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- Off-Campus Dining

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Penn State - Off-Campus Dining - College ProwlerCollege Prowler3.85

Off-Campus Dining

B+
Where does this grade come from?View all Off-Campus Dining rankingsReview this school to add your opinion

Comparable Schools' Off-Campus Dining Grades:

Quick Stats

24-Hour Dining Ye Old College Diner (the Diner)
Best Asian Golden Wok
Best Breakfast Waffle Shop
Best Healthy
  • Fresh Harvest Kafe
  • Green Bowl
Best Pizza College Pizza
Best Wings Wings Over Happy Valley
Best Place to Take Your Parents
  • Allen Street Grill
  • Golden Wok
  • Harrison’s Wine Grill
  • The Tavern Restaurant
Other Places to Check Out
  • Applebee's
  • Arby's
  • Brother's NY Style Pizza
  • Burger King
  • Cafe 201 West
  • Canyon Pizza
  • Damon's
  • Duffy's Boalsburg Tavern
  • Faccia Luna Pizzeria
  • McDonald's
  • McLanahan's Deli
  • Mount Nittany Inn
  • Penn State Sub Shop
  • Quiznos
  • Ruby Tuesday's
  • Subway
  • Taco Bell
  • Wendy's
  • Zola New World Bistro

Student Author OverviewWhat's This?

Considering the small town atmosphere of State College, there are many international eateries and plenty that offer American food. If you wake up early enough, the Waffle Shop and the area’s numerous family restaurants specialize in breakfast food (and, of course, some serve breakfast 24 hours a day, for those 3 a.m. pancake cravings). For lunch, a town staple is the Corner Room, which offers comfortable family dining. There are many diners around town—including Baby’s, known for its 1950s theme, and Ye Old College Diner, world famous for grilled stickies and horrible service. For fine dining, the area also has a number of upscale restaurants. The Tavern is great for impressing a date or enjoying a meal you can’t afford (when your parents come to visit, of course). The Green Bowl focuses on buffet-style healthy eating and is popular with vegetarians.

State College has a surprisingly large assortment of Chinese, Italian, and Indian restaurants. The Golden Wok and other downtown establishments offer a refreshing alternative to campus Chinese, while India Pavilion, Herwig’s, and Spats have food to suit international tastes. About a thousand pizza delivery places exist and thrive. These pizzerias offer many specials—you will try all of them within the first semester and probably become fiercely loyal when you find the one that best suits you. The area surrounding State College offers a similar range of dining options. All but the pickiest eaters will find something to like off campus, and, if you do some exploring, you may even discover a new favorite food.

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Penn State Student ReviewsWhat's This?

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Off-Campus Dining at Penn State

cas6030

'15

Music Teacher Education

4.2
A-

Restaurants at Penn State

Off Campus dining is quite wonderful at Penn State. I have Celiac's Disease (gluten allergy) and terrible acid reflux. Even with these two dietary restrictions, I still find it easy to eat healthily and properly at my university. There are always so many options and different restaurants downtown that I can make selections for meals.

Dec 27, 2011

Comment actions: Rate
Report as inappropriate/inaccurate

Off-Campus Dining at Penn State

ecr5068

'12

Communication Sciences and Disorders

5.0
A+

There Are a Ton of Restaurants Downtown

Many places take lion cash and offer discounts for using your student i.d. card.

Dec 16, 2011

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Report as inappropriate/inaccurate

Off-Campus Dining at Penn State

riveran

'15

Business Administration and Management

5.0
A+

So Many Options

There's a lot of options. If you're looking for fast food they have it, but also they have many ethnic and local restaurants so there's always many options

Dec 12, 2011

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Page 1 of 19

Student Survey Poll ResultsWhat's This?

Rate the off-campus restaurants on the following topics

How would you rate the diversity of off-campus dining options?

Grocery StoresWhat's This?

Giant
2222 E. College Ave.
(814) 861-2578

McLanahan's Downtown Market
116 S. Allen St.
(814) 861-3530

Wal-Mart Supercenter
1665 N. Atherton St.
(814) 237-8401

Wegman's Food Market
345 Lowe's Blvd.
(814) 278-9000

Restaurant ListingsWhat's This?

Allen Street Grill
Food: American, fine dining
100 W. College Ave.
(814) 231-4745
www.allenstreetgrill.com
Price: $15-$25
Cool Features: Upstairs from the Corner Room.

American Ale House & Grill
Food: American, fine dining
821 Cricklewood Dr.
(814) 237-9701
www.americanalehouse.com
Price: $15-$30
Cool Features: Piano entertainment on weekends.

Baby's Burgers and Shakes
Food: American diner
131 S. Garner St.
(814) 234-4776
www.babysburgers.com
Price: $5-$10
Cool Features: ‘50s style diner.

Brother's Italian Restaurant & Pizza
Food: Italian
204 E. College Ave.
(814) 234-9951
Price: $5-$10

Café 210 West
Food: American
210 W. College Ave.
(814) 237-3449
www.statecollege.com/mcc/Café210
Price: $5-$10
Cool Features: Outdoor patio seating, live entertainment on weekends.

Champs Sports Bar & Grill
Food: American
1611 N. Atherton St.
(814) 234-7700
www.champssportsgrill.com
Price: $8-$15
Cool Features: Seven areas for dining and lounging including a patio, loft, pool room, and garden room.

Chili's Grill & Bar
Food: Southwestern
137 S. Allen St.
(814) 234-5922
www.chilis.com
Price: $10-$20

College Pizza
Food: Pizza
128 Locust Ln.
(814) 231-2000
Price: $3-$8
Cool Features: Frequent specials; open late-night.

The Corner Room
Food: American
100 W. College Ave.
(814) 237-3051
Price: $5-$10
Cool Features: The most famous restaurant in State College, right across from campus.

D.P. Dough
Food: Italian, pizza
401 E. Beaver Ave.
(814) 308-0430
www.dpdough.com
Price: $5-$10
Cool Features: Features more than 50 types of calzones

The Deli Restaurant
Food: American
113 Hiester St.
(814) 237-5710
Price: $8-$15

Denny's
Food: American
1860 N. Atherton St.
(814) 238-1644
www.dennys.com
Price: $8-$15

Duffy's Tavern
Food: American
113 E. Main St., Boalsburg
(814) 466-6241
www.duffystavern.com
Price: $10-$20
Cool Features: Catering available, micro/craft beers.

Faccia Luna Pizzeria
Food: Italian
1229 S. Atherton St.
(814) 234-9000
www.faccialuna.com
Price: $8-$15

Fresh Harvest Kafe
Food: Salads, sandwiches, soups, wraps
421 E. Beaver Ave.
(814) 272-6400
www.fhkorders.com
Price: $4–$8

The Gingerbread Man
Food: American
130 Heister St.
(814) 237-0361
gmanstatecollege.com
Price: $8-$15
Cool Features: Nightly specials, outdoor dining, G-Man merchandise available.

Golden Wok
Food: Chinese
332 W. College Ave.
(814) 234-1102
Price: $5-$10
Cool Features: Probably the best Chinese food in town, in a finer restaurant atmosphere.

The Green Bowl
Food: Vietnamese
131 W. Beaver Ave.
(814) 238-0600
Price: $5-$10
Cool Features: Make your own stir-fry.

Gumby's Pizza
Food: Pizza
300 S. Pugh St.
(814) 234-4862
www.gumbyspizza.com
Price: $5-$10

Harrison’s Wine Grill
Food: Fine dining
1221 E. College Ave.
(814) 237-4422
www.harrisonsmenu.com
Price: $10–$25
Cool Features: Fresh, contemporary cuisine with more than 20 wines by the glass.

Herwig's
Food: Austrian
129 S. Fraser St.
(814) 238-0200
www.herwigsaustrianbistro.com
Price: $8-$15
Cool Features: Austrian home cooking!

Hi-Way Pizza
Food: Italian, pizza
1688 N. Atherton St.
(814) 237-0375
Price: $5-$10

Hooters
Food: Wings, grill
538 E. College Ave.
(814) 272-4668
www.hooters.com
Price: $8-$15

India Pavilion
Food: Indian
222 E. Calder Way
(814) 237-3400
Price: $10-$15
Cool Features: Indian lunch buffet, party hall available.

Inferno
Food: Panini, pizza
340 E. College Ave.
(814) 237-5718
www.dantesinc.com/inferno.htm
Price: $8–$10
Cool Features: Features New York-style brick-oven pizza

Irving's Bagels
Food: American, deli, brunch
110 E. College Ave.
(814) 231-0604
Price: $5-$10
Cool Features: Best bagels in town! Tori Amos ate here.

Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches
Food: American, subs
434 E. College Ave.
(814) 237-9300
www.jimmyjohns.com
Price: $5-$10
Cool Features: Open until 3 a.m.

Mario & Luigi's Restaurant
Food: Italian
1272 N. Atherton St.
(814) 234-4273
www.saucetoyou.com
Price: $10-$20
Cool Features: Great deserts! (Try the Chocolate Intemperance.)

Otto’s Pub and Brewery
Food: American, pub food
2105 N. Atherton St.
(814) 876-6886
www.ottospubandbrewery.com
Price: $10–$25
Cool Features: Features 10-12 locally brewed beers on tap at all times.

Outback Steakhouse
Food: American
1905 Waddle Rd.
(814) 861-7801
www.outback.com
Price: $15-$20

Panera Bread
Food: Bakery, Café
148 S. Allen St.
(814) 867-8883
www.panerabread.com
Price: $5-$10

Papa John's
Food: Pizza
2110 N. Atherton St.;
(814) 238-7272
www.papajohns.com
Price: $5-$10

Papa John's
Food: Pizza
1341 S. Atherton St.
(814) 234-7272
www.papajohns.com
Price: $5-$10

Red Lobster
Food: Seafood
1670 N. Atherton St.
(814) 867-3867
www.redlobster.com
Price: $10-$20

Rotelli Pizza and Pasta
Food: Italian
250 E. Caulder Way
(814) 238-8463
www.rotellipizzapasta.com
Price: $6–$14

Spats Café & Speakeasy
Food: Fine Cajun, Creole
142 E. College Ave.
(814) 238-7010
www.spatsCafé.com
Price: $15-$25
Cool Features: Only Cajun and Creole dining in town.

The Tavern Restaurant
Food: American, fine dining
220 E. College Ave.
(814) 238-6116
Price: $15-$25
Cool Features: Nice place to take your parents.

V&S Sandwiches
Food: American, fast food
128 E. College Ave.
(814) 861-8022
www.meatymadness.com
Price: $5-$10
Cool Features: Holds a “free cheesesteak day” every fall.

Waffle Shop
Food: American, breakfast
364 E. College Ave.
(814) 237-9741
Price: $8-$15

Wings Over Happy Valley
Food: Ribs, wings, wraps
536 Westerly Parkway
(814) 536 Westerly Parkway
www.wingsover.com
Price: $5–$10

Ye Old College Diner (the Diner)
Food: American
126 W. College Ave.
(814) 238-5590
www.thediner.statecollege.com
Price: $2-$7
Cool Features: Consider themselves a Penn State tradition.

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