G&G is the place to be in Vandergrift

If you want to know what's going on in Vandergrift, just pay a visit to G&G Restaurant.

During a recent stop, our Lunch Bunch crew found out firsthand just what a mainstay the restaurant is.

G&G -- for George and Grace -- opened in 1968 as primarily a coffee and doughnut shop. But, when Mike Kakias and his wife, Debi, took over in 1982, they transformed the place into a full-service restaurant for breakfast and lunch.

We visited on a Tuesday afternoon and found all the booths in the front of the restaurant full, but we did find one in the back.

The clean and tidy restaurant focuses on great homemade food rather than fancy digs. A lunch counter serves solo diners, while booths handle couples and families.

We spied an order of the Homemade Chips ($4.59) at a nearby booth and decided we just had to try them; they were terrific. Thin, crisp and yummy, a huge overflowing platter arrived at our table and, despite our efforts, we had to pack the leftovers in two large containers to take back to the office for our colleagues. For added flavor, try dipping into the ranch dressing served with them.

The Smothered Chicken ($5.09) featured chicken tenderloin that was grilled and then topped with mushrooms and provolone cheese with shredded lettuce and tomato slices. The sandwich came on a fresh kaiser roll that was too soft and yielding to hold the sandwich together without us making a mess. No worries, we put our knife and fork to work and cut the sandwich piece by piece and enjoyed it immensely.

The Mandarin Chicken Salad ($6.99) was as good as the description on the menu. A bed of lettuce, tomato slices and cucumbers is mixed among sweet pecans and mandarin oranges then topped with tender bite-size pieces of grilled chicken. We liked that the lettuce was shredded and not the over-sized pieces of lettuce that have to be cut up. We recommend the raspberry vinaigrette dressing for this salad.

A Corned Beef & Swiss on Marbled Rye ($5.39) was outstanding. The bread was thick and fresh and the corned beef was some of the leanest we've ever had. The sandwich comes with tomato, lettuce and mayo. Potato chips and a pickle is served alongside.

A co-worker told us that we should try the terrific breakfast served at G&G. If our lunch is any indication, we look forward to it.

Compiled by Rebecca Killian, Sis Reola and guests. Meals are paid for by the Valley News Dispatch and are unrelated to advertising.