Restaurant Review: Abington's 'Timber'

The space that most longtime residents remember as Abington's Inn Flight restaurant, which had a lengthy run, is now home to the Timber Wood Fired Grill, directly opposite Abington Memorial Hospital on Old York Road.

Timber boasts a moderately large dining room divided into several varied smaller dining areas, plus a cozy bar. The seating is comfortable, and the noise level low. It has ample off-street parking around two sides of the building.

We gave it a try with part of our extended family—three generations, including our daughter and two grandchildren. We were pleased to learn that there is a children's menu.

But before I get to what the youngsters in our party of five had, I must tell you that our starter, the “Original Flatbread” ($12), was perfect for sharing, served precut into 10 squares, and wonderfully delicious. It is similar to a pizza, only shaped in a long rectangle. The dough is quite thin and slightly burnt to a black crisp around the edges, and layered with an interesting mix of great toppings: wild mushroom, artichoke hearts, roasted tomato, mozzarella and marinara sauce, topped with a fresh baby arugula salad dressed with balsamic vinaigrette, and drizzled overall with a sweet balsamic reduction. This so-called flatbread was so outstanding that I would consider a return visit just to snack on one with drinks and nothing else.

I would also give good marks to my entree choice, the apricot chicken ($19), though it’s a little pricy for a chicken dish. It was a half of a large chicken tastily marinated and basted on a rotisserie with an apricot glaze, and served with a cruet of the drippings, plus a side choice. I picked sautéed mushrooms. Everything was savory, tender and flavorful.

Much lower marks went to the shrimp cobb salads ($14) my LDC (Lovely Dining Companion) and daughter both ordered. They featured bib lettuce, shrimp, bacon, tomato, egg, avocado and blue cheese dressed with a sherry-lime vinaigrette. They both judged their salads “so-so.”  They complained that while the salads looked “pretty,” the shrimp were small, as was the overall portion for an entree size salad, leaving them hungry. (On the contrary, my apricot chicken plate was plain and homely looking, but the chicken and the mushrooms were delicious.)

Timber also serves up grilled steaks, ribs and chops, and seafood such as scallops, crab cakes and a daily fish selection.

As to our grandkids' main course—a bowl of plain spaghetti in butter—it was oily and had an odd “vinegary” taste, according to our granddaughter; our grandson's platter of chicken fingers was fair, with excellent fries fresh cut daily.

Our server, Adrienne, who had served me well at the Village Tavern, her previous employer, is a first-rate server with a great, friendly personality.

It was unlikely that it was her fault that our shared dessert, strawberry crème brulee ($7), took a long time to arrive, but it was still a sweet conclusion to our meal.

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Overall rating:  mm 1/2   (out of 5 m’s) Good service, but uneven food, and somewhat pricey.

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Timber Wood Fired Grill

Location: 1301 Old York Road, Abington

Phone: 215-884-7932

Cuisine: American grill

Hours: Lunch, Monday through Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.; brunch, Sundays, 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.; dinner, Monday through Thursday, 4 to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 4 to 11 p.m.; Sunday, 3 to 9 p.m.

Dinner prices: Appetizers, soups, salads, $7 to $16; entrées, $14 to $26; burgers and sandwiches, $11 to $15

Ambiance: Casual, comfortable, partitioned dining room

Reservations: Suggested on weekends

Credit cards: All major accepted

Alcoholic beverages: Small full-service bar, beer, wine           

Special features: Also serving lunch and Sunday brunch

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To contact Mitch Davis, email MdavisMainCourse@aol.com.