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When I hear the term “honky tonk” I think of country music, the Grand Ole Opry and cowboy boots.
I imagine listening to Trace, Luke, Garth, Dolly and all those artists who’s synonymous with the genre.
While I love that music, I also appreciate soft rock, some pop, funk – basically a little bit of everything. I don’t discriminate.
Last Saturday, we ventured up to the HonkyTonk Restaurant & Saloon on East Drinker Street in Dunmore, not sure what to expect. While I know we were headed to hear a friend’s band play, I wasn’t sure what the place was like being that I’m – gasp – 22 miles away in Wilkes-Barre (more on why we need to travel between Luzerne and Lackawanna counties in another column).
To my delight, I realized the HonkyTonk is a pretty cool place!
And while I know they have country music, line dancing and karaoke, they also have quite the variety of other music and artists coming in and out. Just check out the Facebook page that has all the goings-on listed regularly. There’s quite a bit.
The friend we were there to see was playing with Tom Osborne, known for being the front man in Tom Osborne & The FALLEN Music locally, so we knew we were in for a treat of some classic and current music, the type you can sing along to and enjoy with friends on a Saturday night out.
A buddy, Robbie Kennedy, was manning the drums on this night with Tom, beginning at 8:30 p.m. Naturally I don’t wait until 8:30 to begin a Saturday night so our foursome headed up early to get seats at the bar (yes, I know, shocking).
When we arrived, we walked into a spacious dining area before proceeding through to the bar, which was huge. There are ample tables throughout the bar area, too.
The stage area is large enough for a full band or something smaller, like the trio we heard.
But, before Tom and company took the stage, the duo of Jack Foley and Robbie Walsh played from 6 to 8. Their music was a mix of some older and some current stuff and wasn’t overwhelming. It was enjoyable, so you could eat and talk while hearing them play.
We loved the inviting and large menu, too. It seemed to have everything on there: light dishes, entrees, appetizers, rare finds like tripe, a bevy of soups, specials, and on and on. Let’s just say this: there’s a lot.
I settled with a chicken pot pie soup that was filled with chicken and vegetables; definitely a generous amount of actual food inside that broth.
For my main “course,” I had a chicken patty sandwich with lettuce and mayonnaise, served with potato salad and some nachos and cheese for – wait for it – $3.95. Yes, $3.95.
Between the chicken patty and the soup, I was filled and spent less than $8.
I felt accomplished, to say the least.
Next to me, my neighbor had a huge helping of nachos along with a huge beef stew in a bowl.
It was all sorts of delicious (I know because I sampled it). I thought to myself: “My gosh, I never saw someone swoon over beef stew like that.”
It was really that tasty.
I’m sure we’ll be back again soon. Maybe this time there’ll be line dancing.