When Keith Critchley and JT O\u2019Brien were looking to buy a restaurant last year, they toured the dining room and kitchen of Georgio\u2019s in downtown Downingtown, which Georgio Malle was selling after more than 30 years.<\/p>\n
\u201cKeith and I went to lunch and I said, \u2018There\u2019s no way we\u2019re buying this for what he wants. It\u2019s not that big,\u2019\u201d O\u2019Brien said. They went back to negotiate, he said, Malle told them flatly, \u201cMy price is my price.\u201d<\/p>\n
It quickly became evident that Critchley and O\u2019Brien had not seen the upstairs of the rambling building on Lancaster Avenue. \u201cWhen I saw the upstairs, I thought, \u2018Now<\/i> I can start thinking of different ideas and concepts that we can do,\u2019\u201d O\u2019Brien said. <\/p>\n
They seem to be throwing everything at the Borough, which began opening in phases in recent weeks. There is a 35-seat sports bar\/restaurant with 40 TVs, 20 taps, and a full cocktail menu on the ground floor, connected to a large patio through garage doors. Upstairs, there\u2019s a 20-seat bar, a six-seat sushi bar, and a venue hosting live music. Programming such as open-mic nights, karaoke, trivia nights, and comedy shows will ramp up in November. Big brunches \u2014 think mimosa towers and full entertainment \u2014 will start after Thanksgiving.<\/p>\n
Critchley and O\u2019Brien have retained pizzaiolo Ptah Akai to set up the pizza kitchen. <\/p>\n
Five years ago during the pandemic, the Swarthmore-born Akai noticed that the successful restaurants were offering pizza \u2014 \u201cand not because they were making great pizza.\u201d<\/p>\n
Akai began teaching himself, using YouTube and setting up an oven in his backyard. By day, Akai, 33, works as an installer for Toast, the restaurant point-of-sale company. He quickly became popular among his neighbors. \u201cIt brings people together,\u201d he said. \u201cYou can go anywhere in the world and make pizza and probably make a friend.\u201d <\/p>\n
A lifelong vegan, Akai wanted to make pizza he could eat himself, and the challenge of making tasty nondairy pizza became motivation. When he learned that Critchley and O\u2019Brien were opening, he offered to get them started. (Georgio\u2019s had a fairly extensive pizza kitchen, including a large mixer.) <\/p>\n
Akai\u2019s pies are beautifully puffy-crusted, sort of neo-Neapolitan, with zero flop and a light char. The sliced garlic gave a subtle roast to a cheeseless tomato pie that he made for me off the menu. His Forager ($23), with basil pesto and three kinds of mushrooms, was balanced and did not sink under the mozzarella. There\u2019s also a plain cheese ($18), pepperoni ($21), and a margherita ($19).<\/p>\n
As they did with the other restaurant amenities, Critchley and O\u2019Brien created a something-for-everyone menu, served anywhere in the space. There are pork belly burnt ends ($18); Bavarian pretzel ($13); meat-and-cheese board ($32); crispy chicken sandwich ($16) with a sesame soy glaze and kimchi on a glazed doughnut bun; and a lamb gyro ($19) with sumac red onion and tzatziki on a house-made pita. Rolls make up the sushi menu, and the few entrees include miso striped bass ($34), seared scallops ($36), cauliflower steak ($25), and steak frites ($36). <\/p>\n