Heinz Hall's Garden Cafe a lunchtime world unto itself
Lunch on a working day is usually anything but a normal dining experience. Few people can shed work's pressures just by walking out the door for an hour, and time is a factor because of the need to get back to work.
The Garden Cafe at Heinz Hall may be the answer. A waterfall and a water sculpture in the garden create more than a refreshing ambiance. The sound the moving water creates is a kind of white noise that masks most street sounds and helps make the garden a world unto itself.
Although tables are reserved for cafe customers, there are benches along the wall facing Liberty Avenue for people who want to bring their own lunch.
The cafe is open in the summers and began its current season on June 4. It is catered by Common Plea, which took its patrons' special lunchtime needs into consideration when it planned its service.
“One of the components people weigh in deciding where to eat lunch is being able to do it and get back to work in a timely way,” says Carl Mancuso, vice president of Heinz Hall. “Common Plea came up with an innovative ordering system where you order and pay when you arrive (before going to your table),” he says. “You're served your meal on china. You can eat as quickly or as leisurely as you like, but when you're ready to go, you don't have to take time dealing with the check and tip.”
The salads and sandwiches on the menu are freshly prepared for each customer. Breads and rolls are baked by Common Plea right at Heinz Hall. The cafe staff consists of four servers, one cook at the grill, two people inside making everything else, and the manager.
“The tastes we're going for are fresh and contemporary,” says Martin Vecillio, senior vice president of catering for Common Plea. “We looked at all the restaurants in the area before we put our menu together. We tried to make it different, except for the burger. The menu is completely different from last year. It was a trial menu, but we've gotten such wonderful feedback, we decided to keep it.”
The most popular sandwich so far this season is open-faced turkey and Gorgonzola, served with a small mixed salad with balsamic vinaigrette dressing, $7.99. Other sandwiches include a grilled vegetable panini, with portobello mushrooms, sweet Holland pepper, zucchini, yellow squash and artichoke mayo, served with French fries, $6.79, and a chicken and brie wrap, $6.59. The burger is a double patty with standard toppings, $6.99.
Salads include the trio of tuna, pesto chicken salad and grilled vegetables on a bed of greens, $8.99, and the chopped salad, which is made with seasonal greens, tomato, cucumber, hard-boiled egg, Gorgonzola crumbles, carrots, broccoli and zucchini, with choice of dressing, $8.69.
Beverages — lemonade, iced tea, soda or coffee — are $2.79. All prices include a 10 percent gratuity for the servers.
Vecillio's office is in Heinz Hall because Common Plea also operates the Mozart Room, which provides dinner service before evening concerts, and does a lot of catering business based at the hall.
“The garden has been open since the hall opened in 1971, always with a luncheon cafe, but with each caterer comes a different approach and different levels of service and commitment,” Mancuso says. “We're very fortunate to have Common Plea catering for us now.”
Heinz Hall Garden Cafe, Sixth Street and Liberty Avenue, Downtown. Hours: 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, through Labor Day — weather permitting. Details: 412-281-5140 or www.commonplea-restaurant.com.
Mark Kanny is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at mkanny@tribweb.com or 412-320-7877.
