Bud’s Bar & Grill in Archbald offers a close-knit community vibe.
The restaurant at 402 N. Main St. changed ownership in 2014 and is now run by a brother and sister duo, Cathy Poronsky and Jason Clark. The pair kept the name out of respect for the previous owners, Edna and Bud Simon, and nostalgia’s sake. Today, customers will find a simple menu and can enjoy staples such as pizza and wings any time they feel like it.
Chef’s Table recently chatted with Poronsky about what the Midvalley eatery is up to these days.
Q: Tell us about the restaurant.
A: Our employees are family and friends. We are pretty close-knit, and it’s a small-town place much like “Cheers”; our patrons have become our family. Everyone knows everyone, but we are always happy to see new faces. It’s the kind of place you can come to after work and feel comfortable no matter what your profession — work boots or tie.
Q: What type of food do you serve?
A: Bar-and-grill food, such as pizza, hoagies, stromboli, wings and burgers.
Q: What’s your specialty?
A: Pizza and wings. Our pizza dough is freshly made daily, and the pizza sauce is homemade. Our wing sauce is a homemade recipe that took me years to come up with, and around the age of 25, I finally perfected it. Our wing sauce is not the same you’d have everywhere with a tomato paste or tomato sauce base. It was important for me to create my own sauce because I come from a strong line of Italian homemade family recipes. Our Nonie was known for her meatballs and sauce. I strive to be like her. And I wanted to have something different that would stand out in the crowd. I wouldn’t exactly say it’s completely opposite from other sauces; however, the technique we use to cook the sauce in the tomato base we use brings out a different flavor of the tomato, making it a little less like a pasta sauce and a little more enjoyable and different to the palette.
Q: How did your menu come to be?
A: After a few years of trial and error, we finally got it right. We like to keep our menu simple and consistent. We feel when you give too many options, it’s hard for people to decide what they want to eat. If we don’t offer it on the menu, we are always happy to accommodate our patrons by making special-order items.
Q: What are your most popular dishes and drinks?
A: Pizza, wings and Jagerbombs.
Q: What type of seating do you have?
A: We have smoking seating on the bar side and non-smoking booths on the restaurant side.
Q: What kinds of entertainment and specials do you offer?
A: Fifty-cent jumbo wing night on Wednesdays, $1 tacos on Sundays, and we are currently putting a pasta night into place. We have in-house dart leagues that are very popular here. Our dart leagues consist of beginners to experts who have even traveled out of state for competitive tournaments.
Q: Do you offer catering, event space, etc.?
A: We do offer party catering for menu items. We also offer delivery service on select days.
Q: Where do you see the restaurant headed in the future?
A: We are eager for the COVID-19 crisis to be over so we can introduce our new outside seating for food and drinks on our new patio.
Bud’s Bar & Grill
Address: 402 N. Main St., Archbald
Phone: 570-876-5683
Established: 2014
Owners: Cathy Poronsky and Jason Clark
Cuisine: American
Hours: Tuesdays, 3 to 9 p.m.; Wednesdays to Sundays, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Note: The restaurant currently offers curbside pickup on request and delivery on select days. Check its Facebook page before you go.
Online: Facebook.com/budsbar
Laura Rysz is the features copy editor and calendar editor at The Times-Tribune and runs the Talk of the Times column, which focuses on local fundraisers and other events. She also writes Chef’s Table that profiles restaurants around the region. Additionally, Laura curates events online on AccessNEPA.com. Laura is involved in the special Mother’s Day edition and curates occasional features Marry Memories and Times Travelers. She is a graduate of Haddonfield Memorial High School, New Jersey, and earned an English professional writing degree with a minor in mass communications from King’s College, Wilkes-Barre. She also earned a certificate in Social Media Marketing from Rutgers Business School. Contact: lrysz@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5228.