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Munch goes back to Dish
Friday, February 23, 2001 By Munch
Well, the "secret" is out.
And that's not all.
Dish, the new osteria on the South Side, has been so busy that
one night early last week, they were out of, except for one Chianti, red
wine.
And an osteria, in Tuscany, is a wine bar.
"I never thought I'd sell so much wine," the owner was apologizing to a
couple seated near Munch.
But there's no reason to apologize. Just bring a pint of Sierra Nevada
pale ale for Munch, and a glass of the Chianti for Munch's date, and give
us a just little more time to figure out what wonderful morsels to order
from the food menu.
Dish isn't really a secret.
You Munch regulars read it here first way back in October, right after
Pittsburgh's first-ever osteria opened.
That was way before they got the kitchen up and running, but Munch
already had a good feelings about this chic renovated,
off-the-beaten-track corner tavern.
Now that Dish has fed them, those feelings have blossomed into love.
Munch will never forget the first meal there, shared with three best
friends. We literally ordered the entire menu, save for, due to a shrimp
allergy, the gamberi sauteed in garlic and olive oil.
It wasn't difficult, not just because the menu was smaller at the
start, but also because the portions are small -- Spanish
tapas-style items meant to go down easily with drinks and friends.
We chomped and chatted as we shared our way through the olives (in an
intoxicating homemade marinade), the bruschetta (bread toasted with
tomatoes, basil, garlic and olive oil), a cheese and sausage plate,
Sicilian-style meatballs, roasted sweet peppers, lentils and sausage
casserole, pasta e fagioli soup, grilled calamari, and
mussels in white wine, garlic, tomatoes and fresh herbs. The plates
ranged in price from $2.50 to $6.50 and each one held enough to share.
We kept the wine and beer coming, too.
It was a fabulous feast.
And Dish hasn't disappointed since.
Last week, two of us started with tapas (bruschetta and grilled
calamari) but expanded our horizons to the menu's second page to try two
entrees, a mushroom pasta dish in an unusual brown sauce, and one of the
night's specials, which was a tuna steak all juicy in an even more
wonderful sweet balsamic vinegar sauce with spinach on the side.
We didn't have room to foray into the final frontier -- the desserts,
which include the Italian flan called panna cotta.
Again, it was fabulous.
So fabulous, in fact, that Munch rather wishes the place were more
secret. Or, at least, just up the street from home.
Even on a Monday night, several of the tables were occupied, and the
drinkers lined the bar, which normally is fabulously stocked with great
wine selections. lots of beers and more.
If you go, don't expect TVs or video games -- Dish is designed to be an
adult haven, where people can actually talk to each other. It's dark and
sophisticated, but candlelit and cozy and comfortable.
We needed a place like this.
As another Dish fan recently raved, "Long live dinners after 9 p.m.!"
This is what Munch told him, and it goes for you too:
Just don't tell anyone.
Dish is at 128 S. 17th St., South Side (412-390-2012). Hours are 4
p.m. to 2 a.m. Mon.-Sat. The kitchen is open until 11:30 or midnight on
weekdays and until 1 a.m. Fri.-Sat.
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