photo by Cody Aldrich
Craftsman Row Saloon, at 112 S. 8th Street, announces the return of their Halloween pop-up experience. This year Philadelphia’s most famous holiday theme pop-up restaurant will go over the top for a new Tim Burton inspired experience that will have you saying Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetle.. and Friends! This year the theme is Nightmare Before Christmas – and Friends. Building off the popularity of the first year and inspired by the movie, characters such as Jack Skellington, Sally and the Boogie Man are joined by friends from Beetlejuice and the series Wednesday. Come ready for 2,000 more Halloween Lights, 100s more skull and bones, 500 more feet of cobwebs, 50 more floating ghouls plus nods to your favorite characters. Booths are even adorned in Beetlejuice fashion and several skeleton walls and spooky candles frame the space.
With the Halloween take-over in the dining room comes with two new themed milkshakes that are over-the-top and feature elaborate decorations, giant cookies and more. On the Halloween menu of food additions look for pumpkin mac n cheese, witches fingers, Jack-O’-Lantern Guacamole and Chips, Jack’s Baked Mac and Cheese, Sally’s Quesadillas, Mummy Stromboli, Vampire Burger and more. From the bar, look for a special menu of potions and cocktails including a Blood Bag, Charman Marg, Pumpkin King Marg, Pinata Full of Spiders Mojito, Skellington Sangria and a special drink paying nod to Beetlejuice himself. Get your Spook on with Craftsman Row through October 31st, when the two owners will quickly begin work on their award-winning Christmas pop-up that debuts in early November.
With the new transformed space comes new food and drinks and two new themed milkshakes. In time for all the buzz, a Beetlejuice cocktail will be sure to get you in the spirit. Take a break from pumpkin carving and get inspired for your costume and holiday cocktails All your senses during this spooky season will be immersed and Craftsman Row will once again become a Halloween destination serving up the best haunted feels and delightful and frightfully delicious offerings.
The haunted baked mac and cheese is back along with some fantastic dishes that are sure to become guest favorites. From the bar, look for a special menu of potions and cocktails including a candy corn martini and many cocktails with keepsake festive glasses. Seasonal beers will be rotating on draft. For the brother-sister duo, George Tsiouris and Vasiliki Tsiouris Balis, Halloween is a time they can tap into the multitude of creativity the holiday provides.
“We are huge fans of Halloween and Tim Burton – and with the release of Beetlejuice this week we really went all out adding some friends to our normal Nightmare Before Christmas theme,” said George. “We love the movies and wanted to celebrate our favorite elements through decorations, food and drink – all the elements for a truly unique and whimsical experience. Tantalizing all the senses for Halloween, Craftsman Row Saloon, is bringing a new Nightmare before Christmas Pop-Up Experience. We are nationally known for over the top floor-to-ceiling décor and delicious and creative offerings of burgers, drinks and milkshakes for the Christmas season, and now we wanted to present something for every Halloween enthusiast.”
For your dining enjoyment, look for two over-the-top theme milkshakes this time, including:
This is Halloween $18
local chocolate ice cream with blended sugar cookie, house-made Jack cookies, black and white lollipop, black and white sprinkles
Scary Movie Night $19.50
local cookie dough ice cream, chocolate and caramel sauce, popcorn, assorted fun size chocolate bars, body part candy, white chocolate skull, chocolate cookie crumble, keepsake popcorn box
From the kitchen, find the full menu of comfort food favorites, plus Halloween additions, like:
Butternut Squash and Pumpkin Soup $10
maple syrup, roasted pumpkin seeds
Harvest Salad $14
spring mix, pears, tomato, goat cheese, grapes, candied pecans, rosemary-honey vinaigrette
Witches Fingers $9
garlic bread, parmesan cheese, parsley, olives, cheese sauce
Jack’s Baked Mac and Cheese $15
4-cheese blend, pumpkin, maple, toasted breadcrumbs
Jack-O’-Lantern Guacamole and chips $17
Carved Pumpkin, Guacamole, Tortilla Chips, Cheese sauce.
Sally’s Quesadilla $16
grilled chicken, jalapeño, sautéed onion, cheddar cheese, tortilla, olive spider, sour cream web, black salt dust
Mummy Stromboli $16
pepperoni, mozzarella cheese, marinara
Brain and Blood Burger $18
2 smashed patties, american cheese, potato mash brain, “bloody” beet gravy, pea and onion sofrito
Vampire burger $18
2 smashed patties, american cheese, candied bacon, pumpkin aioli, (?pumpkin seed topping), cheese fangs and olive eyes, tortilla ears, martin’s potato roll
Ms Argentina’s Chicken Sandwich $16
crispy doritos crusted chicken breast,american cheese, green goddess sauce
Spooketti and Meatballs $16
marinara, italian seasoned meatballs, parmesan and mozzarella cheeses, olive eyes
All of the above will be available on the full larger menu of comfort food staples with all of Craftsman Row Saloon’s other dishes that include Dorito coated mozzarella sticks, award-winning burgers, and fiery buffalo mac-n-cheese. As the perfect pairing with the shakes, for all the sweet tooths, George recommends also trying Donut Fried Chicken with glazed, bacon, american, maple syrup, and the Mac Daddy Burger with smashed patties that are smothered and dripping with mac and cheese on a martin’s potato roll.
For spooky season drinks and potions, look for these additions to the menu:
Blood Bag
rum, grenadine, lemon, apple cider, cranberry
Charman Margarita
tequila, edible charcoal, jalapeño, ginger, lime, salt rim, licorice wheel
Pumpkin King Margarita
tequila, spiced pumpkin, ginger, lemon
Piñata Full of Spiders Mojito
rum, blackberries, lime, club, candy spider
Pumpkin Spice Espresso Martini
vodka, kahlua, espresso, pumpkin sugar and black salt rim
Delores’s Poison
gin, beetroot, lemon
Skellington Sangria
red wine, spruced rum, pear, orange, pumpkin spice
Beetle Juice
tequila, sour apple, sage, lime
Zagnutt
skrewball peanut butter whiskey, kahlua, chocolate, cream, coconut festive rim
Truth Serum Spritz
aperol-bay leaf syringe, sparkling
Venom Collins
vodka, strawberry, rhubarb, lime, club soda
Trick or Trick Martini
candy corn infused vodka, butter shots, lemon, whipped cream
Caramel Apple Old Fashioned
crown apple, cider, caramel, angostura, smoked cinnamon stick
Nevermore Lab Class SHOTS
Vodka with melon and pineapple or Tequila with lime and edible purple glitter
Get your Spook on with Craftsman Row through October 31st. Reservations are now available on Opentable. Wednesday 4:00pm to 11:00pm, Thursday 4:00pm to 11:00pm, Friday 4:00pm to 11:00pm, Saturday 12:00pm to 11:00pm, and Sunday 12:00pm to 9:00pm. Follow @craftsmanrowsaloon on social to share the #spookyszn fun.
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