Category: Closed

Editor’s Note: Firefly Cafe is now closed. The restaurant’s last day was in July 2025. The owners plan to continue their business as Firefly Forest Bakehouse, a vegan bakery, serving at farmers markets and pop-up locations in the area, but the physical location in Boyertown is closed.

For all the great diversity in Berks County’s restaurant scene, there is always room to grow. The key is opening a restaurant that is different, that isn’t serving the same food as the place down the street.

Find the right niche and serve great food and drinks, and the eatery is likely to be a success.

A vegan/vegetarian cafe in downtown Boyertown? Now that’s a niche.

Open since April, the Firefly Cafe is a place unlike any other in the county.

Specializing in breakfast and lunch, it’s one of just a handful of meatless restaurants in the region (along with places like Chen Vegetarian House in West Reading and the iCreate Cafe in Pottstown).

In addition to its normal hours, Firefly opens up for dinner service on Fridays and Saturdays. That’s when we made our trek eastward for a taste.

Two warm fireplaces greeted us inside. One, a large video screen above the restrooms. The second, a faux fireplace, one of the smallest I have ever seen, was sitting near our table giving off a charming glow.

There was one couple leaving with a to-go package when we arrived with a few more groups coming and going during the 45 minutes we spent at the cafe.

Our table was by one of the front windows where we could enjoy the nightscapes of Boyertown. Our server – one of the owners – dropped off a pair of menus and some infused water (cucumber for me, orange for Julie) and told us she would take our orders at the counter when we were ready.

I had perused the menu before we arrived so I was feeling good about my decision – the vegan pulled pork sandwich.

What’s a vegan pulled pork sandwich? Well it looks a lot like the real thing, but jackfruit (a fruit in the fig family, according to the always-reliable Wikipedia) takes the place of the meat. It was topped by vegan tri-color slaw (carrots and cabbage in a plant-based cream).

It was a delicious recreation. The barbecued jackfruit made for a much sweeter sandwich, but the phenomenal multi-grain roll helped balance it out. The slaw was great, adding more flavor with a crunchy texture.

Could you tell it wasn’t meat? Yes. Did I care? No.

All dinners come with a side of greens and choice of house-made dressings. I went with the carrot ginger.

It was a light, chunky dressing with lots of carrots and pinch of ginger. Easily one of the best salad dressings that I’ve tried in my Berks County Eats adventure.

For her meal, Julie went for the vegan lasagna, whole wheat noodles with tomato sauce, vegetables and vegan cheese.

Again, it wasn’t the same as eating true Italian lasagna, but it was enjoyable. Among the vegetables inside were carrots and olives. The tomato sauce was definitely fresh. The vegan cheese was tasty. And it had a nice crumbly top layer that added texture to the dish.

And it was surprisingly filling for a meatless dish.

On her side of greens, Julie opted for the lemon miso-tahini dressing. It had a vibrant citrus flavor and was much creamier than mine (thanks to the tahini). It was another winning creation.

We felt so good about having eaten a health-conscious meal that we skipped the dessert (though chia pudding is about as guiltless as you can get) so our final total was right around $25.

The Firefly Cafe is different from anything else in Berks County, and that’s a great thing.

And whether you’re a vegetarian, vegan, omnivore or carnivore, it’s definitely worth trying.

BCE Rating
Food: Excellent
Service: Very Good
Ambiance: Very Good
Price: Reasonable

Firefly Café
12 N. Reading Ave
Boyertown, PA 19512

More Restaurants in Boyertown, PA

Editor’s Note: Georgio’s Pizza is now closed. The location is currently home to Chef David’s Pizza & More.

Last week, I asked my Facebook fans where to go for some great pizza to close out National Pizza Month 2016.

I got some great suggestions including Paradise by the Slice (visited in 2014) and Mama’s in Wyomissing (visited the Spring Township location last year).

And then there were some fervent supporters of Georgio’s Pizzeria in West Reading.

With an unseasonably warm weekend, a walk to West Reading sounded like a great idea.

Georgio’s sits on the corner of Fifth and Penn Avenues at the eastern end of West Reading’s busiest block.

This weekend, everyone had their outdoor seating open so after we placed our order at the counter, we grabbed a table on the sidewalk outside and waited for our lunch.

It didn’t take long for our two slices and garlic knots to be delivered.

For my slice, I went with the Capri pizza. It’s a white pizza with one of my favorite topping combinations: ricotta and mozzarella cheeses with spinach, tomato, broccoli, red onion and basil.

I love ricotta on pizza and the cheese blend here was perfect. And I have never figured out why, but broccoli just goes perfect with white pizza. Add on some fresh tomatoes and just a hint of onion, and this was one good slice.

The crust was crispy from the second trip through the oven, but I was happy to have a cup of marinara sauce from our garlic knots to use for dipping.

The garlic knots themselves had more garlic than any others that I have tried. The bottom of our aluminum foil was still lined with minced garlic when we were finished with our order of four.

I love garlic. If you don’t, I’d suggest finding another app or side.

Julie’s slice of stuffed cheesesteak pizza had a Philly flair to it with a yellow streak of Cheez Whiz across the top.

Inside, it was filled with lots of delicious steak meat and a little mozzarella.

With the stuffed pizza comes the thick, fancy crust. Unfortunately Julie left that behind.

Note: the pizza was not on our paper menu or on the website. In fact, there are no stuffed pizzas listed so this may have been a special for today.

Like all great pizzerias, Georgio’s was fast and reasonably priced. For two slices, four garlic knots and two Icy Teas, our total was just $14.

There are a lot of places to get a good pizza in West Reading, and Georgio’s is certainly near the top of the list.

And I’m definitely glad to our Facebook fans for the reminder.

A special thank-you to Facebook fans Paul Bender and Noralee Morales for the suggestion.

BCE Rating
Food: Very Good
Service: Very Good
Ambiance: Good
Price: Very Reasonable

Georgio’s Pizzeria
500 Penn Ave
West Reading, PA 19611

Editor’s Note: Pete’s Pizza is closed. The space is now home to Bella’s 2.0.

October is my favorite time of the year.

I spend my summer months anxiously looking forward to our annual celebration of National Pizza Month and four weeks of blogging Berks County’s best pizza shops.

Choosing which places to visit is the hardest part because there are dozens of great pizzas that I haven’t tried yet. So every year I rely on review sites to help me find them.

One of the names that kept appearing among the best was Pete’s New York Style Pizza on Lancaster Pike in Shillington.

In a past life, I spent a summer working next door at the Speedway (then a Hess). Pete’s was not yet Pete’s, and Berks County Eats wasn’t even an idea yet.

I don’t remember the name of the restaurant that was there previously, but I remember we ordered dinner from there once and it being nothing memorable.

Pete’s still doesn’t look like much from the outside, but I was impressed by the interior. There’s not a lot of space in that little building, but they managed to squeeze in two rows of booths, some high-top tables and a counter along one of the windows. It’s probably more than enough seating for what is mostly a take-out business.

We went in with no clue what we were getting, but the pizzas sitting behind the counter were enticing. So we decided to order a couple slices.

Let’s get this out of the way now: Reheated slices are never as good as a fresh-made pizza. The crust gets harder. The toppings can get a little dry.

That’s exactly what happened with our slices.

I had a supreme with pepperoni, peppers, onions, mushroom and sausage. It was a solid slice, no skimping on the toppings, but that second trip through the oven wasn’t kind to the crust, drying it out significantly.

Julie’s stuffed chicken bacon ranch stuffed slice was much the same. There were plenty of toppings, including lots of bacon with a nice ranch dressing drizzle on top. She never eats her crust anyway so the over-done dough at the edge didn’t bother her much.

Both slices were good, exactly what we expected. Next time we’ll have to try a fresh pie.

We knew that slices probably weren’t going to fill us up so we got 10 wings to help with that. Above the counter were listed Pete’s new wing flavors, and we were really excited to try the zesty orange. Unfortunately, we were told that it was unavailable.

So instead we got the sweet red chili. The sauce on the breaded wings was more chili than sweet. It wasn’t a burning hot, but it was enough that I went through my drink faster than I had expected.

In hindsight, slices were not the smartest decision. It’s not just because of the leftover nature of them, but because the stuffed and specialty slices are pricy ($3.60 for a specialty, over $5 for a stuffed) so our total bill was north of the $20 mark.

What we should have done was ordered a fresh pie. It would have been a better gauge of Pete’s pizzas at a better value.

And that’s exactly what I plan to do. Hopefully before we get to next year’s National Pizza Month celebration.

Pete’s New York Style Pizza
2342 Lancaster Pike
Shillington, PA 19607

Editor’s Note: Rocco’s Wood-Fired Pizza closed in 2017. The space is no longer a restaurant.

There’s something about a wood-fired oven that just makes pizza better.

A crisp crust, bubbly cheese and that extra hint of flavor are what set it apart from the standard oven.

There aren’t many places in Berks County to get a good wood-fired pizza. Nonno Alby’s  introduced it to the Reading area in 2014.

This year, we were introduced Rocco’s Wood-Fired Pizza in South Heidelberg Township.

Flanked by my friend Josh, I recently made my first visit to Rocco’s.

Rocco’s location probably isn’t the most desirable — tucked in the corner of the strip mall with Tractor Supply — but the restaurant makes the most of it with a wood-and-brick interior that harkens to the oven that flames at the back of the restaurant.

The menu is printed, two-sided, on a simple sheet of paper. One side lists the 14 pizza options. The other includes sandwiches, salads and apps.

All of Rocco’s pizzas are 13-inch pies. If it were Julie and I, one pie would be enough. For Josh and I, it was going to go to take two. And an order of fries.

The fries arrived first, piled high on a wooden serving tray. Skins on with coarse-ground salt, they were like a better version of Wendy’s French fries.

As good as they were, I didn’t need them. When the pizzas arrived, we quickly realized that 13 inches is bigger than it sounds.

First to arrive was Josh’s interestingly named “Cheesus!” pie, essentially a buffalo chicken pizza with all of the following: shredded mozzarella, San Marzano tomatoes, pepperoni, crispy bacon, peppers, breaded chicken and mild sauce.

There’s not much to say other than “loved it.” The crisp crust. The hint of heat from the sauce, the addition of the pepperoni. Everything just worked.

It’s a good thing for Josh that my pizza arrived shortly thereafter.

Mine was the “Bee Sting,” topped with San Marzano tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, hot sopresatta, raw honey (the bee) and crushed red pepper oil (the sting).

The sweet and hot flavor was unlike any other pizza that you are likely to find. It packed a punch, but a flavorful one. The meat was delicious, similar to a hot salami. The red pepper oil was just there to make sure that I sweat during my lunch, but the honey came through with a soothing aftertaste.

It’s a good thing Rocco’s offers free refills on iced tea because I needed them.

With five-eighths of my pie finished, it was time to throw in the towel, get the to-go box and settle the check. Our total for the two of us was $40. In hindsight, we didn’t need two pizzas (and my Bee Sting was the most expensive on the menu at $15). At least I know I brought home a lunch or two.

I’m not going to attempt a comparison between Rocco’s and Nonno Alby’s. Though both are wood-fired, it’s not an apples-to-apples — or pizza-to-pizza — comparison.

All I can say is that I love wood-fired pizza. And I’m glad that I now have a second choice nearby.

Rocco’s Wood Fired Pizza
4732 W Penn Ave
Sinking Spring, PA 19608

Editor’s Note: CD’s Place closed at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The business continues on with catering and occasional pop-up dinners, but the restaurant is no longer open for regular dine-in or takeout meals.

Waiting is the hardest part of every meal. The long wait I had for my meal at CD’s Place had nothing to do with service.

Allow me to explain.

The restaurant prioritizes its catering business, closing the Boyertown restaurant whenever they have a catering engagement.

It must be working for them because there have been many Saturdays that I have wanted to visit, only to see on Facebook that they are closed for catering.

Good for them. Bad for this food blogger.

Finally, the stars aligned and I saw the following post on Wednesday: “HEY! We’re actually gonna be open our regular hours this week!!”

I knew where we were going to lunch.

Julie and I arrived in Boyertown a little before noon and pulled in behind the distinctive cup-shaped building.

The building is a real throwback, an example of roadside architecture that you just don’t see anymore. But it also has its drawbacks, including an awkwardly small seating area with tables for two and the longest counter seating area that I have ever seen.

Somehow it all just adds to the charm of the place.

Now that I was finally there, there was really only one question remaining: what the heck was I going to eat?

It was lunch time, but breakfast is served all day. I think I found the perfect way to do both: the Jamaican omelet. It’s a hearty omelet filled with jerk chicken and fried onions, served with a side of homefries.

First surprise, the chicken was chunked, not shredded or pulled. I’ve never had jerk chicken that was cubed before. Second surprise, it was really good jerk chicken.

Not too spicy, not too salty, it was the right blend of spice to fill an omelet. And fried onions, as I’ve mentioned before in this blog, make everything better for me.

The homefries were simple, just fried red-skinned potatoes. Nothing fancy, but it doesn’t need to be when you use the more flavorful potato variety.

Julie, meanwhile, couldn’t stop raving about her meal of two eggs over baked corn andouille hash.

Eggs are eggs, but the hash was definitely worth talking about. She only allowed me one bite, but it was a great bite.

The hash is an original, unlike anything I’ve found anywhere else. The sausage was tasty choice, but what really stood out was the corn that added an unexpected sweetness to the dish. It was a delicious, hearty breakfast that made for a great lunch, too.

In true diner fashion, the food was fast and reasonably priced. Our two meals were just $17 (full disclosure, we only had water to drink).

Finally, I have tasted CD’s Place and it is everything I had hoped for and more. It’s one of the most unique, funkiest joints (sorry, I’m watching Guy Fieri as I write this) in Berks County.

Just be sure to check ahead to make sure they’re open.

BCE Rating
Food: Very Good
Service: Good
Ambiance: Very Good
Price: Very Reasonable

CD’s Place
237 N Reading Ave.
Boyertown, PA 19512

Editor’s Note: Panevino now operates as a special event venue and caterer. In 2021, Panevino moved to a new location in Wernersville where they continue to focus on catering.

In the early years of Berks County Eats (circa 2012-13), blog posts were sporadic.

For those two years, I only did 12 restaurant reviews. Two of those restaurants have closed, two of them have moved. The other eight continue on, and for me, they are simply noted by an “x” on my spreadsheet of Berks County restaurants.

In May of 2013, I checked Panevino off my list. Three years and three months have passed since Julie and I visited the Italian restaurant on the corner of Second and Washington, across from the Reading Movies 11 & IMAX.

Thirty-nine months later, it was time to go back.

Panevino is in a tough location. It doesn’t have the visibility of Penn Street, and so far, it remains the only business among several empty storefronts on the first floor of the Albert Boscov Plaza.

On the plus side, Panevino customers can enjoy free parking in the garage above it.

Both Julie and I were surprised to see all of the open tables when we arrived for our reservations. It began to fill up as we ate, but the spacious dining room still looked empty.

Our waitress dropped off our menus, which were different than what I found on Panevino’s website. Slightly pared down, all of the entrees now come with an appetizer and dessert included so there is no excuse for leaving hungry.

Before our apps arrived, we were treated to an excellent sampling of parmesan pita bread with white bean hummus. It was compliments of the chef, not something available on the menu, but it was delicious. The small portion left us wanting more.

Instead, we were served our choice of bread: focaccia (Julie), ciabatta (me) or asiago cheese (odd bread out) with olive oil for dipping. I would have liked a little bit of seasoning in the oil, but the breads were good, especially the focaccia.

Up next were our appetizers. For me, it was the arancini di riso, three large fried balls of rice, meat, peas and cheese, served with mushroom sauce.

There was definitely plenty of rice and a nice amount of meat, but I don’t remember seeing many peas. The mushroom sauce was good, if a little thin. The rice definitely soaked it up well, though.

Julie, on the other hand, was a huge fan of her spicy crab and clam chowder. Not too spicy, the chowder was loaded with tomato, potatoes, a little bit of celery and plenty of clam and crab. There was never an empty spoonful, and each one was delicious.

She was also a big fan of her eggplant parmesan.

The battered eggplant was layered with Grand Padano (comparable to Parmesan) and mozzarella cheeses. The eggplant was cut so thin that it almost disguised itself as lasagna.

Everything worked together – the eggplant, cheese and a very good tomato sauce – for a delicious dish.

I decided to go with the rigatoni. I normally wouldn’t have gone with something so boring, but the roasted red pepper sauce sold me on it.

The sweet Italian sausage was very good, but I wanted just a little more red pepper in my sauce. It was there, but it didn’t distinguish it enough from a traditional tomato sauce.

It was a good meal, though I was left wanting something just a little more to make it feel special.

Dessert definitely did not disappoint.

I was torn between the crème brulee and the peach and blueberry cobbler, finally settling on the cobbler. I made the right decision.

The blueberry-heavy sauce had bubbled over the sides of the mug with a nice scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. Slices of peach were scattered beneath the puffy pastry topping.

It was just a little sweeter than I would have liked, but it was still an amazing ending to my meal.

Julie’s sweet treat was New York cheesecake with orange sauce, garnished with strawberries, blueberries and whipped cream. It was delicious, especially with that hint of citrus throughout.

That wasn’t the only sweet treat that my wife enjoyed during our visit. Her chocolate raspberry martini lasted her through the meal.

And for two entrees, two appetizers, a pair of desserts and a martini, we still paid only $50. We’ve paid more than twice as much for three-course meals other places.

Now, don’t get me wrong, Panevino is not fine dining. They try hard, but it’s not the same as a meal at Dan’s at Green Hills or Heirloom.

Still, it was a nice night out in an underappreciated restaurant.