Generosity is at the heart of how “Conshy Girls” Marianne Gere and Kim Strengari run their restaurant group. The two have known each other for more than three decades, saying they’ve never forgotten how generous people were when they were first starting out. That may explain the motivation behind the restaurants’ popular initiative – Month of Love.
Each February, at either Conshy Girls restaurant in Conshohocken – Gypsy Saloon (128 Ford St.) or Southern Cross (8 E. First Ave.) – diners can choose to purchase paper hearts to be displayed, with the proceeds supporting select, heartfelt initiatives. Last year, the proceeds benefited the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women campaign. Although this year’s initiative hasn’t been announced, expect it to be something equally warm-hearted. That’s because Gere and Strengari give so much of themselves.
When I last ate at Gypsy in November, Strengari greeted me and my friend at the hostess stand. “We treat every night like we’re throwing a dinner party,” Gere says. “There has to be a theme or starting point.”
Strengari says she loves the socializing aspect of being at the restaurant, and for Gere, it’s the cooking. Both Conshy Girls grew up in Italian neighborhoods, with parents or grandparents who were amazing home cooks.
While neither considers this the direct influence that led them to start working in restaurants, an Italian influence was unmistakable when I dined at Gypsy in November. The restaurant sources its bread from Liscio’s, and its meat from Esposito’s in Philadelphia’s Italian Market.
After discovering this, I ask the Conshy Girls if they’re from South Philly.
“No, but our dishes are as good as any South Philly restaurant,” Strengari says.
During a December visit, I ordered from Southern Cross’s Holiday Cheer specialty menu. The salmon was some of the best I’ve ever ordered out, accompanied by a citrus cranberry sauce and pomegranate risotto. I paired it with a cranberry amaro gin fizz. It’s so rare that a menu is built around seasonality and color, both on the plate and in the glass. This ties in nicely with Gere’s philosophy to work from a theme.
This February, the theme at the Conshy Girls restaurants will once again be to fall in love with giving back. That’s the ethos no doubt guiding Gere’s and Strengari’s continued success, with Gypsy now in its 21st year and Southern Cross in its 13th. IAH
Nikki Palladino is a writer, instructor, and wine enthusiast living in South Jersey. Her writing has appeared in literary magazines, as well as online poetry collections. At-work on her debut novel about first-gen Italian Americans whose parents own competing Italian restaurants, Nikki is also an Adjunct Professor at Saint Joseph’s University and a Certified Sommelier through the Court of Master Sommeliers Americas. Follow her @nikki_pall.