There’s a version of a pasta dish that plays it safe — inoffensive, forgettable, something you eat and move on from. And then there’s the seafood czarina at The Cellar in Owego, which is none of those things.
I ordered it during my trip down to the area, courtesy of Experience Tioga, and it stopped me mid-bite. It’s a hearty pasta cooked in a spicy cream sauce with scallops, shrimp, and lobster. The sauce had depth and heat. The seafood was the real deal. The whole thing came together in a way that made it feel intentional — like someone in that kitchen has been thinking about this dish for a while.
The Cellar has the kind of energy that makes you want to settle in. Not a place you rush through. A place you let the meal happen and you soak in the town’s history displayed in photos on the walls.
The Cellar has been open since 1982, making it one of the longer-running dining institutions along the Susquehanna River in historic Owego. The restaurant actually started in the basement of its building — true to its name — before flooding in 2004, 2005, and 2006 forced the previous owners to move the operation up to street level. John and Stephanie Whitmore took took over in 2024. More than four decades in, it’s still the kind of place Owego points to when it wants to make a case for itself.
The Cellar is participating in Eat Local New York Restaurant Week presented by Summit Federal Credit Union. Head down to Tioga County, find this restaurant, and order the czarina. You’ll thank yourself.
A huge thank you to Experience Tioga for bringing me down to explore everything this region has to offer, and to The Summit Federal Credit Union for sponsoring Eat Local New York Restaurant Week (April 13–26, 2026). If you haven’t checked out the participating restaurants yet, head to our Restaurant Week page to find a spot near you.
The Cellar Restaurant & Lounge
196 Front Street, Owego, NY
Find them on social media here
