Tamaqua Station Restaurant — Restaurant in Tamaqua

I stumbled on "The Train Station" (as the locals call it) while passing through town yesterday evening. It came highly recommended as "the best food in town" by a couple locals I spoke with while fueling up the truck. One of them even handed me a copy of the menu!

The restaurant is located inside a beautifully restored, clean, and nicely decorated... train station. Memorabilia from the station's history adorn the walls inside, and engines from the areas mines highlight the outside. I did find the silk-screened advertisements on the glassware to be a little more than a tad bit tacky.

They had two specials when I visited, but I chose the "Land & Sea" from the regular menu: a filet with 3 crab-stuffed jumbo shrimp, mashed potatoes, and mixed vegetables, and a Cesar salad. The salad came with a cold single slice of bread.

If you don't want them to hold your meal until you've completely finished your salad, be sure to ask them to bring it out when it's ready. I had to ask for mine. When it arrived, it was still nice and hot. Presentation was average, and I noticed a huge slice down the center of the Filet.

I ordered the Filet medium-rare, and it came medium/medium-well. It probably would have been correct, had the chef not sliced it (practically) in half to check on it while it was still cooking. A move like this is typical of an amateur chef. Unfortunately, this also allowed the meat to dry out (or it wasn't allowed to properly rest after cooking). Another huge rookie mistake, in my opinion. I would normally have taken 2 or 3 stars off for mishandling such a beautiful Filet in such a way, except that it did have a nice light char on the outside, which added a pleasant layer to the flavor profile, especially when combined with the mashed potatoes or a bit of crab from the stuffed shrimp.

And about the shrimp... It was overcooked. there's nothing more to say about overcooked shrimp. Just -- Don't -- Serve -- It! the crab stuffing was flavorful.

Overall, however, the food was good, the staff were attentive (I was offered a remake on the Filet), and I would recommend stopping in for a casual bite if you're passing...

We often have to travel well outside of Schuylkill County for a good restaurant as this area is chock full of mediocrity at best. So me and my wife were PLEASANTLY surprised when we decided to give The Station a try.

From the moment we walked through the door, we were inundated by the hostess about the building’s rich history. The building restoration is gorgeous. Never allowing the senses to get comfortable as there is always something new to see & read all over the restaurant. From its historic photos, to its incredible decor, and architecture.

Our waitress was incredibly friendly and knowledgeable, with just enough playfulness to not come across as robotic. The entire staff seemed to be enjoying what they were doing.

Let me just say that we travel, a lot. To places all over the world. From Hawaii to The Dominican Republic, Virgin Islands and every state in between, and our tastebuds are on the adventurous side. Always looking for something unique, especially since we are fitness fanatics who get to eat one “cheat meal” per week. We’re extremely particular about that one meal per week and we take it very seriously.

The Station did NOT disappoint!!! We left full, satisfied, and enjoyed every aspect of our huge meal. From the soups, and appetizers, to the main course, the expertly crafted cocktails , and finally dessert. It was all delicious! It’s nice to have something so close that we can trust to return to for our weekly pig-out. The dining was an experience, from the moment we arrived, until we left.

Even though I give the place 5 stars, the only small, tiny, and minute thing I could pick out that could use a bit of improvement was the presentation on the meal. But that did not in any way take away from this...

Had a rare day off from work a few weeks ago so I planned to have lunch with Cody Vacationtime and then shoot some pocket billiards afterwards at the local public house. First, we had to call McDermott to find out how to send Cody's cue stick in for repair because the A joint was all wonky and I had to find out when they were going to ship my Defy Carbon Fiber shaft. Once we got all of that sorted out, it was time for lunch.

We decided to eat here, specifically because of being told how good their Reubens are. Well the building is beautiful and has a lot of natural wood fixtures giving it a very appealing ambiance. Our waitress was clearly busy as she seemed to have a load of full tables but was very polite and attentive to us and consistently checked back on the food, to refill beverages, etc. Her name was The Pants. I had a half order of wings as an appetizer which were quality. I did try the Reuben for my meal and was not disappointed. It is probably the best one I have ever had. I look forward to making a return trip to the station.

But back to the story, we ended up shipping the butt of the cue stick into McDermott and they repaired it, put a brand new wrap on it, and shipped it back all at no cost to Cody. They are most definitely a company that stands behind their products. Unfortunately, after being told my Defy shaft would ship in mid November, as of Dec 22 I still have not received it and after contacting customer service they told me they are forecasting them to ship in late January. I'm thoroughly disappointed at having to wait around 5 months for them to fulfill...