Gilmore’s Restaurant

wow — Peter Gilmore of Gilmore’s Restaurant in West Chester, PA is a bastard: my 81yr old parents have a $ 200 gift card and this guy is stealing from the blind. This jerk conscoiusly CHOSE to close his restaurant cause he was «tired». Boo F-​ing hoo. Other restaurants have offered to accept their certificates at 50% of their face value — F. That. Rotten thievery, black and white, plain and simple. Hey Peter: Don’t steal people’s money cause you’re too tired to keep cooking anymore. Unbelievable… If you went bankrupt that’s one thing, but to openly make a CHOICE to close and not give refunds is unconscionable.

sad to see that its gone…

We usually write reviews based on our expectations. Ours were high for Gilmore’s because of the restaurant’s longstanding reputation, the several good reviews (and some not), and the owner chef being trained at the world renown Le Bec Fin in Philadelphia. I like that it’s a BYO. Gay street is a fun happening.
The restaurant was for us cozy and inviting. The menu selection was adequate. Most of the staff were friendly, Most of the portions were small. I love panna cotta, but their lobster version for $ 11 in an egg shell did not taste good. Nor did the sliced tuna appetizer with drizzled cream and thyme on top do it for me. When the waiter described lamb sous-​vide, I could not wait till it was served, but it was on the dry side. Picture a plate with piece of small hamburger size meat, a scoop of mash potatoes (quite good actually), and a few haricot verds. Appetizing in appearance at a diner perhaps!
Truth be known, a few days before my wife and I had a superb lunch at Le Bec Fin with a new French Laundry influence and at the same price as Gilmore’s for dinner, so that’s where expectations come in again. I write this review with good intentions. I am confident that Peter Gilmore can do better.

My 100^th Unilocal review! Was holding out, hoping that this centennial threshold would be of some significance. Mission accomplished!
We REALLY enjoyed Gilmore’s. (A name that is decidedly NOT Frenchy!) Having been on something of a vendetta to seek out great BYOBs in Philly as of late, this was a bit of a deviation in the decision to do a birthday dinner in West Chester, PA. (And what’s up with this college town, where the sidewalks roll up at Sundown? You make Newark, Delaware look like Madison Avenue in Manhattan!)
The restaurant is small and charming. When we return, we’ll know to request seating in the front room, as this time, we were in the smaller room that had three tables, and our ‘room-​mates,’ as they were, were a bit, shall we say… overstated! That, and the quasi-​jazz piped through the sound system, which we thought to be too loud until realizing that we were grateful for the distraction from our room-​mates!
But what about the food? The food was AMAZING. We split a salad — crisp and fresh. And each had a second course that we shared with each other — crab meat in a shrimp mousse, and this ridiculously wonderful lobster sausage — WOW! For her entrée, Carol had the short ribs — tender and moist, and I had the confit de canard — shredded duck in a lighter than air pastry! Off the charts wonderful! We split the famous ‘apple chocolate mousse dessert’ which was essentially a typical chocolate mousse contained in a perfectly formed candy apple — HOW on earth do they do that? The mousse was a little heavy to my liking, but the novelty of it all!
Dining here is not well suited for those obsessed with cheap eats! In fact, I was a little put off by one of the server’s (not OUR server) enthusiastic endorsement of the three course meal — «perfectly proportioned so you can enjoy all three courses.» — After I had heard that spiel at each table in our ‘room’ I could have made the sale myself — («We’ll throw in the frying pan and the entire 5 CD set!) That said, three courses was not too much food, especially since we split the salad.
In summary? Gilmore’s goes onto our short list of ‘take the foodie friends from out of town that you want to impress.» A little too pricey for an every day bistro, but the BYOB element makes it viable, and I thought the food was outstanding.

How anyone can rate this less than five stars boggles my mind. The food and service are fantastic. Best escargot I have had outside of France. It is slightly quirky in that there are only two seatings — 6:30p and 8:00p I believe. Parking can be a bit challenging. Bring lots of quarters in case you are lucky to find a spot on Gay Street. Otherwise there are a couple of reasonably priced garages nearby.

After reading many positive reviews and reading about how Peter Gilmore was a former chef at Le Bec Fin, we were very anxious to have dinner at his restaurant. Sorry to say, but we were greatly disappointed. It wasn’t that anything was particularly bad, it just wasn’t anything special.
The atmosphere was very nice and charming inside. The service had some great point and then some lows. For example, after the first and second courses, we were asked how everything was — –but not during the main course. So when we told the waiter that the hanger steak was kind of tough, he said «well that’s why we come by and ask when it is served» — — but they did not. Also, when coffee was served, I had to ask for sugar. They put a sugar bowl on the table with a variety of artificial sweetners neatly fanned out on a plate — but a bunch of the packets were already used and empty. Yuck. Again during dessert — –my sister asked for the sauce to be on the side. When it came all over the dish, she said that she asked for it on the side, the server said «that is not what I was told». Huh?
As for the food, it was just ok. The hanger steak was tough, and I’m just not sure that is a cut of beef I would put on a high end menu, more like pub food for me. The duck was okay, a little tough and they provide a butter knife with hardly any ridges so it was work to cut it. The seared ahi tuna appetizer was one of the least interesting ahi dishes I have ever had. Just bland. The only real upside to the entire meal was the dessert course. The butterscotch bread pudding was sinful. One of the most amazing desserts that we have ever seen was the chocolate mousse in a candy-​apple shell. But it wasn’t like a red candy apple from the county fair — –it was like finely painted china, paper thin, perfect shape and even had the leaf. I have no idea how they do that, but it was beautiful.
Anyhow, we were looking for a 5 star gourmet meal, like at one of Peter Kelly’s restaurants in the NY area. But this was a very average meal. Peter Gilmore came out and shook everyones hand, but never even asked us how our meal was. Huh? Needless to say, we won’t be returning.

Since the last time I have eaten here they have changed their menu so you now are recommended to choose one item from 3 different sections. I was excited about the idea and the menu looked good.
I am lowering my stars from 5 to 3 simply on the food. In the past, the food was excellent every single time with every single item. This time, it was simply just ok (my wife agreed).
I had the mushroom soup, pizza foie gras, and the hanger steak. Each one I felt needed something and the hanger steak was loaded with sauce. My wife had the truffle chicken and raved about the mac & cheese but we both felt the chicken actually needed more seasoning. The sauce should have done this but it fell short.
I still think Gilmore’s is very good but not like it was.

Have eaten here half a dozen times over the years since it opened. Gilmore is a refugee from George Perrier’s Le Bec Fin, at that time Philly’s best, or at least most highly rated, restaurant. He opened this restaurant after Perrier fired him. To be fair, being fired by a jackass like Perrier is probably a badge of honor. I’m guessing that Perrier is lucky someone hasn’t put a meat cleaver right through his head. Nevermind that it’s a shame the student became much like the professor, disposition-​wise.
The food here is generally very good. Not interested in paying $ 27 for tilapia, liver, or pork tenderloin, but there’s usually a couple of choices, like scallops or halibut, and the menu has expanded to small plates as the trend dictates. Took awhile, but now you have it. No doubt, from a technique standpoint, Gilmore is gifted (and certainly has the ego to go with it — Peter certainly sees himself as a psuedo-​celebrity chef). Nonetheless, I have never had a bad meal here, and when this place first opened I had a few very good meals here. But time has passed, and things do change. Service here is somewhat uneven since head waiter Rich left, and comments about the bathroom situation are spot-​on. Make sure you ask for the front dining room, as the back room is a clusterflub. However, the patio makes for a nice (weather permitting) setting, altho the «classic shot of the parking lot» metaphor (an old James Taylor song, folks) leaves a little to be desired. Give them credit for trying, and the garden is nice.
The irony of this place is that WC is considered some great dining destination by many people who live around WC, but I cannot count 3 places that serve excellent food. So Gilmore’s gets elevated to the top dog level. But they also are no longer as highly thought of in Philadelphia Magazine’s dining opinion, which is also spot-​on. Hey, live by the sword, die by the sword. It remains a legit nice place for WC, but this is a somewhat backhanded compliment because WC does NOT have true «dining destination» places. Considering the wealth of places to go in Center City, I’ll pass on Gilmore’s. That said, if your thing is going out in WC, bon appetit, as they say to you at your table here. Have some sense & skip Lemoncello’s (that snark is aimed at WC diners, not Lemoncello’s) this time & have food that’s crafted with real skill. That makes me wonder what Gilmore could do with veal parm! LOL1 It may not be as good as it once was, but it’s still better than pretty much everywhere else in town.

Always a wonderful evening of gourmet food crafted to perfection. I gave one star short of five stars because the menu could stand to have more frequent changes and some unique choices. Since I frequent fine dining establishments, I like to see options beyond the usual filet mignon standard. You must get the candy apple mousse dessert.

Except for the hostess (2 stars) who snubbed our son for wearing a hoodie in the hallway, it was a lovely evening. The sugar spun apple was wonderful as well as the rib eye.

Odd décor couldn’t dim how lovely this restaurant was. In a tiny West Chester townhouse, the food is imaginative, delicious, and reasonably priced. Its BYOB, so definitely do, and the pre fixe dinner may be one of the great restaurant steals of all time. LOVED it.

Everything about the Legendary Foie Gras dinner was perfect! Impeccable service, artistic virtuosity and technical excellence from beginning to end. Gilmore’s is a jewel!
The starter was a classic torchon (wrapped and poached) cf Foie crusted with hazelnuts and accompanied by a daikon citrus salad and a bit of molecular gastronomy in the form of passion fruit pearls. The hazelnuts seemed to replace some of the fattiness of the Foie while the salad added acid brightness and balance. The pearls were amazing and essential to complete the dish. I expected them to be solid but each tiny shell contained an effervescent drop of passion fruit that made the dish pop (literally)!
The second course was ravioli filled with red wine braised oxtail in a Foie Gras thyme sauce. Yum! I had to fight the urge to lick the plate. Luckily the sourdough rolls served the purpose. Even the choice of roll was carefully calculated. The bite of sourdough is another perfect foil for Foie Gras.
The middle course was my favorite. Pan seared halibut topped with seared Foie served over truffles lentils and sauce Perigourdine (of the Perigourd region… where the truffles are collected). Perfect harmony!
The next course featured squab two ways. The breast was cooked sous vide then seared. The leg was confit. Both were served with a red wine sauce over a Foie, shitake, cranberry bread pudding. Paired really well with the Pinot Noir we brought.
Dessert? No Foie! But a light crispy chocolate wafer with strawberry jelly, coconut cream, dark chocolate, and fresh strawberries. Light. Sweet finish.
Peter Gilmore is a genius and his staff provides exemplary service. I’m never disappointed and would urge anyone who loves fashion forward food rooted in classic French technique to make a reservation right away. Be prepared to pay for the quality and finesse of this truly wonderful dining experience but it’s worth the splurge!

Did you ever fall in love with a restaurant before your first bite of food? So, I did. Super reputation. Smart and classy front staff. A beautiful room. If you know how to set a table, I mean REALLY set a table, you get a lot of points in my book — they got a lot. Then they handed us the menu and, like most love at first sight, the luster began to wear off.
Well, if the staff was 5++, and the room was a 5+, and I gave the restaurant a 4, you can guess where I ranked the food. I WISH I had something to rave about and I swore off ranting for New Years, so I guess I will wrap it up with a HUGE thank you to one of my culinary compadres who picked up the tab and took me to Gilmore’s on an icey January weeknight.
Go early, go on a busier night and just go. Truly exquisite rooms and staff are such a treat.

Starting to get tired… Still well prepared dishes with good ingredients and attentive staff. But, the once uniquely focused and thoughtful menu doesn’t seem to be there any longer. Shrimp corn dogs are better saved for the street fair and a well prepared hanger steak or rack of lamb can be had at a number of other places along the Main Line without the 3 or 4 week advanced booking. The 8.30 seating is not always well executed.

We traveled an hour based on Gilmore’s reputation for French food & although we enjoyed a nice meal, it was not worth the trip. We won’t be back — we can get same/​better meals closer to home (in the suburbs). The food was good but not great: Rack of lamb & mushroom ravioli were flavorful; Escargot appetizer & lobster special ($ 39) were extremely rich which made consuming the entire serving too much of a good thing.
The hostess situation was a bit odd. A woman came out from the dining area with her keys tucked in her neckline and her car fob hanging over the front. She would come and go from the foyer to the back room, and return asking (the same 6 patrons) if anyone new had arrived. This had no bearing on my rating of the restaurant but is noted for being strange. It would have been classier to remain there and greet guests for the short time prior to the seating.
The servers worked together well, especially given the confined space of the dining room. They were attentive and we wanted for nothing.
Pro: BYOB
Con: A single toilet for entire restaurant located at the kitchen door entrance and on top of diners. Lines for bathroom involved constantly moving aside for staff and standing over people while they ate. The restaurant needs to create/​open upstairs bath to avoid awkward wait for patrons.
Tip: Parking in West Chester can be a challenge. Reco using $ 5 Lot on Prescott Alley and walk through the lot between Post Office & Doc McGrogan’s. That will bring you out a few steps away from Gilmore’s front door.

We went tonight for my in-​laws 50^th wedding anniversary, so admittedly we didn’t go here on our own free will. We were a party of 11 and the service was lousy. Considering the size of the place, it was OK that we were at 2 tables, but only half of the waitstaff dedicated to our meal seemed aware of it. One asked our big table if we were waiting for another person, and we said yes. Another waiter was taking orders at the smaller table and when we explained again to him that we were waiting for someone, he made some lame excuse and took their order anyway, so our food came out at different times.
One waiter took our coffee/​tea orders, repeated them incorrectly, and then, as he was walking away, spoke the order loudly (but correctly, at least) after disappearing around the corner.
When the bill came, it was placed in front of my brother in law who was definitely not picking up the tab, but that was only four our large table. My father-​in-​law picked it up saying, «Oh, this was so inexpensive» until he found out that they had put the small table on another bill that had inappropriately been brought to their table. Kinda uncomfortable.
They brought out an extra dessert and couldn’t keep track of who ordered what, so my mother-in-law’s dessert said «Happy Anniversary» while my father-​in law’s dessert was bare of any well wishes.
I’m a vegan, and having visited France a few times, I expected to find nothing to eat. (The French language doesn’t even have it’s own word for vegetarian, let alone vegan.) Still, I assumed that great chefs can improvise, which did happen, but not without a lot of rigamarole. I asked the young waiter if they could make me anything that was vegan. He told me he’d check, but that they have a policy (which is written on their menu, but not on their website) that special diets must request special meals at least 2 days in advance. He came back a few minutes later saying my request couldn’t be fulfilled and asked if I’d like anything else. Ummmm, anything else? Like what? Meat? Fish? Cream? Eggs? I said «No thank you» content to go out to dinner after dinner. As soon as I responded, an older, more experienced waitress jumped right in with a suggestion for a vegan chicken Wellington, which was delicious, but not amazing. Very weird.
CONCLUSION: This place is getting too much hype for rather simple food.

The hubby and I ate there last fall for the first time and were thrilled to find good, affordable French food in the area. We enjoyed all three of our courses but the Ebony and Ivory Risotto appetizer was outstanding. We like to switch plates half way through the course and that one was particularly hard to give up.
We were also impressed by the consistency of food quality throughout the meal. When even the dessert tastes as good as the appetizer and the entrée, the restaurant is a gem. Our servers were courteous and chatty without being overbearing. The only drawback was that at times our table was too small for all the plates and glasses (water and wine); it was particularly tricky during dessert when we had two dessert plates, a tea service and coffee on the table at the same time. This was a minor inconvenience though in comparison to the rest of our experience which was highly enjoyable.

There is a lot of praise floating around for Gilmore’s, and for Chef Peter Gilmore in particular, of a meal that was off-​the-​charts. I took my wife here for our anniversary last night, and we had a very good meal.
I started with the escargots appetizer (with hazelnuts, wrapped in puff pastry), which was an incredible experience. To say it was the best escargots I’ve had is the least praise I can give. It was quite a lot for my entrée to live up to.
Unfortunately, it was too much to live up to. I had Poulet Wellington, which was, I have to say, very good. Perhaps because of all that I’ve heard about Chef Gilmore and the «rock-​your-​world» experience I had with the escargots I was expecting a mind-​altering experience, but I did not get that. I got very good chicken, just nothing new.
My wife ordered the onglet. This neither was something that blew me away, but then, this was a pretty «safe» order, so I would not have expected a steak to be an enlightening experience.
All in all, this was a delicious meal, and I would love to go back. The restaurant scored very highly on the top of my chart for this category of food (off the top of my head, I can’t think of one like this I’ve enjoyed much more), but it is firmly on the chart.

Recently went on my 2^nd visit there.
Once again I was blown away… It was for a foie gras dinner.
5 Courses + Dessert for $ 45/​person. AND its BYOB.
You CANNOT find this quality/​price ratio in Philadelphia.
The Food was exceptional. Even though there were only 3 seatings that day, and the items were the same, the quality wasnt affected at all by it.
Started with a torchon, followed by a diver scallop, an incredible chestnut soup with foie gras custard, a subtle salad with foie vinaigrette, and a tender squab breast.
Ended with a key lime parfait with fresh slices of prune and a galette.
Like mentioned on other reviews, the place is small but it adds to the cozy atmosphere. The service is wonderful and very knowledgeable. Chef Peter Gilmore came out and asked us how our meal went and thanked us for coming to his establishment.
Unless you’re «somebody», you don’t get that kind of treatment in Philly.
Only con is the 40 min drive to West Chester, but oh so worth it!

Even though very small and you’re close to other tables, atmosphere is great. Reminiscent of charming Victorian parlor. Excellent selections for small BYOB. Head waiter, Richard is as good as they come, hostess is the owner and chef’s wife, very accomodating and friendly. Can’t wait to go back.
Kit & Debbie, WC