The Pullman Restaurant and Bar — Restaurant in Lower Merion Township

We had the best seat in the house, or should I say "the railway car?" I honestly didn't read the press before going in. So I didn't realize the classic railways theme. Just thought the decor was gorgeous. Particularly our rounded table/booth under a sparkling chandelier. But I should have figured it out right away. To my left were views of the actual Septa rails and straight ahead was the bustling "bar car." Now I can't get the popular post-apocalyptic TV show "Snowpiercer" out of my head. I could totally picture Mr. Wilford and Miss Audry hosting elaborate parties for the poshest of passengers in The Pullman. They'd be toasting with classic cocktails just like we did.

I'm usually a beer guy (and they have those off menu), but we were compelled to try out a variety of different cocktail options, partly because the menu gives each a historical date. That little detail makes you feel like you're getting a taste of the past. Personally I had a Black Jack Mule, but my friends tried the Mexican Firing Squard (circa 1939), the Singapore Sling (circa 1915) and an Espresso Martini (undated but appropriately caffeinated). All hit the mark.

The starters and entrees did the same. My absolute favorite was the grilled octopus starter. We were sharing and i got the first taste. But as it circled the table and each person took their share, I was secretly hoping it would make its way back to me. If it hadn't, I would have bought a whole 'nother plate for myself. That good. We also had old-fashioned, upper class staples like Oysters Rockefeller and Escargot.

Executive Chef Corey Baver even came out of the kitchen and told us about the day's specials. If you look him up, he's previously of Izumi fame (10 years on Passyunk in South Philly) and was at Philly mainstays before that. I doubt that's a regular occurrence, but he certainly sold us. One friend got the Pocono-river trout and another got the locally-raised Guinea Hen. Both raved. I stayed on the main menu and went with an irresistible short rib that was melting off the bone into a pillow of mashed potatoes. I traded a bite of that for one of my wife's scallops and risotto. Basically made my own off menu version of surf and turf. Mmm. Everyone was waxing poetic about their entrees, so I'm pretty sure we'll be back to try the ones we didn't get this time around. It's at a convenient main line location between Lancaster and Montgomery avenues, just before you'd go under the railway underpass by Harcum College.

But while we were there this time around, we weren't eager to leave. So the guys kept drinking in the atmosphere and the cocktails, while the ladies topped off their meal by sampling a classic Creme Brulee. Overall it's a definite recommend. Hopefully this gem stays in the Bryn Mawr station for many...

We came for Mother’s Day. My family had the linguine, the short rib, the ribeye, grilled octopus, and the fried fish.

The staff was scattered and didn’t seem well trained when it came to conduct. We had two people serve us at once, ask us for drink orders twice, and food orders twice. We also requested appetizers that never came until we asked / didn’t come before our food. They forgot our burrata order completely. My mom ordered ice tea, and got coffee instead.

The food was not “terrible” but flavorless. I had to send the steak back because there wasn’t salt. I requested rare, to medium rare but more on the rare side and got anchovy chewy medium steak. Because our apps came later- they then “comped” the octopus which we didn’t even touch because we weren’t satisfied with the texture. Grilled octopus normally has a bit of a char and this was rubbery. Also- two people brought the octopus dish out TWICE because there was no obvious communication.

Worst part of the dinner- the older gentleman who sat us in the first place came at the end of our meal (which most was still left on the plate and we did not even want to take our food with us).. he asked how our food was and when I said “it wasn’t great, but I liked the Brussels sprouts that was great”.. and my mom also answered “uhhh we had some trouble”.. the man instead of offering an apology stared at both of us- and seemed exasperated/disappointed. Normally- an establishment would offer to comp a meal or at MINIMUM ask us what we were not satisfied with and talk with us about the issues and offer an apology. None of that was done.

Lastly- when it came to atmosphere- it was confusing at best. This restaurant sits right by an Amtrak train that runs. It could be the perfect spot for a bar vibe or some sort of dingy/masculine decor. Which it did have- but the menu, drink names, and even the theme did not match the overall vision. I noticed themes of 1920s flapper mixed with almost modern colorful decor and furniture, yet the bar was more Bullisrd style, with modern themes in the bar area, yet very dark leather furniture. I see what they were trying to do- but the Pullman vision was not at all cohesive to the menu and the drink spread. Even the names of the drinks seemed like something that would be in a new age artist bar like Tattooed Moms or Kooks burgers.

To finish- when all this went down, despite it being Mother’s Day, the restaurant wasn’t at full capacity. Which is confusing as to how many mistakes were made with our order. How do you mess up this bad, on a major holiday where families come out to dinner- just to make your guests feel bad for being disappointed with your food?

Do better and avoid this place.

High prices. Flavorless food. Scattered staff. Spend your...

Two of our friends have been hearing us rave over this wonderful restaurant for months so we finally decided to take them there last night. As soon as I entered the restaurant I was given a really warm reception by the manager Rich who recognized me from our past visits. We were shown to a wonderful booth overlooking the train tracks which our friends really appreciated.

Our server Adrienne welcomed us with a big smile and after taking our cocktail orders she told us about the dinner specials. One of our guests ordered their martini in a slightly different fashion than the menu stated- the bartender came to the table to make sure that he understood the order correctly and told him that he was going to make that martini "exactly" the way he wanted it. Just an example of the fine service at this wonderful restaurant.

We ordered the liver pate and the Caesar salad for our appetizers which were unbelievably good. One of our guests ordered the tuna nachos and he couldn't stop commenting on how beautifully it was plated and what an unusually excellent creation this was by the chef. We also ordered the special entree, the Bronzino which was just out of this world along with the meatloaf with our friends enjoyed immensely. We ended this phenomenal dinner with us enjoying the chocolate mousse and New York cheesecake for our desserts.

The chefs really outdid themselves in creating these wonderful dishes with an exotic blend of flavors. What really made our dining experience a "phenomenal" one was how friendly and attentive Adrienne was throughout our dinner. She pulled out all the stops to cater to our every request, the word no did not exist in her vocabulary. Rich the manager came to check on us a couple of times and at one point one of our guests had a minor issue and Rich took care of that immediately and corrected it right away. Ben even helped Adrienne out on several occasions and was so friendly and accommodating as well. It's folks like this that make the service level at the Pullman restaurant an A+.

Thanks to "everyone" for exceeding our guests expectations and making this a fun and memorable dining experience for the...