Bridgewater Gets A Dose Of Whiz
March 11, 2020
By KATHLEEN SHAW
Daily News-Record 3/11/20
BRIDGEWATER — Urgie’s Cheesesteaks’ Bridgewater location celebrated its ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday afternoon to commemorate more whiz in the Valley.
Formerly Jalapeno Southwest Grill, the location in Generations Park is an expansion of the Urgie’s in Harrisonburg both in size and menu. All classic entree items such as the hattrick and pierogies remain on the menu, but joining the traditional Philadelphia-inspired flavors are stuffed peppers, burgers and chicken wings — and co- owner Tommy Urglavitch said these staples are a step above the ordinary American fare.
“One thing that was a little bit unique down here, compared to ... where we come from, was a 6- ounce burger. That’s what a lot of your typical restaurants use. We use an 8- ounce, halfpound Angus, 80- 20 fresh meat cut, right off the bat,” Urglavitch said. “We use the same seasoning that we use on our cheesesteaks. … We really wanted to make sure that when we were doing our burgers, we were doing it correctly.”
Served on a butter potato roll with a side of garlic fries, current burger toppings include homemade pimento cheese and fried green tomato, cherry peppers and sauteed onions or classic with bacon, cheese, tomato and mashed between two grilled cheese sandwiches. Chicken wings weigh in at 1-pound per order with a coat of Griffin’s Wing Sauce and also come with fries.
Fit with a bubble hockey table, featuring the Pittsburgh Penguins playing against the Philadelphia Flyers, the new space is a step away from the college, latenight bar scene in Harrisonburg and moving toward an any-timeof- day, casual dining space. With various hanging TVs to watch hockey, baseball, football or basketball games, Urgie’s is still the same sports- driven and cheesesteak- fueled business from Water Street, but with a broader concept and big window layout next to the ice rink.
According to Urglavitch, the new location has been, whereas downtown , so that also allows us to busy since opening on Feb. 11, and customer feedback on the need for more breakfast options in the area may result in an early morning buffet-style offering in the future.
“This is also turning out to be more of a classical restaurant style than a bar, whereas downtown is more of a neighborhood bar, so that also allows us to keep the menu conservative or smaller,” Urglavitch said. “The best thing that we always want to do is just keep it as small as possible and whatever products we have, make sure we get it right.”
Rochelle Long, of Bridgewater, has dined at the newest location various times since its opening and said she is excited to have the cheesesteak spot closer to home to diversify the local dining scene.
“We have been to the Urgie’s in Harrisonburg several times prior to their move to Bridgewater, and we like the food. We also like the fact that their Bridgewater location is only a mile away from our house. It makes it easy and convenient,” Long said. “Their menu choices are different from what we’ve had in Bridgewater, mostly pizza/Italian, previously.”
In addition to champagne and trays of cheesesteaks, Tuesday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony was joined by Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce President Frank Tamberrino. He said Urgie’s has been a wonderful business since its early food truck days,
and he expects it to draw more business to downtown Bridgewater.
“It’s a really unique and in-demand product in the area. They’ve got a good hook,” Tamberrino said. “Honestly, I think it’ll bring more people in and generate more activity here.”
Urglavitch said there are still many possible changes for the location, such as tearing down a wall to allow guests to watch as their meal is prepared and moving the bar to tuck in along the wall in an L shape. Bringing in live entertainment is another possibility, but for now the restaurant is simply settling into its new home.
“We’re gonna be here for at least 10 years. We’re only a month in. We got some time to really figure out what we’re doing and really just see what the needs are here,” Urglavitch said. “Get ready because there’s gonna be a lot of cool things to come in the next 10 years.”
Daily News-Record 3/11/20
BRIDGEWATER — Urgie’s Cheesesteaks’ Bridgewater location celebrated its ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday afternoon to commemorate more whiz in the Valley.
Formerly Jalapeno Southwest Grill, the location in Generations Park is an expansion of the Urgie’s in Harrisonburg both in size and menu. All classic entree items such as the hattrick and pierogies remain on the menu, but joining the traditional Philadelphia-inspired flavors are stuffed peppers, burgers and chicken wings — and co- owner Tommy Urglavitch said these staples are a step above the ordinary American fare.
“One thing that was a little bit unique down here, compared to ... where we come from, was a 6- ounce burger. That’s what a lot of your typical restaurants use. We use an 8- ounce, halfpound Angus, 80- 20 fresh meat cut, right off the bat,” Urglavitch said. “We use the same seasoning that we use on our cheesesteaks. … We really wanted to make sure that when we were doing our burgers, we were doing it correctly.”
Served on a butter potato roll with a side of garlic fries, current burger toppings include homemade pimento cheese and fried green tomato, cherry peppers and sauteed onions or classic with bacon, cheese, tomato and mashed between two grilled cheese sandwiches. Chicken wings weigh in at 1-pound per order with a coat of Griffin’s Wing Sauce and also come with fries.
Fit with a bubble hockey table, featuring the Pittsburgh Penguins playing against the Philadelphia Flyers, the new space is a step away from the college, latenight bar scene in Harrisonburg and moving toward an any-timeof- day, casual dining space. With various hanging TVs to watch hockey, baseball, football or basketball games, Urgie’s is still the same sports- driven and cheesesteak- fueled business from Water Street, but with a broader concept and big window layout next to the ice rink.
According to Urglavitch, the new location has been, whereas downtown , so that also allows us to busy since opening on Feb. 11, and customer feedback on the need for more breakfast options in the area may result in an early morning buffet-style offering in the future.
“This is also turning out to be more of a classical restaurant style than a bar, whereas downtown is more of a neighborhood bar, so that also allows us to keep the menu conservative or smaller,” Urglavitch said. “The best thing that we always want to do is just keep it as small as possible and whatever products we have, make sure we get it right.”
Rochelle Long, of Bridgewater, has dined at the newest location various times since its opening and said she is excited to have the cheesesteak spot closer to home to diversify the local dining scene.
“We have been to the Urgie’s in Harrisonburg several times prior to their move to Bridgewater, and we like the food. We also like the fact that their Bridgewater location is only a mile away from our house. It makes it easy and convenient,” Long said. “Their menu choices are different from what we’ve had in Bridgewater, mostly pizza/Italian, previously.”
In addition to champagne and trays of cheesesteaks, Tuesday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony was joined by Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce President Frank Tamberrino. He said Urgie’s has been a wonderful business since its early food truck days,
and he expects it to draw more business to downtown Bridgewater.
“It’s a really unique and in-demand product in the area. They’ve got a good hook,” Tamberrino said. “Honestly, I think it’ll bring more people in and generate more activity here.”
Urglavitch said there are still many possible changes for the location, such as tearing down a wall to allow guests to watch as their meal is prepared and moving the bar to tuck in along the wall in an L shape. Bringing in live entertainment is another possibility, but for now the restaurant is simply settling into its new home.
“We’re gonna be here for at least 10 years. We’re only a month in. We got some time to really figure out what we’re doing and really just see what the needs are here,” Urglavitch said. “Get ready because there’s gonna be a lot of cool things to come in the next 10 years.”
