My spouse and I dined at Spoon for dinner on a Saturday
evening in mid-October 2017. We booked our table using the online Open Table
reservation system. Spoon is open for dinner daily and Sunday brunch. Spoon is
part of the S+P Restaurant Group,
which also operates Willow (in North Hills), BRGR (in Cranberry Township, East
Liberty, Mount Lebanon, PNC Park, and Downtown), and previously Grit &
Grace (later rebranded as G&G Noodle Bar and now housing the Downtown BRGR).
One of the owners previously worked with legendary California-based chef Gary
Danko.
Spoon opened in 2009 in East Liberty at the corner of South
Highland Avenue and Centre Avenue/Penn Circle South in the space previously
occupied by Red Room. The flagship location of BRGR is next door; in fact, the
two spaces are connected by an interior hallway and seem to share some restroom
facilities. You can see the restaurant’s namesake utensil as the handles on its
front door and again inside as a sculpture. Spoon’s corner location allows for
huge windows on two sides of the large space. The focal point of the space is
the original 1920s earth-tone tile floor with mosaic patterns. Wall sconces and
beige walls create a warm effect, with seating in one of two main areas of the
L-shaped space. Patrons dine at free-standing tables, tables that share a teal banquette
on one side, one L-shaped teal padded booth, or at the small centrally located
bar positioned diagonally in the room. A tiny brick-walled interior courtyard
provides al fresco dining space, or you can relax on a comfy lounge chair in
front of the gas fireplace.
Spoon serves contemporary American cuisine. As we perused
the menu, our server took drink orders (one “Bees Knees” cocktail and one beer)
and delivered a basket with three types of bread (wheat baguette, mini corn
muffins, and the star of the basket, tiny cheese-filled buttermilk biscuits).
We shared two starters: the dan-dan (lo mein noodles with crumbled pork, bok
choy, and soft-cooked egg components) and the beef empanadas (with pineapple
salsa and hot sauce). As our main courses, we ordered the scallops (bay scallops served atop Israeli
couscous with shishito peppers, tomatoes, chorizo, and mushrooms; the tiny bay
scallops were an unexpected surprise, having only received larger sea scallops
in restaurant dishes previously) and hanger steak (expertly seasoned and
grilled, accompanied by squash puree and baby bok choy). For dessert, we
debated among three of the four delicious-sounding selections, and we were
thrilled when our choice of carrot cake arrived atop a cream cheese milkshake!
If you prefer a tasting-menu format, you can choose the four-course family-style
dinner; on the night that we dined, for $45 per person, couples were served
hearty portions of beef tartare, mussels, lamb shank with mashed potatoes, and
banana pavlova.
We enjoyed our dinner at Spoon – the food was tasty, the
service was excellent, and the environment was comfortably trendy.
