Lenten Features at The Franklin Inn

If you are observing Lent, get ready to enjoy. The Franklin Inn will be offering delicious seafood and vegetarian special entree features over the next several weekends.

If going "meatless" is a life-style for you. You'll find many tasty meatless options on our regular menu too.

Check our website for the weekend specials and to see some of the daily menu options. Also, feel free to ask your server for suggestions.

As always, we'd love to know which special features are your favorites and your suggestions for future entrees. Email us at wendy@franklininn.net.

Thank you for being our customer.

Fresh and Budget Friendly Meals at the Inn

If your New Year's Resolution is to save a few dollars and eat better, the Franklin Inn is the best value for your buck. Delicious homemade food made for you with the best ingredients. Two could easily eat for $20 or less.

Here are delicious dinners under $10.
Visit our website for a full menu with descriptions.

Meals under $10

• Ground Beef Enchiladas Dinner (includes two sides!)
• Shredded beef Enchiladas Dinner (includes two sides!)
• Chicken Enchiladas Dinner (includes two sides!)
• Cheese Enchiladas Dinner (includes two sides!)
• Ground beef Burrito Dinner (includes two sides!)
• Vegetarian Burrito Dinner (includes two sides!)
• Grilled Chicken Ceasar Salad
• Southwest Char-grilled Chicken Salad
• Grilled Chicken Southwest Wrap with french fries
• Dinner Taco salad - ground beef or chicken (includes two sides!)

Meals under $8

• Hard or Soft Tacos Chicken or ground beef (includes two sides!)
• Black bean & feta cheese Burrito Dinner (includes two sides!)
• Pinto bean & cheese Burrito Dinner (includes two sides!)
• Hand-breaded Fish Sandwich with fries
• Steak Hoagie with french fries
• Char-Grilled 1/2 Pound Burger (El Gordo) or Mexican Burger with Fries
• Grilled Chicken Sandwich with fries
• Quesadilla

Great for Sharing:

• Fajitas
• Nachos Grandes
  
• Sopaipillas

Plus...if you dine-in at the restaurant, we'll even give your table a complimentary basket of our popular chips and salsa made in-house to munch on while you wait for your entree to arrive.

Check out our appetizers only 8.95-3.95

Try our delicious homemade chili and soups too.

Our lunches are an even better value. Click here to check it out. Don't go thru the fast food window. Eat better at the Inn.

Feliz Janucá - Happy Hanukkah

http://phoenix.about.com/library/blclipartxmas03.htm

In Mexico, Hanukkah is written Januca and is mostly celebrated the same as every where else with some variations in the food and games. Food for the Festival of Lights is often "buñuelos" which are fried fritters drenched in sugar syrup and also balls of corn dough filled with marmalade. The game of "dreidel" is called "toma todo" and the dreidel top is a "pirinola". A Mexican "piñata" in the shape of the dreidel is also popular.
Happy Januca to our patrons starting their celebration tomorrow night!
Check last year's post for more info on Januca in Mexico.

Christmas Collection for Jake & His Unit in Iraq

If you are a regular diner at the Franklin Inn, your server may often be Kim Woods. Kim is the proud mother of five children who have also worked at the Franklin Inn at some point over the years. Her children might have greeted you and seated you, prepped or cooked your meal, served you, or washed your dishes. The faces of the Woods girls, Jenny and LeeAnn, might be familiar to you, but behind the scenes contributing to your delicious meal on any given night, could have been one of her sons, Jake.

Jake Woods is currently serving us in Wajihia, Iraq with the 2nd Battalion 3rd Infantry Division Headquarters Company. Franklin Inn patrons (I knew we had the best customers!) have spontaneously offered items to Kim for the weekly care packages she sends overseas. Hot sauce from the Franklin Inn has traveled to Iraq in one of these boxes! It got me to thinking that more of the Inn's patrons might like the opportunity to show support of our Service Men and Women and their families in a personal and tangible way. We could all pitch in and send a huge Christmas Care Package to show Jake and his Unit how much we appreciate them. When I discussed this idea with her to make sure it would be okay to make you all aware of Jake's service, Kim said, "Whatever you can do would be appreciated."

I asked Kim to give me some specific ideas which are below, but she says "Whatever he gets in a package is appreciated. Most of it - I think - is just the thrill of getting a package at all. It helps him to know that we haven't forgotten him and we appreciate the sacrifice he's made. It's tough to not be home for Christmas."

Some things that the soldiers like to receive are:

• Drink mixes in the individual drink bottle packages.
• Any snack food like peanuts, pistachios, chips (lunch size), cereal bars, pop tarts, rice krispie treats, chocolate pudding, sandwich crackers etc. Dry cereal is a big hit!
• Quick meals like cup-a-soup and Easy Mac are great.
• DVD's are appreciated - new or used.

Kim says that any size is fine - "warehouse club size" to "grocery store size."

If you would like to contribute to a Christmas Care Package for Jake and his Unit, please bring your items to the Franklin Inn by December 15th to ensure the items make it to Iraq by Christmas. Due to the limited space at the Inn, we can't place a visible collection box in the dining room, so please give your donation to any of the Inn staff. We'll have a designated spot in John's office. If your donation is large or over sized or if you have further questions about a particular item's viability, please email Kim Woods directly.

Thank you in advance for your gift to our troops and particularly Jake Woods. The Woods Family and Jake's Franklin Inn Family appreciate your support. May your contribution be as much of a blessing to you as it will be for our loved ones in Iraq.

Dia de los Muertos "Day of the Dead"

We'll be celebrating the Day of the Dead at the Franklin Inn this Saturday, October 31st. I must admit that the holiday seemed kinda creepy to me until I learned that for most its a day to remember and honor the memory of their loved ones. Once I got past the morbid connotation skulls and skeletons hold for me, the artwork is quite fascinating and beautiful.

Here are a few links to read about this color and festive holiday:

Teacher Pack of Information about this holiday

Recipes

Crafts

History

Vote for Your Favs in Pittsburgh City Paper Poll

There's another Best of Poll being taken. This time by Pittsburgh City Paper. Check it out and vote for your favorite Mexican Restaurant. Help us not be the best kept secret in the North Hills. We'd like the rest of the city to know that we have great restaurants in the 'burbs too. Ask your friends to vote too. Thanks so much.

http://www.pittsburghcitypaper.ws/gyrobase/index

Mexican Independence Day Celebration

Similar to our 4th of July, Independence day is celebrated in Mexico on Sept. 15th and 16th. They call it the Fiestas Patrias (Patria means Country). It is their biggest national holiday...more popular than Cinco de Mayo!

Join us
September 14- 19
for a week
long celebration
of the “real”
Mexican
Independence
Day.

• Food & Drink Features
• Tequila Tasting on Tuesday, Sept. 15
• Win Prizes
• And other Surprises

InnCredible Design T-shirt Contest Winner!!!

Congratulations to Jamie McCullough

T-shirt Contest Finalists...

Thank you so much to all who took the time to enter the Inncredible T-Shirt Design Contest. We appreciate your efforts. Wow. We have super-talented patrons at the Franklin Inn! It was so hard to narrow it down. But, based on input from our customers, employees and the t-shirt printer--here are the four finalists. Now, it is your turn. You have a tough decision to make with these amazing designs. Come on into the Franklin Inn and cast your vote. All voters will be entered to win one of the new t-shirts. Only one vote allowed per visit. Voting ends August 3rd.

Now...here are the finalists:

Design by Amy Peters. If this design wins, we will probably use
bright solid colored t-shirts in various colors.

By Jamie McCullough
If this design wins we will move the artwork up a bit
for those who like to tuck in their t-shirts.

By Christian Ghirardi
If this design wins, the t-shirt will be white.

By Matt Lorenz
If this t-shirt wins there are two options
this one and a dark shirt with the graphics in white.

More t-shirt designs

Here's some of the designs dropped off to the restaurant. If you don't see your design here, email me to make sure I received it. The scans aren't too great, but they'll give you the main idea. My scanner isn't working and I had to use John's which has a smaller window and washes out the colors. I've been getting some feedback regarding your favs. Please keep your comments coming.

Christopher Simonic

Front of shirt

Back of Shirt


Brendon Beatty





Jillian Scott & Lucas Ashby

Unknown....if this is yours...let me know

The colors are all wrong and it is completely circular...Maddie Pope



Morgan Halyama



Colors are brighter and it is completely circular...Maddie Nellis.

Karyn Pappert


Dale Pappert 1 of 2

Dale Pappert 2 of 2