The fireworks at Rye Playland are scheduled for every Wednesday and Friday evening now through August.
Ok, come on. Admit it. You know they are dangerous, illegal and you don’t want the kids messing around with them, but you still love them. Always have – ever since you were a kid.
And we have to admit that we love fireworks as much as you do. In fact, firework shows are one of the favorite things for American families to watch and enjoy together, according to national entertainment surveys.
At Rye Playland, we’ve found one of the best and easily accessible shows around for you to catch. All at an affordable price and a reasonable distance from home.
But before we get to the pyrotechnics however, we’re going to give you the opportunity to extend your trip to include a bite before the show. And take our word, you’d better go early enough because odds are once you start eating – you won’t want to leave.
About five minutes down the road from Playland on Midland Avenue in Rye, you will find Kelly’s Sea Level, a local pub that has sat in the same spot for nearly four decades.
The quintessential family owned and operated Rye landmark offers hearty fare in a relaxed and comfortable setting typically associated with pubs, but when the food is served up – there is nothing typical about it.
We don’t know whether to talk first about the menu selection, portion, quality, or taste first so we’ll do it all at once. It’s all GREAT.
A visit to Kelly’s will provide a real pub feel and a very satisfied stomach.
The menu features a range of crowd pleasers for every age and taste. There are burgers and steak, seafood and salads, sandwiches, chicken wings, chili–the list goes on and just keeps getting better. But wait because the burgers deserve another mention – in fact I was a burger expert in days gone by, and if I ever had to pick one in the world, it would be a Kelly’s burger.
The fries and the onion rings are the ones you had once before in your life and have been searching forever since. The BLT on home baked whole wheat has bacon so good it could easily lead to addiction. The portions at Kelly’s are beyond generous and served up with good presentation and fast service.
Now let’s eat –
For appetizers we went with an order of wings and jalapeño poppers. Both were large enough to share, the poppers fried in clean oil distributed just the right cheese flow and heat with each bite and the wings guarantee some genuine lip smacking.
The next food came out quickly from the kitchen and when set down, revealed a half pound of beef piled high on a delicious roll which when cut in half revealed a PERFECTLY PINK center. The cheese sitting atop was no distraction but a compliment to the grilled and perfectly seasoned burger. This one also had some sautéed mushrooms and fried onions that left you digging around the plate for anything that might have fallen back to the dish after each bite had been taken.
Joining that in the line-up was the fish and chips which arrived with steam escaping from the tops of two batter fried cod filets, surrounded with an abundance of golden browned, inch wide steak fries. A small canister on the plate housed a homemade tartar sauce – what else? As far as this dish and the burger – in the words of the social media sect OMG!
And although there were only two of us, we ordered a third thing – because I saw it delivered to another table and just had to have it – if only one bite – the best looking BLT I had ever seen in my life. Turns out it was the best BLT I ever had in my life.
We really wished we could have eaten more at Kelly’s but we’ll take care of that when we make a trip back – and not just one more time – did you guys get the idea we really liked it here? Cause we do. Incidentally, one of the best ways to judge the overall food in a restaurant when you can’t order the whole menu to do a review, is just look around at what other people are eating – are they calling the wait staff back to their table – are they eating their food or just playing with it, are barely touched dishes being hauled off the table by the busboys – does anyone require medical attention – seriously you get the picture. And so we watched what was going on around us and by far and large I don’t think there was a diner in the house who would disagree with anything written here.
Kelly’s burgers on the line, arguably the best we’ve ever had.
Now we’ve told you about the great food and have to mention the friendly service but one thing we forgot to mention about Kelly’s is another feature that may seem attractive, especially if this is a family night out–the cheeseburger was $5.00 and, oh my, the fish and chips, one of the most expensive things on the menu–$11.95. In fact if you saw the prices on the menu at Kelly’s you might think you were sucked back in time. French fries and onion rings $3.75, BLT $4.50, hot pastrami or corned beef for $8.95. We finished off with a good cup of coffee and shared a hot fudge homemade brownie sundae with mint chip ice cream $4.00.
We could go on about this place from the setting to the service and it would all be GREAT. Suffice it to say, even if you’re not a fireworks lover, it’s worth the 30 minute ride to Kelly’s to have one of those burgers – in fact if you drive up there and you don’t absolutely love it – call me and I’ll pay for the burger. And no, I don’t own Kelly’s.
Now that we are stuffed like pigs let’s take a ride down the road to Rye Playland where we can take a walk along the beach and then see a great fireworks show.
Spectacular fireworks displays are choreographed to music every Wednesday and Friday in July and August beginning at 9:15 p.m. There are several spots in Playland which provide great views and speakers to hear the music. Ask any park attendant you see and they will send you in the right direction. The general admission to the park is $10.00 and includes no rides. They may be purchased on a different wristband admission but any type of admission includes the price of viewing the fireworks.
Rye has family, thrill and kiddie rides so there are plenty of options. The park is also attached to a boating concession that offers rentals on 2 and 4 person paddleboats, and a cruise of Rye Lake. You can use the pool or the beach while you are there, if you make this an entire day outing.
Also included in your admission is entrance to Playland Summer Concerts which are scheduled about every ten days. You can check their website at ryeplayland.org for more information.
Kelly’s Sea Level
413 Midland Ave, Rye, NY 10580
(914) 967-0868
Rye Playland
100 Playland Pkwy, Rye, NY 10580
(914) 813-7010
Story and Photos by Patricia Adams
