Franklin Inn
The Franklin Inn is a Pittsburgh restaurant
specializing in Mexican food.
Franklin Park, PA, where the Franklin Inn can be
found, is a very comfortable, mostly residential section
of Allegheny County located about 20 minutes north of
downtown Pittsburgh.
My first visit to the Franklin Inn came on a Friday
evening, which I discovered is a very busy time for the
restaurant. From my chair in the small waiting
area I watched hopeful diners as they heard the same
news I had just received, “Your table will be ready in
about 40 minutes; I’m sure it will be worth the wait.”
Most folks weren't the least phased, but added their
names to the list and settled in to wait in
anticipation. I spent part of my time in the
waiting room reading the menu, which, besides giving me
a good idea of the dishes I would be enjoying, also
explained that a family member had decided to specialize
in Mexican food over 20 years ago. Today, for the
patrons and owners of this North Hills treasure, that
decision seemed to have been a good one.
After glancing over the menu I moved to a spot in the
waiting room where I could observe the main dinning
area. Visually the room is inviting and the assortment
of art was well thought out. These aren't just
pieces to cover a wall. This collection was put
together to make guests feel comfortable. As I
discovered later, the artwork used in all sections of
the Inn gave me a very inviting feeling.
It was not an extremely quiet room. OK, I like
the place and I'm telling you that when you are at The
Franklin Inn on a Friday evening you know you are not
alone. I enjoyed the sounds of people enjoying
themselves. There was no music being played in the
background to set the mood. None needed.
After 30 minutes of our 40 minute wait we were called
to be seated. We were given a table in a small
nook located at the far corner of the dining room. Soon
a basket of corn chips and salsa arrived at our table;
they were good, they were very good. We learned
later that both were made fresh in their kitchen. With
the delivery of the chips we were told that our waitress
would be with us shortly. A few minutes of
politely nibbling on the corn chips convinced me that
these may be the best chips I ever had. I thought
a Margarita would be a good match with the chips and
salsa, and I was pleased with the choice.
My dinner companion selected chilies with pinto beans
and a side salad; my choice was the chicken enchilada
with the bean & corn salad and rice.
It took only about 15 minutes for the meals to
arrive, which seemed to me very good service for the
culinary experience that was about to enjoy. This
meal was made for me! It was muy bueno!
Sometimes, when I see a more than ample amount of
food, I'll quickly decide to take half home for
tomorrow's lunch, after a few bites I knew that wasn't
going to happen. Leftovers always lose something, and on
this evening I decided there wouldn’t be any!
The employees that I dealt with at the Inn were
professional. From the gentleman that took our
reservation while assuring us it would be worth the wait
and the young lady that led us to our table, to the
waitress that put up with my questions with patience and
a smile, this group added to the experience.
After our initial contact with our waitress I asked a
few (maybe quite a few) questions about Mexican food.
My timing was bad. While I was asking my questions she
had other patrons that needed attention. Instead
of just giving short answers she took care of my
Margarita order. It took our waitress about ten
minutes to reappear, when she did return she made us
feel like we were the only customers in the place and my
questions were answered completely.
As I sat there enjoying an after dinner cup of
coffee, thinking about the desert that was to follow I
realized my meal was rather mild (not so caliente) by
Mexican standards and while I want to give a well
rounded view of the place, it was beyond me to order
even one more bite. I noticed the couple next to
me were dining on hot wings and beer (one of my favorite
combinations), so I turned to them and asked if the
wings were hot enough and in unison they smiled, shook
their heads yes and went back to their meal.
Our waitress returned to talk deserts, I was leaning
towards the caramel flan when she mentioned that the
owner makes ice cream and today's flavor was chocolate.
I didn't budge until she said it was the best chocolate
ice cream I would ever have. I had to find out.
I ordered the chocolate with 2 spoons.
Website:
www.franklininn.net
Located at 2313 Rochester Road Pittsburgh PA 15237
Closed on Sunday
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