Pittsburgh: Up Modern Kitchen (November 2013)

My spouse and I dined at Up Modern Kitchen for lunch on a Saturday afternoon in mid-November 2013. The restaurant participates in the Open Table reservation system, although we just walked in. There is street parking as well as a parking lot and parking garage nearby. The restaurant is located on the corner of busy Walnut and Bellefonte Streets, so be sure to allow some time before or after your meal to stroll through some of the shops. This was my first visit to Shadyside (and the return visit for my spouse after 20+ years), and it will not be our last!

The restaurant is located on the second/top floor of the building, with both stair and elevator access. One-half of the restaurant is comprised of more of a bar-type area (with both bar seating and tables), and the other is the dining room. There are a good number of windows to let in light, and the space seems open and airy and slightly industrial in appearance.

The lunch/brunch menu (Saturday and Sunday only) is a bit limited; we liked to have a multi-course lunch, and there really were not any appetizers on the menu with the exception of soup (which they ran out of before we dined). The sandwich offerings are more interesting than they sound, and all come with finely-cut Parmesan herb shoestring-type French fries. The lunch/brunch menu consists of about 5 breakfasty options (eggs, waffles), 5 sandwiches, and 5 salads. We ordered a meatball sandwich and an Italian sandwich, which were both tasty, although both were served on a smallish round roll, not the longer submarine-type hoagie roll that we had expected. The dinner menu (served Tuesday through Sunday nights) sounds much more interesting and extensive. (Although the brunch menu that we ordered from was a la carte, we have recently heard that brunch is now buffet format.)

We would give Up Modern Kitchen another try for dinner if we find ourselves in Shadyside.