Around Back Cafe is worth seeking out
Background
The Around Back Cafe is the exception to the rule that location is everything.
The entrance to the six-year-old Lower Burrell restaurant -- quite literally -- is around the back, not visible from Wildlife Lodge Road, in the basement of a building that has had high turnover on its main floor.
So, the packed parking lot and the half-hour wait for a table in the dining room came as a pleasant surprise on a recent Wednesday evening.
Manager Kieran Brooke, one of four partners who bought the restaurant a year ago, says they've made the location work.
Brooke, who has worked in restaurants for about 10 years and has a Penn State hotel-management degree, oversees daily operations. Greg Meyer is the primary investor.
Brooke says they've kept the name, the chefs and the menu largely the same. Only some minor renovations marked the change in ownership.
"It is a basement, so we're making the best of what we've got," he says.
Atmosphere
What they've got is a friendly, busy establishment with a wide variety of food. The atmosphere is reminiscent of a family Super Bowl pre-game party -- fun people, lots of food and a festive location.
The space is divided between a lively bar and a more mellow dining room. There also is an outdoor patio that was partially walled in for the winter; it includes a television and space for smokers.
The bar, which does not permit smoking, is decorated with more TVs, red walls, Pittsburgh sports decor and holiday lights. In addition to bar seating, there are about eight high-top tables.
Most of the seats in the bar were occupied the evening we visited, and waitresses wiggled through people standing to socialize. There was a constant buzz of conversation, but the crowd wasn't uncomfortably rowdy.
We opted for the dining room, which was quieter in sound and decoration. Muted white walls and about a dozen simple tables and booths were full of families and couples.
Menu
Unbeknownst to us, Wednesday is seafood night at Around Back, which likely accounted for some of the midweek crowd. Many plates of steamed crab legs were carried past us to other tables.
In addition to the Wednesday features, the restaurant has a temporary list of Lenten specials and more seafood options on its regular menu.
Brooke says the seafood is popular, but Around Back offers an array of pastas, steaks, sandwiches and wraps, pizza, dinner salads and more.
We started our meal with two appetizers: the Overstuffed Potato Skins ($5.25) and the Mushrooms with Crab Stuffing ($6.25).
The eight hearty, crispy potato skins included an unusual topping we appreciated: lots of chopped broccoli. It made us feel like we were eating healthy food -- if we ignored the melted cheese sauce, large bacon chunks and sour cream.
The four good-sized mushroom caps were filled with a tasty, buttery stuffing, but the crabmeat was a bit hard to detect.
Two of our three entrees kept up with the night's seafood theme.
The Broiled Seafood Platter ($14.95 from the Wednesday special menu, versus the $16.95 version on the Lenten menu) was overflowing with ocean treats. It included a large fillet of cod, two large shrimp filled with the same crab stuffing as our appetizer and two large scallops. We ordered a baked potato and a generous side salad as accompaniments.
The Shrimp Scampi ($15.95) was a plateful of penne pasta, six large shrimp and plenty of broccoli florets, sliced mushrooms and diced tomatoes, all coated in a buttery sauce with a light garlic flavor. We enjoyed the pasta, and had plenty left over for lunch the next day.
We sampled the Chicken Parmesan ($12.50), although "sampled" might not be the best word, given the huge portions. Two deliciously breaded chicken breasts were topped with melted mozzarella cheese and served with spaghetti and marinara sauce.
We waddled out of the restaurant with to-go boxes of Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie ($3.95). A few hours later, we made room for the creamy peanut butter mousse topped with chocolate and served on a crumbly crust.
Additional Information:
Around Back Cafe
Cuisine: American
Dining Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays; 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays
Entree price range: $9.50-$16.95
Notes: Major credit cards accepted. Special daily features. Wednesday seafood specials and Tuesday rib nights. Craft beers. Kids' menu
Address: 1155 Wildlife Lodge Road, Lower Burrell
Details: 724-337-1110 or website
