The coverage record
The Coney Island Press
For more than a century The Coney Island has kept turning up in Pottsville's newsprint — in notices and pages we placed ourselves, in features the papers wrote on their own, and lately on video. This page is the collected record: the coverage, the clippings, and where to verify each piece.
The latest
Review no. 1295 — 9½ Yuenglings out of 10 — Wisco Dive Bars
Wisco Dive Bars · review no. 1295 · Jun. 6, 2026
Jared Schutz brought his camera through every room and called us "an iconic stop for all the locals in Pottsville." His video and his verdict live on their own page.
What the papers wrote
"The great chili dog debate" and its companion piece
Pottsville Republican · Aug. 29, 1990 · pp. 29–30
A two-part feature on the chili dog and the family behind it, told in the paper's own voice.
“His wife, Antonia, ran the business until her two sons, Peter and Gus, were old enough to take over and even then she kept a firm hand on things”
1990 editorial content remains in copyright; quoted briefly with attribution and linked to the source images.
A staff feature on the restaurant and the family behind it
Pottsville Republican · Feb. 24, 1984 · p. 47
The paper's own telling of the story to that point — the 1917 opening and the succession from Antonia to her sons.
“The Coney Island, which opened in Pottsville in 1917”
“When Palles died, his wife, Antonia, took over the business with the help of relatives. After World War II, Peter and Gus Palles assumed control”
1984 editorial content remains in copyright; quoted briefly with attribution and linked to the source image.
What we ran
Advertisements the restaurant placed itself, kept and labeled as exactly that — not coverage, but the town record of what we were telling Pottsville, decade by decade.
The drive-thru grand opening, announced on a full page
Enlarge opens the whole page — The full page as printed — p. 15, with the contractors' congratulations.
Read the transcription
Grand Opening — July 23rd to 27th, 1984. The Coney Island, 23rd & West Market Streets, Pottsville. Drive Thru (Yorkville). The Coney Island in Yorkville is opening a Drive-Thru Window July 23, 1984. This is just another, in the long line of Coney Island innovations, inaugurated during the past few years. The latest additions to our menu include soups, salads, fish, steak and roast beef sandwiches, plus a full breakfast menu. At our new counter service you can enjoy your favorite ice cream treats . . . cones, sundaes, shakes, with your meal or just as a snack. Table service will be offered in the near future as well as our usual fast food takeouts. NOTE: Beer will not be served at the DRIVE-THRU WINDOW . . . This will help prevent underage drinking. Free with this coupon — Monday, July 23 thru Friday, July 27: Free Coffee, Yorkville Coney Island Drive-Thru only — no purchase necessary! Must present this coupon. Free Coke, Yorkville Coney Island Drive-Thru only — no purchase necessary! Must present this coupon. Congratulations to the owners of the Coney Island on the opening of the New DRIVE-THRU . . . from your contractors.
A full page (p. 15). The page also carries the drive-thru crew photograph with a printed names caption, and congratulatory boxes from the project's contractors — Dennis Lehman Remodeling (designed and built the drive-thru facilities), Jim Felker, Allen Johns, Earl Heiser, Industrial Grounds Maintenance, John Brennan, Donald C. Weigand, Victor Muncy, Inc., and Steve's Panel Center. The ad carries no copyright notice of its own (confirmed on the physical page, 2026-08-05).
Pottsville Republican · Jul. 18, 1984 · p. 15
Announcing the Yorkville drive-thru window — opened July 23, 1984 — with five days of grand-opening coupons, the crew photograph and its printed names, and congratulations from the contractors who built it.
“NOTE: Beer will not be served at the DRIVE-THRU WINDOW … This will help prevent underage drinking.”
Advertisement placed by the venue, published without its own copyright notice (confirmed on the physical page, 2026-08-05; under 17 U.S.C. §404(a) the newspaper's masthead notice does not cover inserted advertisements) and never registered in the five-year cure window — owner-confirmed. Owner-held physical copy.
"Re-Opening Today" — the 1958 remodel, across two pages
Enlarge opens the whole page — The spread as held — pp. 12–13 of the March 15, 1958 issue.
Read the transcription
Coney Island Lunch Re-Opening Today — Saturday, March 15 . . . In Tune With The Times. And everything's NEW . . . except famous Coney Island quality! We never realized how many close and loyal friends we have until we closed our doors last Saturday in order to remodel. We never realized, until we started receiving your letters and phone calls, how much we'd be missed. Now we can only say . . . THANKS FOR YOUR INTEREST . . . WE HOPE THE "NEW LOOK" WE'VE GIVEN CONEY ISLAND WILL REPAY YOU FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE WE'VE CAUSED YOU! Come see us . . . today . . . next week . . . as often as you're in the heart of Pottsville. As everybody around town knows — Coney Island Hamburgers and Hot Dogs are ABSOLUTELY TOPS! And now — you can enjoy Coney Island Quality in a more beautiful, more comfortable atmosphere than ever before! For that light but satisfying snack, Coney Island Lunch is ABOLUTE-LY [sic] TOPS! As always . . . Coney Island's famous hamburgers and hot dogs are Absolutely Tops! Tops in comfort . . . Formica booths and tables designed for "Relaxed-Eating" by famous architects. Tops in beauty . . . gay colors, restful colors, appealing colors — a pleasure to the eye. Tops in convenience . . . fast, fast, service for your whole party — whether you want to eat-and-run or sit-and-chat, plus Take-Out Service for parties or TV snacks. Tops in quality . . . all Grade-A U.S.-Government Inspected Meats — the finest breads and rolls . . . and brand new, ultra-modern stainless steel equipment that sparkles like a rare gem. Tops in taste . . . but don't take our word for it! Just come — compare — taste the difference! Thanks To These Loyal Suppliers . . . Coney Island Lunch, Pottsville, Pa. Absolutely Tops!
A two-page spread (pp. 12–13); the transcription follows the sentence across the gutter rather than strict column order, and the body copy's closing sentence preserves the sheet's own "ABOLUTE-LY" misprint (the same paragraph spells it correctly earlier). The supplier thank-you section names Ditzler Bros., City Produce Co., New Penn Paper Co., Richard B. Ryon Agency, Glass Dairy, Harold S. Rupert, Burk's Frankfurters, Paris Produce Co., Rothermel Dairy, Stulman Paper Co., L. K. Stoner, Pottsville Bar and Restaurant Equipment Co., Yuengling's Ice Cream, Capital Bakers, Adelphia Coffee & Tea Co., and V. C. Scott. The ad carries no copyright notice of its own (confirmed on the owner's original).
Pottsville Republican · Mar. 15, 1958 · pp. 12–13
After a week closed for a full remodel, the re-opening spread thanks the town for its letters and phone calls and walks the room — new booths, new equipment, the same hamburgers and hot dogs.
“We never realized how many close and loyal friends we have until we closed our doors last Saturday in order to remodel.”
Owner decision, 2026-08-05, on this recorded reasoning: the ad was placed by the venue and carries no notice of its own (confirmed on the owner's original); the Copyright Office's Study No. 7 records that a periodical's general notice did not ordinarily protect inserted advertisements under the 1909 Act; and any renewal (window: 1986) would have been the advertiser's own to file — the owner confirms none was. Owner-held physical copy.
The business's own ad — "With Real Chili Sauce — Established 1917"
Pottsville Republican · Aug. 12, 1936 · p. 9
The restaurant's own advertising states the founding year in one block, while the founding generation was alive to contradict it. Nobody did.
Copyright not renewed (the UPenn periodical-renewals inventory for 1931–1950 contains no Pottsville entries) and, independently, the 1909 Act's ad-notice rule — US public domain
The grand-opening notice for 215 N. Centre St.
Pottsville Republican · Nov. 8, 1918 · p. 2
The storefront announces itself as the place to get "the famous Coney Island Hot Weiners." The scan, the transcription, and the full documentary context live in the evidence register.
Published before 1931 — US public domain
Beyond the paper
Readers' Choice — Best Entertainment Venue
Republican Herald Readers' Choice Awards · 2026
Voted Best Entertainment Venue in the Republican Herald's 2026 Readers' Choice Awards. The story of the rooms and the nights lives on the entertainment page.
The archive
| Date | Piece | Outlet | Label | Verify |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Review no. 1295 — 9½ Yuenglings out of 10 — Wisco Dive Bars | Wisco Dive Bars | VIDEO REVIEW | Source | |
| Readers' Choice — Best Entertainment Venue | Republican Herald | AWARD | On this site | |
| "The great chili dog debate" and its companion piece | Pottsville Republican | NEWS COVERAGE | Source | |
| The drive-thru grand opening, announced on a full page | Pottsville Republican | PAID ADVERTISEMENT | On this site | |
| A staff feature on the restaurant and the family behind it | Pottsville Republican | NEWS COVERAGE | Source | |
| "Re-Opening Today" — the 1958 remodel, across two pages | Pottsville Republican | PAID ADVERTISEMENT | Source | |
| The business's own ad — "With Real Chili Sauce — Established 1917" | Pottsville Republican | PAID ADVERTISEMENT | On this site | |
| The grand-opening notice for 215 N. Centre St. | Pottsville Republican | PAID ADVERTISEMENT | On this site |
Publication names and marks belong to their owners. Independent coverage is its outlet's own work — quoted exactly, credited, and linked. Advertisements shown here were placed by the restaurant and are labeled as what they are.
The back page
For press & researchers
The paragraph to lift
The Coney Island Restaurant & Tavern is a family-owned restaurant and tavern at 2290 W. Market St., Pottsville, Pennsylvania — open 24 hours, serving the same family recipe since 1917. Coney dogs and tavern fare, breakfast around the clock, live music, a seasonal tiki bar, a four-season patio, and a 24-hour drive-thru.
Photos
Photographs credited to The Coney Island are available for editorial use — credit "The Coney Island (Pottsville)," and write us for originals. Newspaper clippings and images credited to their publishers are not ours to license.
Corrections
If we've got something wrong, tell us — we'll fix it and date the fix.
The particulars
- Official name
- The Coney Island Restaurant & Tavern
- Also known as
- Coney Island Pottsville
- Founded
- 1917
- Address
- 2290 W. Market St., Pottsville, PA 17901
- Phone
- 570-622-7722
- [email protected]
- Hours
- Open 24 hours, every day
- Known for
- Home of the Chili Dog
Reviewed 2026-08-05.