Not many thriving businesses can brag that they have hardly changed since 1980, but long-time patrons of Twinny’s Place Restaurant in Galena can vouch for it. Folks who are really long in the tooth can remember back to 1950, when Alice Newnam’s father opened Twinny’s in the location where Galena’s Kitchen is now.
Twinny’s Place
The big move to the other side of Galena’s sole traffic light in 1980 didn’t change much. Alice had kept the books when her parents were alive, and she bought the restaurant in 2005 after they had both passed away.
It remains very much a family business. Alice’s sister, Joanne Price, her daughter, Jennifer Willey, and several cousins can be found doing everything that needs to be done in a busy restaurant. Alice’s brother, Alan Price, arrives every morning at 4:15 to start the coffee, and Alice arrives at 4:30 to prepare for a 5:30 opening.
During hunting season Twinny’s opens at 4:00 am, and all forty seats fill up quickly. Ruby Rajchel is not a relative, but after 33 years of cooking at Twinny’s she seems like part of the family. Alice keeps eight full-time and four part-time employees very busy. Except on Wednesdays, when the restaurant closes at 1:00 pm, and Sundays, when it closes at 6:00 pm, Twinny’s is open from 5:30 am until 7:30 pm every day.
Service is always fast at Twinny’s, but in every other respect Twinny’s is the antithesis of a fast food restaurant. Waiters call the regular customers by their names and ask about their families. Paintings by local artists adorn the walls. The artwork is for sale, but it seems to belong right where it is. Some of the artwork was done years ago by Alice’s grandson.
The menu features oysters in the winter and crab in the summer, but is otherwise pretty much the same year-round. There are no flashy posters urging customers to try something new; most of the customers know what they want without a glance at the menu. There is a large contingent of regular customers, as well as boaters from the Georgetown marinas during the warm months and hunters during the cold months. There are people who come down from Wilmington a few Saturdays a month just for the thin, slightly crispy pancakes, whose recipe remains a secret. There are people who come from Philadelphia just for the cheese steaks.
All the food at Twinny’s is comfort food. Twinny’s is a constant in a changing world.
By: Wendy Costa
Melinda Bookwalter says
Yup, John’s been going there 28 years (don’t do the math!) for breakfast 7 days/wk, lunch when he’s in the area and not at Crumpton, and dinner when I don’t feel like cooking. There’s the early, mid and late morning shift, each with their prescribed seating, and ruffled feathers when it gets disrupted. Alice and family have welcomed regulars as extended family, newbies too feel the welcome. During Downrigging at Georgetown, Alice and company feeds lunch on the house to the entire crew, volunteers and shipwrights til Sultana goes back in the water. Twinny’s and family is truly a gift. Thank you Wendy for highlighting them!