Second Acts on the Menu: The Familiar Mechanicsburg Buildings With New Food Spots Inside

The stainless steel is original, and so are the stools and countertops. The jukebox that once played at a roadside diner on Cameron Street in Harrisburg now plays through speakers in a building set back from the Carlisle Pike, where the menu is now homemade ice cream instead of traditional breakfasts and burgers.

This year brought plenty of new restaurants to the Mechanicsburg area. Shake Shack opened on the Carlisle Pike in Hampden Township in April, and a Chipotle with a drive-through lane opened on Gettysburg Pike in September. The independent openings worth talking about share a different trait. Each one moved into a building with a local history and kept the parts of that history people already recognize. A diner that was hauled across the river, a bar that sat dark for a decade, and a 1948 movie theater are all getting a second life as places to eat, and in each case the building helped decide what the new business would be.

The diner that crossed the Susquehanna

Silver Side Cafe & Creamery at 25 Waterford Drive in Silver Spring Township began as the East Shore Diner, a 1950s Jerry O'Mahony diner. PennLive reported that the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation took the property by eminent domain for the I-83 Capital Beltway Project. The family closed the diner in September 2022, and in December of that year owners Bill and Dorothy Katsifis had it hauled 12 miles on a flatbed truck to the West Shore.

Getting the building ready took more than three years. The diner had been cut into two sections for the trip, so it needed a new foundation, a kitchen and storage addition built behind it, and new electric, water and sewer hookups, because the site was a vacant lot. Permits and engineering caused most of the delay. Weather and limestone found on the property slowed things down too. ABC27 reported that it reopened as a coffee shop and creamery in May 2026.

The new business is built around a gap the family had noticed nearby. Bill Katsifis, who opened the East Shore Diner in 1985, told PennLive he'd complained about the lack of ice cream shops near the Carlisle Pike for decades:

"For the last 35 years, first I would tell my wife there was no place for ice cream. Then the kids came, no place for ice cream."

The family first planned to call it the Silver Scoop. They changed the name to Silver Side to reflect what Stavros Katsifis, one of the couple's sons, called in the same PennLive story "a silver lining" after "a monster of a daunting, scary thing, which was the eminent domain."

The menu covers a lot of ground for one building:

• Ice cream made by Tom Dowdney, whom the family calls the "captain of churn." He went to ice cream school at Cornell University, and his flavors include raspberry cashew, banana peanut butter, and a brownie peanut butter swirl with cookie dough.
• Silver Swirls, ice cream blended with mix-ins, plus sundaes and milkshakes with toppings like hot fudge, strawberry and peanut butter made from scratch.
• Coffee from Lonely Monks Coffee in Lemoyne.
• Light fare such as cookies, cinnamon buns, bagels and pasties, which are turnovers with savory fillings.

Inside, the family went for what Stavros Katsifis described as a retro-futuristic "Jetsons" look, with a couch and chairs alongside the original counter and a neon sign modeled on Palm Springs and Las Vegas designs. Outside, a large deck is built into the hill and a patio has fire pits, which still makes sense now that the weather has turned.

The diner now opens early for coffee. Silver Side's website lists updated fall hours of 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday. Check the site for current weekend hours before you drive over.

The old Grandpa's Growler, open again on North York Street

If you've lived in Mechanicsburg for a while, you probably still call the building at 398 N. York St. by its old name. PennLive reported that brothers Peter and Bruno Passalacqua opened Angelina's Winery Bar & Grill there on March 16. The space was last the Hops & Barleys Pub & Grill and was best known as Grandpa's Growler, which closed in 2016 after 25 years.

Both brothers are longtime restaurateurs. Peter owns Sal's Pizza next door at 304 N. York St., and Bruno owns Bruno's Pizzatown USA in New Cumberland. Peter's daughter Angela, the restaurant's manager, told PennLive her father "always had an eye on this building and thought it would do great."

The renovation followed the same idea as Silver Side's and kept what was already there. The brothers spent most of a year remodeling but kept the same footprint and the oversized bar, adding new floors, paint and furniture. The restaurant is named after Angela, and her sister Josephin Passalacqua painted the dining room murals of an oversized burger with beer and wine glasses.

The burger on the wall matches what's on the plate. A PennLive feature in May reported that the restaurant was selling hundreds of its signature burgers a week. The rest of the menu includes wings, fried calamari, nachos, jalapeño poppers, wraps, salads, flatbread pizzas and pasta dishes. Hours may have changed since spring, so check the restaurant's Facebook page before you go.

A 1948 theater on West Main, next in line

The next building getting a second life sits downtown. PennLive reported on Oct. 15 that Willow & Main, a coffee shop and community gathering spot, plans to open "by February" at 54 W. Main St. The story doesn't give a year, but since it was announced in October 2026, that most likely means early 2027. Treat it as the owners' target, not a set date.

The building opened in 1948 as the Valle Theatre. Later it housed the Christian Arts Theatre, and most recently Board & Brush Creative Studio. Owners Jennifer Prol and her husband Andrew Seroskie are renovating the 3,500-square-foot space. Prol told PennLive "this place has such character," pointing to its exposed brick, hardwood floors, high ceilings and loft. The work includes drywall, paint, refinished hardwood floors, a prep area, a café bar and updated bathrooms.

The business plan suits a building that was made for gathering crowds. Here's what the owners described to PennLive:

• Café menu: coffee including cold brew and cold foam, in-house flavored syrups, and simple food such as muffins, cookies and quiche.
• Classes and events: crafting, pottery, cookie decorating, mahjong, sourdough-making, bingo and private parties.
• Saturday pop-ups with local vendors, including a baker who makes fresh sourdough breads and cookies.
• A small gift shop up front selling coffee beans by the pound, mugs, candles and goods from local makers.

The couple named the shop after their eldest daughter, Willow. The slogan "engage, linger, savor, invite, enjoy" spells out the name of their daughter Elsie. Willow & Main plans to open Monday through Saturday and take reservations for special events.

What each building used to be, and what stayed

Willow & Main sits right on West Main Street, and Angelina's is on North York Street, so both are close to the downtown events coming up this season.

Downtown dates for the weeks ahead

With the holidays coming, there are a few confirmed dates for your calendar:

1. Saturday, Nov. 7, 2026, 2:30 to 3:30 p.m.: The Downtown Mechanicsburg Partnership lists its Merry and Bright Winter Wonderland Decorating Contest. Registration, decorating and voting dates are still listed as to be determined.
2. Friday, Nov. 27, 2026, 5:15 to 6:30 p.m.: The Mechanicsburg Chamber's Community Tree Lighting, with the tree lit at 5:30 p.m.
3. Thursday, Dec. 31, 2026, 9 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.: The New Year's Eve Wrench Drop, also listed by the Chamber.

The tree lighting falls on a Friday, and Silver Side's posted fall hours run until 9 p.m. on Fridays.

Know a familiar Mechanicsburg building getting a new owner or a new purpose? We'd love to hear about it. The Shannon Kincaid Team is always glad to talk about Mechanicsburg, whether it's a favorite new scoop shop or your next move. Visit our Mechanicsburg page or Contact Us anytime.