Inside a Best Western, a Pike County steakhouse quietly raises expectations…
I’ll admit it: when someone tells me there’s a serious steakhouse inside a Best Western, I temper my expectations. Convenience dining, maybe. A decent meal before a long drive. Something practical.
What you don’t expect, what The Landing Steakhouse in Matamoras, PA delivers almost immediately, is atmosphere. White tablecloths. Soft pools of lamplight. Servers who move with calm confidence. And a dining room that suggests you should slow down, settle in, and treat the evening as an occasion.
That sense of pleasant surprise has become part of the restaurant’s identity.
The Landing introduced a refreshed menu at the beginning of the year, with subtle refinements following within weeks, the kind of careful tuning that suggests a restaurant paying attention rather than chasing reinvention. But the bigger story isn’t the menu tweaks. It’s how a family-run steakhouse, improbably housed inside a hotel, is steadily carving out one of Pike County’s most polished dining experiences.
A hands-on steakhouse at heart…
The restaurant is owned by veteran restaurateurs Randy and April Resnick, with managing partner Shane Phillipy and additional family involvement from Julian Resnick. That ownership presence isn’t theoretical. Diners often notice it: a quick table check, a remembered name, a quiet adjustment made before you even think to ask.
It lends the place a feeling that someone is actively caring for the experience, not simply overseeing it.
And the experience begins, unmistakably, with steak.
Filet mignon, ribeye, porterhouse, and a tomahawk that arrives with dramatic flourish but classic restraint anchor the menu. The Dodge Inn Steak nods to tradition; Snake River Wagyu signals a willingness to reach higher. Familiar steakhouse comforts, creamed spinach, and garlic mashed potatoes arrive exactly as you hope they will: rich, generous, and unapologetically satisfying.
Despite being relatively young, the restaurant has quickly built a devoted following, reflected in consistently strong online reviews and a reputation that continues to spread largely by word of mouth. The refrain is familiar: Yes, it’s in the hotel. And yes, it’s absolutely worth it.
Beyond beef, without losing focus…
What makes The Landing particularly interesting is how comfortably it expands beyond steak without diluting its identity.
A tableside Caesar salad, prepared with deliberate care, brings a bit of old-school hospitality theater. A Flaming Crispy Half Duck arrives with visual drama that still feels rooted in culinary tradition rather than spectacle. Pastas lean Italian, seafood features rotate, and occasional specials, Brazilian seafood stew or Chianti-braised short ribs, for example, give the kitchen room to explore while keeping the menu grounded.
The raw bar reinforces the celebratory tone. Oysters often appear by specific East Coast variety, and the seafood tower, tiered, abundant, quietly luxurious, is clearly designed for evenings when dinner itself is the event.
The beverage program follows suit. Classic cocktails dominate: martinis properly cold, Old Fashioneds with restraint, French 75s bright enough to cut through rich food. The wine list favors dependable prestige producers, labels chosen to complement a steakhouse experience rather than compete with it.
Nothing feels flashy. Everything feels intentional.
A room designed for occasions…
The dining room supports that intention. White linens soften the space. Individual table lamps cast flattering light. Booths allow conversation without intrusion. There’s polish, but not stiffness, the kind of room where you can dress up if you want to, but won’t feel out of place if you don’t.
You notice the quiet. The spacing between tables. The absence of rush.
For a county where dining often skews casual, seasonal, or tourism-driven, that sense of occasion fills a meaningful niche.
Finding its footing in Pike County…
Pike County’s restaurant landscape has long been shaped by its geography: scenic routes, weekend visitors, historic inns, and a strong casual dining culture. Upscale options exist, but consistency at that level hasn’t always been easy to find.
The Landing seems to understand that opportunity. It leans into classic steakhouse strengths, quality protein, attentive service, thoughtful drinks, and a dining room that encourages lingering, while maintaining the warmth of a family-run establishment.
Perhaps most interesting is how little the hotel location ultimately matters. What could feel like a limitation instead becomes an afterthought once you’re seated.
You stop thinking about where you are. You start paying attention to what’s on the table.
A restaurant still evolving…
The recent menu adjustments suggest a restaurant listening closely: refining pricing, rotating oyster selections, experimenting around the edges while protecting what works. That kind of calibration, quiet, steady, unshowy, is often how good restaurants mature into truly reliable ones.
And reliability, especially in an upscale setting, builds loyalty.
You don’t leave The Landing talking about the hotel. You leave talking about the steak, the service, the unexpectedly elegant room, and perhaps already planning when you’ll return.
In Pike County, that kind of understated consistency may be exactly what keeps the tables full.
