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Kennywood (KW) Discussion Thread


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I hope I didn't already ask for this, but we're going to have one night to eat in Pittsburgh in early July to kick off our three park trip. We're also considering leaving the KW the next day to grab something close, but we understand KW also has some unique food options. We may actually stay in the park for that and snack on a couple unique options.

 

Where do you guys suggest eating? We prefer a sit restaurant with cocktails or beers to enjoy a couple drinks and a place which isn't a total carb shit show, but we're open to suggestions. We don't necessarily prefer eating like total garbage at the beginning of our trips, but at the same time we don't want to miss out on anything special.

 

How strict is KW's beer policy? We plan on having a beer or two near the end of the evening.

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as to Potato Patch.. Boldy is wrong, they are great -- if you get a fresh batch

 

Potato Patch are laughably overrated

 

Two respected contributors on TPR giving me two different bits of advice. Help!! What do I do!

We'll probably do that weird thing of giving them try and forming an opinion based off that. Oh well.

Thanks for the rest of the advice, we are very much looking forward to our trip.

 

One more thing. It says "Sky Rocket" is closed TFA on the Kennywood website. Is this just a short maintenance thing, or is there something else going on that anyone knows of?

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I also had a pathetic offering of fries from the potato patch. Either they weren't fried twice or their oil wasn't hot enough because they weren't crispy and shockingly the cheese only made it worse. Sent em back. Seems like an off day for me since the majority is wild about them. If you're all about fries at theme parks go for it!

 

Black Widow and Jack Rabbit are the stand out attractions outside of Phantom in my book.

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Hey maybe I got them on a bad day. But there was four of us, we got four different orders, and we were all like "eww these fries is trifling". Soggy mush fries.

 

I say try em, but maybe get an order to split and if you like em go for another? I dunno. Have fun, I wish I was going to KW this year, hopefully Sky Rocket is running for you, its great in the rear.

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as to Potato Patch.. Boldy is wrong, they are great -- if you get a fresh batch

 

Potato Patch are laughably overrated

 

Two respected contributors on TPR giving me two different bits of advice. Help!! What do I do!

We'll probably do that weird thing of giving them try and forming an opinion based off that. Oh well.

Thanks for the rest of the advice, we are very much looking forward to our trip.

 

One more thing. It says "Sky Rocket" is closed TFA on the Kennywood website. Is this just a short maintenance thing, or is there something else going on that anyone knows of?

 

I believe the building that houses the Sky Rocket launch tech caught fire - Kennywood let me know on facebook they needed to send parts to Germany for emergency repair. It has been down for about a month now.

 

Not sure when it will be back up.

 

With the new clue released yesterday, I hope it's something like Soaring with Dragon (

) - that ride is 197 feet tall and has 3 launches....
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Where do you guys suggest eating? We prefer a sit restaurant with cocktails or beers to enjoy a couple drinks and a place which isn't a total carb shit show, but we're open to suggestions. We don't necessarily prefer eating like total garbage at the beginning of our trips, but at the same time we don't want to miss out on anything special.

 

Oh no. This is not an easy question. ONE place to eat in Pittsburgh. Just one. There are just so many awesome restaurants there...

 

If you're anywhere near downtown, I'd say Tenpenny (https://tenpennypgh.com); food and cocktails there are both amazing. Their dessert menu tends to be "whatever the chefs felt like making that day" but if they have any of their cobblers, forget how many carbs are involved and go for it. I've tried their peach and blackberry cobblers and never had one nearly as good anywhere else. Considering making a reservation though if you'll be there on a weekend; depending on the day it can get very busy.

 

If you want really good beer, Southern Tier has a brewpub on the north shore. Good food, too, but mostly of the burgers and sandwiches sort. There's also Sharp Edge Bistro for that; they have a massive beer selection, but most of it's bottles, not on tap.

 

Right down the road from Sharp Edge is Bakersfield, with really awesome tacos, and a looooong tequila and whiskey menu. There's also Condado for mexican; not nearly as fancy as Bakersfield but you can't go wrong there either; inexpensive build-your-own tacos with everything you could think of to put in or on them, and great margaritas.

 

I haven't tried it yet myself but The Commoner gastropub in the Omni hotel building is supposed to be pretty fantastic too.

 

If there's any particular sort of restaurant you're looking for, I can probably be more helpful!

 

 

...er, fair warning. Depending on when exactly you mean in early July, downtown Pittsburgh may be a very...interesting experience, though. Anthrocon is July 5-8, and we kind of take over quite a lot of the area, so depending on your opinions of such things...

 

Two respected contributors on TPR giving me two different bits of advice. Help!! What do I do!

We'll probably do that weird thing of giving them try and forming an opinion based off that. Oh well.

Thanks for the rest of the advice, we are very much looking forward to our trip.

 

The problem with the Potato Patch fries is...both of those contributors are right. In my experience the fries there seem to be very inconsistent. I've had fries there that were absolutely every bit as good as their reputation would suggest, and other days I've gotten a limp, soggy, lukewarm mess. I wish I knew some secret to getting good fries all the time, but I haven't figured that one out!

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Black Widow and Jack Rabbit are the stand out attractions outside of Phantom in my book.

 

they have a lot of "classics".. but I'd absolutely add to the "do not miss" (and yeah, BW is a great ride!. . forgot that one).

 

but yeah, if you're in Kennywood, absolutely do not skip:

 

Bayurn Kurve -- fairly rare, and a hell of a lot of fun

Kangaroo - last of it's kind in the USA, looks stupid as hell, and will have a line (fairly low capacity). . but the most dumb fun you'll have all day, trust me.

 

and if you have more time, then also line up for (as I noted before) Noah's Ark, Ghostwood Estates, Paratrooper, the Train (was wonderful, but not sure if it will be operating as they are converting to Thomas Town)... as well as Racer, Thunderbolt, and Garfield's Nightmare (oh, the smell.. the smell)

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The fries can be soggy and they are also my favorite fries on earth, so there you go. Sometimes they can be a little bit crispy -- and that's great -- but I love the sogginess. I've never heard anyone complain that a good baked potato was too soft and mushy inside.

 

Give me cheese, bacon, gravy, ketchup, or even light vinegar -- any way they serve 'em, I love 'em.

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Black Widow and Jack Rabbit are the stand out attractions outside of Phantom in my book.

 

they have a lot of "classics".. but I'd absolutely add to the "do not miss" (and yeah, BW is a great ride!. . forgot that one).

 

but yeah, if you're in Kennywood, absolutely do not skip:

 

Bayurn Kurve -- fairly rare, and a hell of a lot of fun

Kangaroo - last of it's kind in the USA, looks stupid as hell, and will have a line (fairly low capacity). . but the most dumb fun you'll have all day, trust me.

 

and if you have more time, then also line up for (as I noted before) Noah's Ark, Ghostwood Estates, Paratrooper, the Train (was wonderful, but not sure if it will be operating as they are converting to Thomas Town)... as well as Racer, Thunderbolt, and Garfield's Nightmare (oh, the smell.. the smell)

 

I am madly in love with Black Widow The prime example of a frisbee type ride. Everything else you mentioned is also excellent.

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Where do you guys suggest eating? We prefer a sit restaurant with cocktails or beers to enjoy a couple drinks and a place which isn't a total carb shit show, but we're open to suggestions. We don't necessarily prefer eating like total garbage at the beginning of our trips, but at the same time we don't want to miss out on anything special.

 

Oh no. This is not an easy question. ONE place to eat in Pittsburgh. Just one. There are just so many awesome restaurants there...

 

If you're anywhere near downtown, I'd say Tenpenny (https://tenpennypgh.com); food and cocktails there are both amazing. Their dessert menu tends to be "whatever the chefs felt like making that day" but if they have any of their cobblers, forget how many carbs are involved and go for it. I've tried their peach and blackberry cobblers and never had one nearly as good anywhere else. Considering making a reservation though if you'll be there on a weekend; depending on the day it can get very busy.

 

If you want really good beer, Southern Tier has a brewpub on the north shore. Good food, too, but mostly of the burgers and sandwiches sort. There's also Sharp Edge Bistro for that; they have a massive beer selection, but most of it's bottles, not on tap.

 

Right down the road from Sharp Edge is Bakersfield, with really awesome tacos, and a looooong tequila and whiskey menu. There's also Condado for mexican; not nearly as fancy as Bakersfield but you can't go wrong there either; inexpensive build-your-own tacos with everything you could think of to put in or on them, and great margaritas.

 

I haven't tried it yet myself but The Commoner gastropub in the Omni hotel building is supposed to be pretty fantastic too.

 

If there's any particular sort of restaurant you're looking for, I can probably be more helpful!

 

 

...er, fair warning. Depending on when exactly you mean in early July, downtown Pittsburgh may be a very...interesting experience, though. Anthrocon is July 5-8, and we kind of take over quite a lot of the area, so depending on your opinions of such things...

 

Two respected contributors on TPR giving me two different bits of advice. Help!! What do I do!

We'll probably do that weird thing of giving them try and forming an opinion based off that. Oh well.

Thanks for the rest of the advice, we are very much looking forward to our trip.

 

The problem with the Potato Patch fries is...both of those contributors are right. In my experience the fries there seem to be very inconsistent. I've had fries there that were absolutely every bit as good as their reputation would suggest, and other days I've gotten a limp, soggy, lukewarm mess. I wish I knew some secret to getting good fries all the time, but I haven't figured that one out!

 

I really appreciate all of the suggestions! Bakersfield looks right up our alley.

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I don't know if KW's changed their beer garden policy from 3 years ago when we were there, but the beer garden closes pretty early. We missed the cutoff of beer sales by about 5 minutes and it was still daylight. Best to ask when you pass by the beer garden what time the serve till.

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^Thanks for the heads up. It will be pretty early in our trip, so a beer or two mid day will be just fine. Emily doesn't even need to drink to enjoy this hobby, anymore... I probably make it sound like I drink a lot more than I do on this site, since I joke about it a lot. Park days are cheat days, at least in the late afternoons through the evenings. The older we get it seems like we're drinking less at parks. I can never really drink as much as anyone else anyway, since it only takes a few beers in a couple hours and I'm bombed... I like it, since it's cheap and my stomach lets me know my alcohol limit before I really overdo it.

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I second Bakersfield, even anything in that immediate area really, you can't go wrong. Sienna Mercato is also next door with their retractable roof rooftop beer garden, and Nicky's Thai Kitchen is amazing as well if that's your thing. There are a lot of great choices right there.

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So, ACE Western PA just posted this to twitter:

 

@ACEWesternPA

 

Sunday we got a small package containing a fortune cookie. Inside it was this message. What does it mean?

 

Df_AINiWAAEhQkh.jpg

 

Df_AINbXUAEK4Ii.jpg

 

I think it has to be related to Kennywood.

 

Here is the wording used on the initial facebook post announcing Project 412:

 

"Something big is coming to Kennywood in 2019!"

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So, ACE Western PA just posted this to twitter:

 

@ACEWesternPA

 

Sunday we got a small package containing a fortune cookie. Inside it was this message. What does it mean?

 

Df_AINiWAAEhQkh.jpg

 

Df_AINbXUAEK4Ii.jpg

 

I think it has to be related to Kennywood.

 

Here is the wording used on the initial facebook post announcing Project 412:

 

"Something big is coming to Kennywood in 2019!"

 

The Soaring with Dragon rumor sounded pretty good. Upon first glance, those numbers don't really seem to align well with that rumor.

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Everyone here will try to tell you otherwise, but I'm convinced the majority of TPR just does not know what good French fries are.

 

Agreed. I've gotten them on two different days/occasions and didn't understand the love for them both times.

 

++Insert 'price is right' sad trombone sound here++

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So, ACE Western PA just posted this to twitter:

 

@ACEWesternPA

 

Sunday we got a small package containing a fortune cookie. Inside it was this message. What does it mean?

 

Df_AINiWAAEhQkh.jpg

 

Df_AINbXUAEK4Ii.jpg

 

I think it has to be related to Kennywood.

 

Here is the wording used on the initial facebook post announcing Project 412:

 

"Something big is coming to Kennywood in 2019!"

3, 14, 21, and 33 are all CoasterCons that Kennywood has hosted. Isn't it kind of odd that 44 is the next Con to have it's host park announced, and that it was delivered during CoasterCon?

 

My theory is that is that CoasterCon 44 will be hosted in part by Kennywood.

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I know the quality of good fries by my preference in taste and texture alone. Aside from I don't care! I'm going to try them for the reputation and nostalgia. If they suck I'll throw them away. Hopefully I get a good batch.

 

I know I asked about food in the wide Pittsburgh area, but is there anywhere close to the park to grab some decent local/exclusive dinner?

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I know the quality of good fries by my preference in taste and texture alone. Aside from I don't care! I'm going to try them for the reputation and nostalgia. If they suck I'll throw them away. Hopefully I get a good batch.

 

I know I asked about food in the wide Pittsburgh area, but is there anywhere close to the park to grab some decent local/exclusive dinner?

 

just from an "outsider" perspective.. .the park isn't in a great area of town.

 

When we were there a couple of years ago, the two evening meals we had while staying on the Waterfront (near the park.. that area was trying to "revitalize" and is a shopping complex). . . were at IHOP, and TGI Fridays.

 

really.. those were the "best" options we could find. . . tho we liked the food we had inside the park too. . for sitdown meals outside the park, that's where we ended up.

 

maybe that's changed since my visit.

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I'm not sure if you're only interested in Mom & Pop restaurants, but if you don't mind chains you definitely should hit up Primanti's.

 

There's one approximately 10 minutes away from the park, in a shopping center called The Waterfront. Primanti's is a Pittsburgh institution, so definitely give it a try.

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