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The Best of 1999/Dining
Friday, December 31, 1999 By Woodene Merriman, Post-Gazette Dining Critic
Let's call this a list of the 10 Better New Restaurants reviewed by the Post-Gazette in 1999.
It was not a year for blockbuster new restaurants. Laforet came back, after a six-year hiatus, and Le Mont got an injection of new money and new enthusiasm from a new owner.
But most of the new restaurants reviewed this year fall into the "nice but not exceptional" category. That's good news, actually. Pittsburgh needs more of these restaurants -- places where you can eat without mortgaging the house, where you can dress casually, eat in pleasant surroundings, and be reasonably sure you'll find something on the menu to your liking.
His Honor and I would be happy to go back, on our own dime, to any of the restaurants on the following list.
Owners Clint Pohl and Michael McMullen seem to know what people want. It's "casual/fine dining" at affordable prices in pleasant surroundings (the space where Hohmann's used to be).
They brought in Michael Rudman, former banquet chef at the Monterey Bay Fish Grotto restaurants, as executive chef. Not surprisingly, crab cakes are a big seller here -- as they are at Monterey Bay. Rudman has injected his own touch, of course.
His Honor likes the restaurant's approach to wines -- 20 bottles under $20, a good way to introduce the timid to new wines. Finer wines are available, too.
The menu changes four times a year, with the seasons. Big sellers now are an appetizer of ahi tuna slice rare, pickled ginger, wasabi, soy and black sesame seeds, and an entree of a veal chop stuffed with pancetta, spinach and sundried tomatoes with a Chianti bordelaise.
1616 Mt. Nebo Road, Ohio Township, 412-749-2452.
Go to Benjamin's in the middle of the winter and you can eat outdoors in shirt sleeves, even when snow is falling. The part of the patio enclosed by clear plastic is one of the popular features of the college-town restaurant.
The restaurant is in a big Victorian home; seven of the rooms are used for dining. The menu is "Indiana casual," and the prices are Indiana style, too. Most dinners are in the $10 range. Owners Peggy and Ben Bruns are well aware that there's a difference in what works in Indiana and what works in Pittsburgh; they are part owners of Big Burrito Inc. Casbah, one of Big Burrito's Pittsburgh restaurants, now has the same clear plastic covering the open walls of the patio dining area.
The menu changes two or three times a year. One recent addition that's been a big hit is pollo Sorrentino, two chicken breasts stuffed with cheese, spinach and pancetta, and served with a wine mushroom sauce, an idea the owners picked up in Colorado. Benjamin's is one of a growing number of area restaurants that price wines $10 above their cost. It's a well-chosen list, too.
468 Philadelphia St., Indiana, 724-465-4446.
The space in Fifth Avenue Place is familiar; it used to be Scoglio's. But it has a glass divider now between the bar and the main dining room, new draperies, upholstery and paintings of Italian scenes in antique gold frames. The result is a restful, pleasant-looking room.
The menu is all-new, too. It's basically Italian, but has a little bit of everything, including Mc-Kinney's popular crab cakes. Every day there are specials, and when it's lamb osso buco, it's an immediate sell-out. Chef David McKinney's wife Christine is the pastry chef, a big plus for Caffe Amante. A surprise best seller on the appetizer menu: marinated calamari with lemon, basil, tomatoes and olives.
Fifth Avenue Place, 120 Fifth Ave., Downtown, 412-391-1226.
There is no ambiance at Il Valletto. Of necessity, tables are close together. Be prepared to walk sideways through them if you go to the restroom. But that's part of the charm of this tiny (30 seats) restaurant on Forbes, not far from Carnegie Museum.
The main attraction, however, is the food. Chef/owner Mario Marotta serves up fine, carefully made Italian dishes like halibut in parchment, tagliatelle with pesto and pecorino cheese and veal scaloppine with red wine and mushrooms. Appetizers and desserts (like the lemon custard cake) get just as much attention as entrees. Every day there are specials, created from whatever Marotta could find fresh in the market. It's all no smoking (except at the 20 outdoor seats in good weather). You can take your own wine, and eat for $15 or less. So who cares about ambiance?
4626 Forbes Ave., Oakland, 412-621-3550.
Fine food, fine wines, the lavishness of crystal and silver, dinner as the event of the evening, people spending a leisurely 2 to 21/2 hours at the table -- this is the level of dining Michael and Robert Uricchio enjoy most. So last summer they reopened Laforet in the same, but redecorated, space they left six years ago.
And that's exactly what you get at the new Laforet. Every dish is a beautiful presentation, one that evokes a little gasp of admiration when the dish is placed in front of you, and another when you sample the food.
The best way to sample Michael Uricchio's blend of light, classically based, contemporary French cuisine is the gourmand menu, or five set courses in slightly smaller portions. A minimum of two people is needed for the $55-per-person gourmand dinner. If you prefer to order a la carte, hors d'oeuvre are $7.75 to $12.50, salads are $4.75-$12.50, and entrees are $19.75-$28.75.
Laforet has a fine wine list. The vintages are also noted on the list, which doesn't often happen.
Some new dishes will be on the menu next week. Favorites like Dover sole, salmon, lots of foie gras and lobster, will still be featured. But pheasant, rabbit, venison and other winter dishes will be added.
5701 Bryant St., Highland Park. 412-665-9000.
The new Le Mont was a work in progress when I reviewed it, and it still is. The restaurant is all white, gold and silver now, with big crystal chandeliers, new china and silver, and the same great view of Downtown Pittsburgh. Some work remains in the lounge; one wall may open up into a new addition.
New chef Bill Aschenbrenner kept some of the old favorites on the menu, and added some of his own. The wine list is better than ever, and new owner Ed Dunlap has vowed to make it the best around. More menu changes are expected in January. I hope both the food and the service will continue to improve.
On Jan. 16, Sunday night swing dancing with a live band begins.
Le Mont's menu is a la carte, with entree prices ranging from $19.95 for herb chicken boursin to $28.95 for steak Diane. (Specials can be higher.)
1114 Grandview Ave., Mount Washington, 412-431-3100.
From the outside, it looks like a neighborhood bar -- a small, square, windowless building, parking lot on the side, neon beer sign over the front door.
Inside, they're serving cutting-edge culinary creations like grilled marinated pork loin with fresh port and pear chutney, and a glass of Lindeman's pinot noir especially selected to go with it. If you prefer a different wine, the Mighty Oak Barrel has about two dozen other selections by the glass -- a rarity in Pittsburgh.
What's more, prices are reasonable for the quality and style of dinners they're dishing up. The pork loin, with bread, potato and vegetable of the day as well as the glass of wine, is $11.95. If you prefer a three-course, fixed-price dinner, it's $25. Again, that includes the wine.
Owners Lisa Rusak, who is in charge of the kitchen, and Grainne Trainor, the wine guru, have a lot of experience in the restaurant business, and are obviously enjoying striking out on their own.
The Mighty Oak Barrel is such a good restaurant that I wish it had a nicer space. It seats only 36 people, with maybe 15 more at the bar. It's noisy when the restaurant is full. But then again, the space is part of the appeal. Who would expect such a good food and wine in a neighborhood restaurant?
939 Third St., Oakmont, 412-826-1069.
Paul J's opened in mid-April, and over the summer built up a repeat clientele of people who like not only the food, but the BYOB policy. No corkage charge.
Dishes are prepared to order, so you have time to drink your wine. They're served family style, and they're big. You need a tote bag for all the leftovers you take home in little white boxes.
Along with pastas and polenta, and several seafood choices, Paul J's menu has chicken, veal and steak, all with a Northern Italian touch. The grilled New York strip steak, for example, comes with pan-roasted mushrooms, shallots, garlic, wine, herbs, gorgonzola and a fancy name: bistecca fungo Gorgonzola.
Paul J's is not fancy. The room is decorated with fake grapevines, and the china doesn't match. Perry Como records play in the background, and happy chatter can be heard throughout the room.
For a trattoria, the prices may seem a little high. Stuffed pepper appetizers are $6.50; bistecca fungo Gorgonzola is $18. But remember, you'll be eating this tomorrow, too, for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
908 Main St., Sharpsburg, 412-782-6866.
Every dish H.H. and I tried at Pino's encouraged us to want more. Chef/owner Joseph Mico uses first-rate ingredients, like free-range chickens. Fresh vegetables and herbs arrive every day. He makes his own chicken and veal stock, starting with the bones, and his own gourmet bread crumbs from the day-old bread from the nearby Baker Street bakery.
He's constantly upgrading, and adding new menu items like London broil and veal cutlet with his own touches. Among the big sellers are veal dishes, shrimp romano and turkey sausage (made from his dad's Italian sausage recipe).
The restaurant expanded once this year, taking over the fish market next door.
2100 Murray Ave., Squirrel Hill, 412-521-3121.
It's a pizza shop growing into a full-scale Italian restaurant. Nothing pretentious, small, crowded, sometimes noisy, but good service and good food at reasonable prices in a clean, bright, smoke-free room. I like the penne vodka, the salmon grilled with raspberry vinaigrette and the veal piccata.
His Honor likes the free glass of wine served with dinners. (Otherwise, it's BYOB.) We both like the attention to details -- such as parmesan cheese ground directly onto your entree, and an aged balsamic vinegar for your salad.
Chef owner Jeff Clyde, formerly of the Georgetown Inn on Mount Washington, is developing new specials for the new year. Among them, filet mignon on top of grilled tomatoes, topped with shallots and a light balsamic vinegar sauce, and veal and shrimp florentine.
55W Alpha Drive, Harmarville, 412-828-9010.
Call it musical restaurants. Scoglio's moved from Fifth Avenue Place, Downtown, to Pine Bridge Commons in Upper St. Clair. Then Scoglio's Uptown, in the Law and Finance building, started serving dinner as well as lunch.
Meanwhile, Caffe Amante moved into Fifth Avenue Place when Scoglio's moved out, and David McKinney, of the short-lived Ciro's in Market Square, moved to Caffe Amante as chef.
Scoglio's has a devoted following, wherever the restaurant is -- people who are addicted to their shrimp scampi, Virginia spots and crab imperial. Traditional veal osso buco is a big seller now, too. The wine list continues to grow, more robust reds are being added. This current feature: Wolfblass Presidential Select shiraz from Australia.
1580 McLaughlin Run Road, Upper St. Clair, 412-257-1880.
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