By Myles Ma
Like many Trenton neighborhoods, Chambersburg has undergone many changes over the years. As the Italian families that settled the area left, many were supplanted by immigrants from Central America. Mike Rossi watched as the newcomers started buying their own homes, and opening their own businesses and restaurants.
Rossi doesn’t mind the changes. Especially since Rossi’s Bar and Grill, which Rossi co-owns with his sister Sharon Jemison, has survived them, and has become a Chambersburg fixture.
“The best thing about us is we’re still the same,” Rossi said.
That’s not to say the restaurant, an institution after 76 years of existence, doesn’t have any new tricks. Rossi’s has recently introduced few specials that hearken back to the neighborhood’s Italian legacy.
Their Italian-style porkchops, cut two inches thick and cooked for four hours with white wine, garlic, hot peppers and roasted peppers, have become a common customer request. So has the broccoli rabe with sausage and roasted peppers.
Those dishes are available about once a week, but Rossi’s has different specials and soups every day. And to complete the Italian experience, the bar recently began offering Peroni, an Italian pale lager popular in the mother country, on tap.
Peroni joins the more than 30 beers available at Rossi’s, a far cry from the days of the bar’s opening in 1933, just before prohibition was lifted. Rossi’s grandfather, also named Mike, opened the bar, and it has been in the family ever since, passing to Mike’s father Al and uncle Gil, and finally to Mike and Jemison.
Over such a long period of time, Rossi’s has acquired a following, and a reputation, which is probably its best means of advertising.
Perhaps the most talked-about dish at Rossi’s is the Rossiburger.
It has a reputation all its own — the Rossiburger regularly makes best-of lists in local and national publications. Famous for their size and flavor, Jemison credits the grills at Rossis, powerful and well seasoned over the years.
“A seasoned grill tastes a lot better than a new one,” Jemison said.
It helps that the meat is purchased fresh every day from City Beef. The handmade patties are built large, to keep the insides juicy.
The burgers, along with the other dishes at Rossi’s, ensure that the restaurant keeps customers. No matter how far they move, Rossi said, customers always ensure that Rossi’s is on their itinerary when they return.
And despite the changes in the neighborhood, Rossi and Jemison don’t plan to leave. The two grew up in nearby White Horse.
Rossi lives in Lawrence now and Jemison in Bordentown, but as long as customers keep flocking to Rossi’s, the restaurant will remain in Trenton.
“We’re not going anywhere,” Jemison said.
“We have no reason to leave,” Rossi added.
Rossi’s Bar and Grill is located at 501 Morris Avenue. Lunch is served 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and dinner is served 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
For more information, call (609) 394-9089, or go online to rossiburger.com.
Joanna Rossi sits with her father, Mike Rossi, who co-owns Rossi’s Bar and Grill, May 18, 2010. (Staff photo by Myles Ma.),
