The Temperance House

We came here about two weeks ago on a Sunday around 6pm as we had been informed by a friend that it was on the upswing. We used to come here often about 5 or 6 years ago as it was fun, had live music and we could meet up with our friends for cocktails and a light meal. Also, it was the only place I knew of where you could smoke a cigar. We stopped coming as the service and food seemed to be on the decline. We never stayed at the Inn.
Upon arrival we noted that the bar was pretty full and there were a few diners eating in the various dining areas. About 50% full. We managed to grab two seats at the bar and ordered a couple of glasses of wine. The wine list is adequate. The bartender seemed quite busy and there were a lot of discussions between the hostess and bartender about something or other, but it did not effect the service for us and she was very loquacious once we talked her up. Apparently the place is under new management. Smoking is prohibited and even though I like a nice cigar from time to time I really don’t need to smoke in a restaurant.
We ordered from the starter menu — gnocchi and seared scallops. The gnocchi was quite tasty and the red sauce it was served with tasted very fresh as if just made. The pasta itself was firm but smooth and very good. The scallops were also really good. My wife and I almost always share our orders and compare notes. We both enjoyed these dishes.
This is a nice place with good, tasty offerings, and a decent, friendly, pub like atmosphere. It is good to see they are back on track from a few years ago. We will return.
Mark.

I enjoyed my meal here. The restaurant has a more formal dining area and the pub. I choose to sit in the pub area with my boyfriend. Wait staff was great. He was so kind and food came out quickly.
I ordered the mussels with tomato sauce which is an appetizer. But it is so large and it became my meal… only $ 10. My boyfriend ordered a burger and enjoyed it a lot. Food is reasonably price. My glass of wine was $ 10 as well however.
On a Sunday, when everything in Newton appeared to be closed, this was a nice place to eat.

We stayed overnight while touring vineyards. The owner and Melissa who checked us in were very nice. The room was fine. We are used to a little more from an inn or B&B. No hot breakfast or complimentary drinks at the bar. We ate brunch in the restaurant. The food was good but since we were guests of the inn felt we should have at least gotten a discount. The bar was fun but drinks were expensive. There is no parking lot, so we had to park on the street. Luckily we stayed Satuday to Sunday, so didn’t ave to worry about the 30 minute limit. Melissa did offer to have people move their cars from the back lot, but we’re not comfortable with getting stuck I or having to move out for someone else. Overall th e experience was not worth the price. There are more reasonable B&Bs in both New Hope and Upper Makefield.

Dinner there last night. Waitress was poor, couldn’t pronounce ingredients in the specials. Bread finally showed up half way through our meal. Salmon special was not prepared the way our waitress presented it. Stuffed Pork Chop was overcooked to the point of being crunchy in places, marsala gnocchi was flavorless.

Had a great experience at the Temp, now under new management! Visited twice, once for appetizers and cocktails at the bar and again for dinner in the charming, historic dining room. Servers were polite and knowledgeable about the menu, including a long list of specials, one of which I chose for my meal. Food came out quickly and portions were large. My entrée was 2 large pieces of sea bass over a bacon, carrot, pea mixture and 2 humongous scallops with grilled asparagus and tomato in a light lemon sauce. Had a peek around the newly updated rooms and suites upstairs and they are just beautiful. Cannot wait to come back and indulge soon.

Thank you to the Temperance House and their staff! Our company held a business dinner in their private room and the service was amazing. I worked with Melissa to setup the dinner and she took every detail into consideration. Our server Emily did an amazing job waiting on 14 people, everything was served timely. The food was amazing! We have many business dinners and this was the first time that I saw everyone literally clean their plates. We had ordered A LOT of appetizers and I didn’t think anyone would be hungry for dinner but the food was so good and everyone enjoyed their meal. A few people had venison and said it was the best they every had. So thank you to Art, the Chef. Margaret, served us drinks before and after dinner at the bar. Everyone was drinking something different and she was on top of her game. So, thank you to everyone at the Temperance House! We enjoyed our dinner and we will be back again!

Work in progress. The lodging has some functionality problems in the rooms; we were switched to try to correct but still no internet, and that is not because of the age of the building. The rooms renovation is kind of generic with little regard for the historic exterior. So sort of in-​between old and new. I mistakenly assumed that our $ 159 room would include some kind of breakfast, but that was my error. There is a common room with a Keurig machine and some plastic wrapped crackers, a couple of yogurts in the fridge. Drinks in the Tavern, same sort of thing: downtown Philly prices from the special (prices not listed) drink menu which they should be ashamed to charge for what is provided. Really wanted to like and recommend, but don’t feel I got what I paid for. Maybe not fair to compare, but we were recently in the heart of Philly Old Town and had a great experience (wine happy hour, hot served breakfast, engaging staff) for the same price, so there is some room to improve the value proposition by upping the offering or lowering the rate.

I came from out of town to celebrate a surprise party and stayed at the Temperance House Inn. Every employee at the TH that I encountered was outstanding. Melissa checked us in and was also our waitress for the private party. She went above and beyond to make sure that everything went smoothly. We met the chef who prepared our dinner. The dinner was delicious! Bobby, who is the bar manager, as well as the other bartenders that were tending the bar on Saturday night were fantastic. They stayed open late for us to celebrate my uncle’s birthday. The rooms were clean and the beds were very comfortable. I would definitely recommend the TH. My only suggestion is to bring your own conditioner. They offer complimentary shampoo and soap, but no conditioner. Overall, I had a fantastic experience and would definitely stay here again.

We were there for a business function with about 60 people! The staff was attentive and friendly, the food was awesome. They offered tours of the rooms, they were classy and charming with a historic feel. Kevin, as always was on top of everything and Mel showed us around to tour the sleeping rooms and her passion for the establishment was very apparent. Don’t miss this gem!

Very poor service. Had reservation for 8pm on New Years Eve. Waited a half hour to be seated with empty tables available. Waited another half hour for drink order. Entrée was served an hour and a half later. Food was barely warm. Check had additional charges that we did not order. Make sure you check your bill. Will not recommend to anyone in town. I have never experienced such poor service in any other establishment in Newtown!

Went there last week and we had a problem with our meal and asked to speak to the owner, Melissa came to our table and I was able to smell alcohol on her breath and it just got worse from there. STAY AWAY

Went to Temperance House expecting warm hospitality. The owners could not have been more cold. Not a friendly place.

Went to TH off of an
hit and was very pleased. Stayed in Chloe’s Lot and felt the old world charm and a little intrigue as it is Room 13…
Hotel feels like a treasure and the easy access to pub/​bar and restaurant on main floor can’t be beat. I highly recommend it.
The only negative is the WiFi is not working well in the far end of the hotel, which is a very easy fix. But this little issue is not worth degrading my 5-​star rating.

A basic made from mix Bloody Mary with Bankers Club Vodka was $ 10.50. When we questioned the price of the drink, we were condescendingly asked by the manager where we were from, and how much were we used to paying for a drink. I really didn’t want to dignify her question with a response, but I stated «around $ 5». We had read the Sunday brunch sign wrong. It was misleading; all we saw was $ 3, but that was an add on to add a beer float to your Bloody Mary. In the end, we were only offered a 10% discount which we did not take. I believe a good manager would have taken at least one ridiculous overpriced drink off of the bill. We go out quite a bit to Philly, New Hope, and Yardley, and never have run into such price gouging.
Just advice to anyone who dares to set foot in the Temp, ask how much before you commit. Or go to Issac Newton’s, it’s much better.
I’m only giving one star because Unilocal requires that. Zero stars and negative five stars to the *see you next Tuesday*manager we dealt with.

Love this place. Food is presented beautifully, drinks are good. They carry a weird, locally distilled line of vodkas that are brill. Rooms are beautiful. They do banquets. Give this reopening a try!!! They do it right!