Sunday, May 13, 2007

Quick Review of Cosimo in Malvern, PA

Finally made it over to Cosimo in Frazer, PA (or is it Malvern?) to check out what sounded to be a promising setup. Plenty of great wine from around the world available in 3 different serving sizes and with manageable prices. But, the surprise here is that while fans of the grape will certainly flock here, we lovers of the grain can also get a good drink to go with the decent food menu that these folks are putting together. Anthony Mastroianni (owner & GM), Jason Whiteside (wine director), and the staff provided us with a great time when we visited. Jason, especially, went to great lengths to make us feel welcome, explain the high-tech wine preservation system, and give us the back story on how Cosimo came to be. Even a bit of history about a former Cosimo, the namesake for the restaurant...that is a 16th century Duke of Tuscany. The wine preservation system that they use allows them to keep over 40 wines on tap and, further, allows them to dispense 1.5 ounce serving sizes of hard-to-find, expensive wines. Oh, wait, this is about beer, right? Well, indeed as I mentioned above, beer fans can hang here too. Our draft choices on this particular evening were Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA, Allagash White, Delirium Tremens, and Victory Storm King Stout. Also spied were bottles of Fuller's London Porter and Paulaner Hefeweizen. The Delirium went perfect with my half-chicken dinner and the Storm King went perfectly with the chocolate dessert. I wasn't in note-taking mode so more comprehensive notes will have to wait until the next visit. You'll find a capable staff serving solid food in a ample but comfy atmosphere and nice bar area conducive to hanging out. Suffice to say it's worth checking it out for yourself.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

My wife and I just had dinner at Cosimo last night. FANTASTIC!!!

The meal and service were spectacular. We have never had such a wonderful meal in this area.

This is obviously still a well kept secret. We could not get over the cleanliness throughout. Even the restrooms were spotless.

We'll make it a regular stop. These Johnson and Whales trained Chefs obviously know food and flavors. Their choices of flavors and raw products must be among the finest.