Sunset Café (Greensburg)

A while back R. and I made an unplanned trip to Sunset Cafe in Greensburg. We had just spent the afternoon touring the spectacular Fallingwater and our dining options were limited on a Sunday evening, so we gave this place a try. It turned out to be quite a pleasant surprise! We munched on some fabulously crunchy, housebreaded Fried Zucchini, served with both a red sauce and an aioli sauce, while we waited for our main courses. I had also ordered a House Salad, which is actually much more interesting and your typical house salad, complete with beets and pasta, along with greens, romaine, tomatoes. I loved my Penne Melanzane, served with roasted eggplant, diced heirloom tomatoes, basil, parsley, sweet onion, pine nuts, and golden raisins. It was a bold choice for me as I haven't always been a fan of eggplant growing up, but I have learned to love it prepared Italian-style. R., whose standard is a chicken dish, enjoyed his Roasted Airline Chicken, served with herb au jus, grilled asparagus, and "salt-roasted twice-fried" fingerling potatoes. I'm still not quite sure what an "airline chicken" is, but R. gave it a two thumbs up! We were also extremely impressed with our amazing server/hostess, Sara, who was responsible for every table at the restaurant and yet never missed a beat. All in all, Sunset Cafe was an excellent find and one that I would revisit in a heartbeat.

Fried Zucchini

House Salad

Penne Melanzane

Restaurant info:
Sunset Cafe
302 S Urania Ave, Greensburg, PA 15601
(724) 834-9903
Web


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The Headkeeper (Greensburg)

The Headkeeper

I had heard that The Headkeeper in Greensburg is a great destination for craft beer lovers, so one day R. and I decided to check it out. From the outside, The Headkeeper looks like a slightly rundown warehouse, which took me a bit by surprise. Inside, it is quite spacious, and there is a very nice, large outdoor patio area as well.

Magic Hat's Hicü and Bell's Oberon Ale

Having a good beer selection doesn't always translate into good food being served, so I wasn't quite sure what to expect of the food at The Headkeepers. We decided to order a couple of dishes that sounded fantastic: One was the feature of the day, which was a Ginger-Sory Marinated Blackened Mahi Mahi with a Sierra Nevada Citrus-Pan Sauce, while the other was a Stone Oven Pizza with Lobster, Spinach, and Scallion, drizzled with Truffle Aioli. The flavors of the sauce on the mahi mahi made up for the fact that the fish was a bit too well done, while the pizza was pretty much flawless, with a crust that is crispy on the bottom and chewy inside, and an aioli that had a nice garlicky sour cream taste to it.

Mahi Mahi ($11)

Lobster Pizza ($14)

Overall, we enjoyed our meal at The Headkeeper, and we are happy to have found a restaurant that serves both good beer and good food. 

Restaurant info:
Headkeeper
618 S Main St, Greensburg, PA 15601
(724) 838-7439
Web | Facebook


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Pepperwood Grille (Greensburg)

It is not often that R. gets to introduce me to a restaurant he's discovered, but Pepperwood Grille was one exception. He fell in love with the sweet potato pizza there and was excited to have me try it.

So off to Pepperwood Grille we went one Saturday evening. We decided to start out with a couple of appetizers. The Spinach and Artichoke Stuffed Mushrooms, topped with a parmesan cream sauce, were pretty standard, but tasty. The Firecracker Shrimp was a bit more unique, tossed in a lightly spicy aioli and served over jasmine rice. We both agreed it was excellent!

Spinach and Artichoke Stuffed Mushroom

Firecracker Shrimp

Then, onto the star of the evening: the Sweet Potato Pie. The mashed sweet potato base is topped with caramelized onions, roasted red peppers, goat cheese, and arugula. It was really interesting, and quite good. R. was a bit disappointed that the mashed sweet potatoes didn't have as much flavor as he'd remembered, but overall, we enjoyed it. And, for what it's worth, it inspired me to make my own version of it, which you will see in my next post. :)

Sweet Potato Pie

Sweet Potato Pie

In sum, Pepperwood Grille is a good option out in this neck of the woods!

Restaurant info:
Pepperwood Grille
5290 East Pittsburgh St., Greensburg, PA 15601
(724) 853-8121
On the web: http://pepperwoodgrille.net/


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The Supper Club: Take Two (Greensburg)

Not too long ago I recounted my visits to The Supper Club in Greensburg on this blog.  The Supper Club made such an impression on us that we decided to dine there for our New Year's Eve date night.

The weather outside may have been a bit snowy, but inside The Supper Club it is cozy.  For New Year's Eve, The Supper Club offered a special three-course prix-fixe menu filled with mouthwatering options.  As fans of squash, we both picked the Heritage Farms Acorn Squash Bisque for our first course, with grated old cold gouda and apple and truffle oil garnish.

Heritage Farms Acorn Squash Bisque

For the main course, I selected the Seared Rare to Well Salmon, which is seared on one side only, giving it the characteristic gradual doneness (hence, "rare to well").  It came with black sesame sticky rice and tempura broccolini in a coconut green curry broth.

Seared Rare to Well Salmon

The winner of the evening, however, was R.'s Seared Sea Scallops, with crab risotto, Hidden Hills Allegheny Cheese, and sauteed spinach, in a roasted red pepper beurre blanc that is to die for.

Seared Sea Scallops

For dessert, I picked the Roasted Pear, served with Chambord Anglaise and a hazelnut florentine. R. went for the Croissant Bread Pudding with whiskey caramel sauce topped with a dollop of vanilla gelato.

Roasted Pear, Chambord Anglaise, Hazelnut Florentine

Croissant Bread Pudding

It was another great visit to The Supper Club and a lovely way to toast 2012 goodbye!

Happy New Year!

Restaurant info:
The Supper Club
101 Ehalt St, Greensburg, PA 15601
(724)691-0536
On the web: http://www.supperclubgreensburg.com/
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheSupperClubRestaurant


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Zozo's Pub (Greensburg)

Update (4/26/2013): Zozo's Pub is closed.

We met up for dinner with some friends who live in Greensburg and they suggested Zozo's Pub.  Despite its name, and the connotation that comes with "pub food," Zozo's Pub is really much more than "just a pub."

First off, Zozo's Pub has a fun, hip atmosphere, as these photos from Zozo's Facebook page can testify.  Secondly, the food is excellent.  Though featuring casual fare like sandwiches and burgers, each dish is thoughtfully crafted and made well.

R. and I shared a Sweet Corn Risotto Cake appetizer.  The risotto cake was made with a nice balance of corn and parmesan, and the light panko breading gave it a perfectly crunchy texture that didn't feel too heavy or filling.  The cake was topped with parmesan crisps, which was a nice touch.

Sweet Corn Risotto Cake ($7.95)

Our waitress seemed like she was new, as she appeared young and was rather forgetful.  She had submitted the wrong order for my meal, though she had caught the error herself prior to serving our meals.  Because my real order of Pig Burger was put in later than everyone else's order, the waitress gave me some free Pig "Wings" while I waited.  These Pig Wings were wing-sized pork tenderloin strips wrapped in bacon and grilled with a lovely Asian barbecue sauce, served atop coleslaw.  These were quite good as well.

Pig "Wings" ($6.95)

I was quite full by the time my Pig Burger finally arrived, but I still manage to eat half of it because was absolutely delicious!  The patty was made with juicy sweet Spanish sausage, and served with grilled apple slices, bacon, and smoked gouda cheese.  It was easily one of the best burgers I've ever had.  The side of Sweet Potato Wedges was generous in proportion and chock full of flavor.

Pig Burger ($9.95)

Maple Butter Sweet Potato Wedges

Despite the waitress's mistake, we had a fabulous meal at Zozo's Pub.  I will be back!

Restaurant info:
Zozo's Pub
1517 Broad St, Greensburg, PA 15601
(724)420-5290
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Zozosgreensburg


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The Supper Club (Greensburg)

The Supper Club in Greensburg is one of the more unique dining establishments I have had the pleasure to experience (twice!) lately.  Housed in a historic train station that continues to service Amtrak, I was immediately in awe by its charming facade and elegant interior.

The Supper Club, at dusk

The Supper Club, at night

The Supper Club, at night

Inside The Supper Club

Speaking of the interior, it is divided into a gastropub area (shown above), the dining room, and additional space up in the loft overlooking the gastropub which I'd imagine is for private or large parties.  The Supper Club offers a reasonably-priced gastropub menu, a pricier Farm to Table menu, and a special Chef's Tasting menu for which, I believe, special advanced arrangements must be made.

The food, from appetizers to desserts to the daily entree special, was generally interesting, tasty, and all-round fantastic.

Morel Mushroom and Goat Cheese Toasts

Mahi Mahi Special

Farm to Table Five Star Burger
(Or as R. called it, "The Best Burger I've Ever Had in My Life.")

Asparagus, Ham, Goat Cheese, & Chive Pizza

Cake Brulee
(Like Creme Brulee, but with chunks of caramelized cake) 

White Chocolate Macademia Cheesecake

Fruit Crisp
(Served with homemade creme fraiche gelato)

Though we did meet with some slow service on one of our visits, we were generally pleased with our friendly and professional waiter.  He was fun, knowledgeable, and made a definite impression on us.  All in all, The Supper Club is an excellent restaurant with character.

Restaurant info:
The Supper Club
101 Ehalt St, Greensburg, PA 15601
(724)691-0536
On the web: http://www.supperclubgreensburg.com/
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheSupperClubRestaurant


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