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Taste With Tori: How The Original Clam Tavern, 'An Anchor Here In The Community,' Stayed Afloat During Pandemic

CLIFTON HEIGHTS, Pa. (CBS) -- In this week's Taste with Tori, Vittoria Woodill heads to Clifton Heights in Delaware County to dive into their seafood specialties. It's the story of The Clam Tavern and how their ship has stayed afloat during the coronavirus pandemic.

Get ready to dive deep into a Delaware County gem where planks cover the walls, a captain's eyes are always on watch and more than just clams will cover your plate -- like chicken parm, pasta, and steak.

They've got it all at The Original Clam Tavern.

"A good friend of mine came here one night and he said, 'you hear that Tony?' I said, 'What?' He said, 'That's 1960 calling, they want their menu back,'" Tony Blanche, owner of The Clam Tavern, said. "Nobody does what we do any more the way we do it."

Blanche, or "Tony the Clam," is the captain of the ship and the spot across the street.

"Why did the clam cross the road? To get a roast pork sandwich at the Broadway Bar & Grille," he said.

But years ago, he started shucking for treasure.

"This one day, I'm shucking clams and there it is this pearl. It looks like a tooth, I thought I was rich. Long story short, a guy said 'this ain't worth anything kid,'" Blanche said. "My mother, God bless her, saved it in a cedar chest and she also saved my shirt from when I worked here."

While COVID-19 may have sunk the spirit of dining out, The Clam Tavern's legacy has been what's kept it afloat.

"People love it here at The Clam Tavern, they've had their first date here, got engaged here, on Valentine's Day, I think it's an anchor here in the community," Blanche said.

For more on The Clam Tavern, watch the video above.

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