Note #1: This is housed in the historic D.L. Clark Building, a place where the crunchy, peanut-buttery, chocolate-coated confection known as The Clark Bar was once mass-produced. An old Clark sign can still be seen nearby. Offices and a cigar lounge also occupy the building.
Note #2: The Clark Bar & Grill is open on Saturdays for stadium events and has extended hours for such occasions.
For something that is supposedly a 20 year-old Pittsburgh institution, it's a surprise that it has gone unYelped for so long. Even more suprising is the fact that it never even comes up in conversations.
Alice Cooper was in town to horrify rockers at Stage AE, and Kay needed some grub before the show, so here we came.
CB&G is certainly looking over its shoulder due to its location. A sports fan will be impressed with all the memorabilia that decorates the walls. An autographed and framed Barry Bonds photo hung to the left of Kay's pretty little head.
Sandwiches and burgers dominate the simple American menu. A septet of salads, a daily soup, various appetizers, and a handful of entrees ranging from Southern fried chicken and gnocchi to broiled salmon round out their roster.
Oh, you know I got a burger, despite almost getting the fried chicken. Clark Bar & Grill offers 8 different kinds, but I went for the Boomer Burger, which they allege to be their "classic" burger.
Lettuce, tomato, onion, and mayonnaise (my standard build) fixed up this sturdy juicer of a patty with an even sturdier bun holding it all.
It had the most elegant and beautiful melt I've ever seen or eaten on a burger. Whoever grilled this must have use the cover-and-steam method like a Zen master for the golden American cheese caparisoned the luscious beef croquette like an evening gown would a baroness. CB&G has other more adventurous burgers on their menu, but who needs bleu cheese, black raspberry BBQ sauce, garlic, or Thousand Island Dressing when this kind of brilliant economy is just as satisfying?
Also exquisite was the toasty pile of unpeeled french fries; hot oil-plunged perfection.
If you went into a 5 star restaurant, were allowed to order whatever your palate desired, and chose a diner burger/fries combo, this is what you'd get.
Kay will likely do her own review, but Kay's Broiled Fish (cod with either Cajun or lemon pepper seasoning) didn't seem to excite her a heckuva lot. The common brownie a la mode was CB&G's sole dessert that day. Upon asking our proficient and kindly waitress Jill about the brownie's origins, she sheepishly admitted that it was frozen and then reheated. Hurm.
I have a feeling Kay's gonna give them a 3, but based on what I ordered, CB&G deserves a solid 4 stars. Skip the Tilted Kilt and try The Clark Bar & Grill for something sane, affordable, and respectable if a pre-event meal on the North Shore is what you need.
P.S. I am a little befuddled that the restaurant doesn't offer a dessert involving Clark Bars. Can they be deep fried? They can at least be incorporated into homemade vanilla ice cream, no?
P.P.S. I don't know how busy this place gets during Pirates or Steelers games since nothing was going on when we visited yesterday evening aside from the concert. read more