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| - The Porch is Eat 'N Park's newest upscale restaurant, after the success of Six Penn. Huge windows face Schenley Plaza with none facing Club Hillman--I dig. Clean, modern chateau feel that makes me wish there was an ice skating rink on the lawn. Alas...
For lunch, you order and take a number. For dinner, it's full service.
The lunch menu ranges from $7-14 for an entree. The grilled cheese was made with cheddar and thick thick bread--I approve! It also came with the day's soup so that's probably the best value on the menu. To compare: $7 here with soup and $5.99 for a grilled cheese with no soup at Hemingway's. The chopped salad (pulled chicken, feta, carrots, cucumbers, sprouts with honey dijon) was super fresh...only romaine lettuce here! The chicken was perhaps slightly drier than I preferred, but it is pulled chicken. The server was very nice when I asked for no tomatoes.
At the beverage bar, the water is in jugs with lemon or cucumbers, which is a small detail I like. It looks pretty and helps me forget I'm still in Oakland.
The wine list looked fine, but I was interested in the brews. Like the food, it's all local: Penn, East End, Great Lakes, plus one seasonal at $5 each. Only one thing kept me from the beers--the craft cocktails. I ordered an "Almost" Arnie. Having just returned to The 'Burgh from an extended stint in the South, I was prepared to be disappointed. But, nope! This Arnie is The Porch's own Limoncello and fresh brewed iced tea with mint: sweet but not too sweet, the mint was properly muddled, and the tea was strong. I loved Arnie...it will be a July wedding for the two of us.
Like others have said and will continue to say, the food is expensive for Oakland. You either want to pay extra for better food or you don't. However, the drink prices are great for the quality. If I can have a $5 microbrew that I want here or a $4 Miller Lite that I don't want at any other bar in Oakland, then I'll pay the extra dollar.
NOTE: There are no reservations taken, but you can put yourself on their online wait list and skip the line when you arrive: http://www.theporchatschenley.com/waitlist.aspx.
WIFI NOTE: You can pick up Pitt's wifi from here. Wine while I work? Yes, please.
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