To My Dearest Elbow Room- you are the staple that holds my pittsburgh dining tapestry in place.
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Overview
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This place is amazing. I love it. The food is creative enough without being weird and- it is oh-so tasty. The drink are good, the service and staff are great... not enough good can be said. Go there, and enjoy yourself!
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Details
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I first went to the new Elbow Room in Shady Side with my dad. I was looking for a slightly-nicer-than-usual atmosphere to meet my dad for lunch. We struck gold.
FOOD:
Elbow Room has excellent food with reasonable prices that are above bargain-basement level. The burgers come on rectangular sushi-style plates with fries, and at first you will think "hey that's not a lot of food"... but shut your face, and dig in. You will be full. I promise. My personal favorite is the Famous Danish burger- it comes with blue cheese and capers... amazing. And they will cook it EXACTLY how you ask.
Also the salads are filling and delicious. No joke... try one. You won't be sorry. Our waiter DARED us to try to finish the taco salad too. They also have a great selection of sandwiches and a short but varied list of entres wich are fantastic as well.
Three Words: Sweet Potato Fries. Do not question.
DRINK:
There is always a good selection of beers on tap (not just IPAs like some of these places seem to think is cool these days) and their drink menu is great.
A great feature is their Reverse Happy Hour from 9-11 every night, featuring $5 Martinis. This features all kinds of creative and interesting drinks, served up cold and delicious. It rings in my mind that when I tried to do this once it didn't cover a standard gin martini (a personal favorite) but I may be imagining that.
Atmosphere:
Classy, but not the kind of place where jeans are discouraged. The booths are nice, with the feeling of an american fare steak place from the 1950's... very J.D. Salinger, Franny and Zooey-esc. Also, the wood work in the place is gorgeous and the lighting is bright enough while still being low enough to set the mood for a great dinner.
So do it. Go To elbow room.