| rev:text
| - UPDATED: Just wanted to share that we attempted to visit for a third time when my husband's brother was in town in mid-November of 2014. We had reservations for 7:30 on a Tuesday, so we obviously figured we would be seated immediately. The brother and his girlfriend arrived a couple minutes before the reservation and were told to go up to the bar while they set the table and wait for the rest of the party. I arrived about a minute after and my husband a few minutes behind me as he needed to park due to the lack of valet during the week. There was no one at the host stand when either of us came in. So we went up to the bar, declined a drink... and waited, and waited. The bartender soon became deeply involved in picking a wine for a couple at the bar, not his fault. The brother eventually was able to flag down a waitress to ask if she could check on our table. She looked very annoyed. She eventually went over to the phone at the bar, called down, hung up the phone and said, dead pan, "no, it's not ready yet." Not a smile, not a sorry, not a "can we get you a drink on the house?" Meanwhile, there was an open table for 4 on that floor. The bartender eventually told us "that's for a reservation." "Yes, we have a reservation... for 25 minutes ago." "They must have specifically requested that table." They did, however, offer us the table right next to the door on the first floor though - the one with the 10 degree breeze coming in that night. No thank you. We were very insulted by the lack of table for our reservation, but more so by the lack of acceptable service. We decided to leave and spend $20 on pizza instead of $100+ per person and enjoyed much better service.. which is never the way it should be. Hopefully they solve this problem soon. We'll give it one more go when the insult has worn off.
My husband won't hesitate to tell you what his favorite restaurant in Pittsburgh is: Alla Famiglia. And to be honest, these days I agree with him!
While my husband enjoys many of the more "up and coming" restaurants with smaller portions and interesting flavor combinations, he often finds himself longing for the same quality food with better cuts of meat and bigger portions. This is where we satisfy both of our appetites for big flavor and, well, big portions. But to reduce Alla Famiglia to those two things alone would not do it justice.
Let's start out instead with addressing the two biggest critiques of this place: its location and the price. Yes, it is in Allentown, but they also have plenty of parking and valet if you prefer. Honestly, we drive almost everywhere to get dinner, so this is not an issue for us. The other thing I always hear about is how expensive it is. Some of those complaints come from people who I know have no problem giving their money to the big steakhouse chains, while getting a lot less value. No, it is not cheap. You will likely pay upwards of $50 for your entry. The veal chops are close to $70. But, that's not all you get. You get delicious, fresh baked bread, a spread, dipping oil and gustoso for same, a delicious salad, and homemade pasta served family style. If you wanted to be especially frugal, you could approach this place like an Olive Garden senior special: feast on the freebies and take your entree to go. But, even if you're full, it may be too difficult not to savor the meal as it comes out...
I've been here twice and my husband has been here three times (lucky - he got to go for work and he said they ordered almost every appetizer, all of which were apparently delicious). The first time I ordered the filet with gorgonzola. It was one of the most delicious and largest filets I've ever had. My husband ordered a veal chop with prosciutto which I don't think I recognized on the current menu, but he absolutely loved it. The veal chop is one of the largest bone-in cuts of meat I've seen and the sear on it was absolutely perfect. We also ordered the mussels, which were spicy and delicious, and the meatball appetizer, which I remember being tasty, but nothing too out of the ordinary. I think there are other things on the menu to try first.
The second time we came I ordered the Milanese veal chop, breaded, slightly citrusy, and absolutely heavenly. He had the cowboy ribeye which was also large and an absolutely beautiful cut of meat. The husband has a thing about fatty cuts and avoiding anything that is the least bit chewy, and he barely had to leave a piece on his plate. We also got the calamari appetizer, which was perfectly, lightly fried with a savory, garlic sauce that sets it apart from the sweet sauces often served with calamari.
Finally, I should note that the service we have received here has always been exceptional. Everyone is always professional and courteous.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)
![[cxml]](/fct/images/cxml_doc.png)
![[csv]](/fct/images/csv_doc.png)
![[text]](/fct/images/ntriples_doc.png)
![[turtle]](/fct/images/n3turtle_doc.png)
![[ld+json]](/fct/images/jsonld_doc.png)
![[rdf+json]](/fct/images/json_doc.png)
![[rdf+xml]](/fct/images/xml_doc.png)
![[atom+xml]](/fct/images/atom_doc.png)
![[html]](/fct/images/html_doc.png)