The Whip Tavern

1383 North Chatham Road
Coatesville, PA
$39 for two pints, one appetizer and two entrees

She Said:

He took me on a date today - sweet! We took an hour drive out to the rural part of Coatesville, PA, taking in all the scenery and rusticity (is that a word??), and stopped for lunch at The Whip Tavern.

It's in an old building full of charm. There was a big fireplace when we walked in and open beams on the ceiling. The decor is all fox hounds and hunting horses. The fare is mostly from the British Isles, which I simply love.

We both started with a draught Tetley pint. This is a great ale and a safe bet if you're faced with a list of regional beers that you don't know. In hindsight, I should have gotten a Guiness. It would have fit better. Next time.

We split an appetizer of Welsh rarebit. It was my first time having that little treat. English Cheddar and Stilton cheeses blended with Smithwick's Irish Ale (another great ale) and served with toasted crostini. It was really, really delicious and I am bound and determined now to make it at home.

For the main part of the meal, I had their Beef on Weck. It's close to what you might think of as a French dip but much heartier. Thinly sliced beef served on a Kummelweck roll, served with au jus and horseradish. And chips, of course. I never heard of a Kummelweck roll but I am very glad that I tried it. It's a soft roll with a thin crust and it's just covered with caraway seeds. More seeds than you can possibly imagine. (When we were done, there were caraway seeds EVERYWHERE!) In looking up this sandwich, it turns out that it's German in origin, rather than from the British Isles. Still, it was delicious!

We were too stuffed for dessert but we heard that the sticky pudding was amazing! Again, next time.

St. Peter's Cream Stout

She Said:

Hey, look - it's a beer post! How fun! I don't drink as much beer as I do wine - beer makes me very full and I'm not usually in the mood for that. However, during yesterday's chili- and jerky-making time, beer seemed to be the right thing for the moment. And we happen to have a couple of very interesting ones in the house.

The first one we had was the best, in my opinion. It was an imperial pint bottle (20 oz.), so we split it. It was called St. Peter's Cream Stout. And, boy, was that good!

Creamy, strong flavors of coffee and toasted grains - this was a winner in my book. And a gorgeous color to boot! Very, very dark - almost black. Served up in one of our brand new Guinness pub glasses, it was perfect. Highly recommended!

And go browse around their website. It's quite an interesting read. Lots of history there! Imagine - history at an English brewery!

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He Said:

Let's see. How would I describe St. Peter's Cream Stout in one word or less? I'd have to go with "yumyumyumyumyumyumyumyumyumyum". Yeah, that about sums it up. I really loved this beer. Not the beer I would want after mowing the lawn and needing something super-thirst-quenching but perfect for those times when you're looking for a smooth, creamy, aromatic experience (which came out sounding much dirtier than I intended!). Oh, and it comes in a pretty cool bottle, too.

If you like English ales (and I don't understand you if you don't), I think that you will really enjoy this one. Bottoms up!