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Let’s start at the beginning of this feast-to-be. After parking the car in an ample lot off the main drag, as you walk past the bar and into the restaurant with its heavy wooden booths and scattered tables, there’ll be a sign announcing the specials. These vary by the days of the week: In winter, for example, there’ll be a Parmesan Night with either chicken or veal parm, and now, in the warmer months, crab legs.
No need to hurry with any decisions. Just start with one of the tantalizing appetizers, like steamed clams, a chicken quesadilla, or the popular crab and spinach dip, which is baked in a creamy, cheese-y sauce.
Or try a Fried Sampler, which satisfies the desire to try three items in one shareable platter: Ozgood’s Spudskins—long, baked potato skins with bacon crumbled on top and the whole thing laced together with Jack cheese; crunchy mild or hot wings, with a luscious bleu cheese dip (super-fat chunks of bleu); and golden, beer-battered onion rings. A frozen OzGold margarita made with Cuervo Gold, Cointreau, and Grand Marnier is a frosty, tangily refreshing cocktail accompaniment.
Next try a cup or bowl of Ozgood’s chili (yes, another Oz-name!); chock-full of home-cooked light red kidney beans and crowned with chopped onions, cheese, a dollop of sour cream and a large taco chip, it’s a superbly satisfying, meat-y, bean-y chili.
Chef Keith Buchter bares the secret of this and all the Oz-wonders: “We buy nothing pre-made.” Aha. Everything is fresh. All made from scratch. So from boiling the beans on out, there is work, work, work behind Ozgood’s kitchen doors in the early hours of day, long before the first customers walk in. “We have a really good crew,” adds Keith, smiling. “Many of them have been here for years.” He himself has been on deck for 15 years, and is part owner; Steve Hansen is owner as well.
THE MAIN EVENT
That explains the marvelously punctual timing of the meal. The crew manages an impressive variety of entreés in record time. Entreés include filet mignon and Black Diamond steak, signature crab cakes and Jack Daniels shrimp. There’s a bestselling OzFather’s Chicken, a stromboli without the dough—grilled chicken plus ham, pepperoni, sweet peppers, marinara sauce and mozzarella; then there’s Smothered Chicken doused in mushrooms, Swiss cheese and onions.
Obviously, these guys thrive on creative mixes and combos.
The haddock is exceptional. It’s a sight to behold; its sheer size is daunting. It’s three meals in one, easily. You’ll be eating and eating, and then, when you look down, there it is! You’ve barely made a dent. Baked in gentle Panko breadcrumbs, the pure white fish dominates the platter in a long, oval mound. It’s covered by a shimmering layer of bright orange-red, finely chopped red peppers and tomato, beautiful to look at, and packing a delicate punch as it ever-so-pungently enhances the ever-so-light flavor of the haddock. On the ground floor of this entrée is a bed of toasty wild rice pilaf, so that the experience is like eating a three-layered torte: on top, the lively flavor of peppers and tomato, tender fish flake in the middle, buttery pilaf below.
A truly unique taste experience.
Similarly, the Ultra Melt Pretzel—one of many fun pretzel-sandwich offerings—is gargantuan, and joins up juicy prime rib with a fabulously wet, homemade cole slaw, tomatoes, and thousand island dressing, topped by melted Swiss cheese. Looking more like a Dali melting watch than a meal, its appearance belies the fact that each bite is a new discovery in textural complexity.
The best side dish ever may well be Ozgood’s Smashed Red Potatoes. Savory and lumpy, the nutritious skins included, these mashed potatoes have a caldera-filled lake of dark, hearty beef gravy. They’ll carry you back to the most comfortable comfort food your mouth ever tasted. Smashing red potatoes—that’s what they should be called.
BEFORE YOU GO…
Just as you’re ready to push away from the table, a stunning five-layer chocolate cake takes a slow waltz past the booth, headed for a table. Chef Keith’s Cheesecake, always on the menu, is another dessert option to seriously consider as it’s truly elegant and surprisingly light, built atop a buttery graham cracker crust. It’s drizzled with red raspberry for a mouth-melting finish. There’s a summertime dessert muscling in on Keith’s cheesecake, though. The Strawberry Dream is sponge cake, vanilla pastry cream, and sugar-ripe strawberries, festooned with the freshest whipped cream.
Ah-h-h-h. Summer in Robesonia, at Ozgood’s. Go ahead—pinch yourself. It’s the real deal.
OZGOOD’S NEIGHBORHOOD GRILL & BAR | 319 E. Penn Ave. | Robesonia | 610.693.6685 | ozgoodsgrillandbar.com
BY MARIAN FRANCES WOLBERS | PHOTOS BY HEIDI REUTER
