04/30/09

Great all around evening

by marpgh1

The outdoor decks made this such a great experience. There is no better way to enjoy the nice weather and great view of Pittsburgh. The food was greta. I got the espresso rubbed filet and think it is the most mouth watering, delicious dinner I have ever had. It is my new favorite dish. Kudos to the chef :). The server was nice and attentive but not over powering. I hate that. It was a greta evening. I encourage people to go and sit outside (bring a light jacket though).

• Pros: View, decks, food
• Cons: nothing

12/02/08

Good experience

by Kay1256

Loved the food! Loved our waitress! Loved the view! Only complaint was we had a bit of a wait when we arrived and there is no lobby to sit down in. Hostess arranged a round of drinks on the house though to get us through the wait. Overall, one of our favorite places and recommend to friends and family to go and get a steak. The steaks are the best!

• Pros: Food, View, Service
• Cons: Had a wait

07/23/08

Setting the record straight!

by kb741c

I was enjoying a very pleasant evening at The Coal Hill Steakhouse until it was disturbed abruptly by a table next to us. I could not help but to over hear another table in the dining room discussing their displeasure with their steak. The server was called over and I saw her take the steak away. During what I assumed to be the process of the kitchen preparing another steak for this disturbed person, I overheard the unpleasant (to say the least) disposition of these people. They were out for a free meal and it was obvious. The nerve of some people! It is embarrassing and extremely annoying that individuals who are obviously miserable to begin with even go out to eat with the sole purpose of disturbing and taking advantage of nice establishments. When the new steak was returned (very promptly I may add) this lady had the nerve to eat the entire thing and further complain that it was overcooked. I personally witnessed an entire waitstaff and management team be distracted from all others in order to please this woman and she was not having it, so she proceeded to the kitchen to distract the cooks as well. Seriously lady, STAY HOME! That was our first time at this restaurant and we went on the wonderful reviews and recommendations from good friends. Our service was relaxed and detail oriented. Our steaks were beyond amazing and the view was equally impressive. Only complaint is that this belligerent woman's tirade was tolerated to long. I would not ever own a restaurant for the fear of being forced to interact with people like this. Please do yourselves a favor and go try this place out and while you are there apologize for people like this! I hate writing these reviews online. I believe that 99% of them are biased in some shape or form, but I couldn't help but to over hear the intention to post a review about there "experience" online. Keep up the good work Coal Hill see you again soon!

• Pros: Great food, staff and of course view.
• Cons: n/a

07/22/08

Who taught Peter Clark how to prepare a steak?

by nalubabe00

My family and I ate at the Coal Hill Steakhouse for the first time last night and had a terrible experience. I ordered the 8oz Filet, medium rare (every place I have ordered "medium-rare," the steak is mostly pink and juicy). My steak came out mostly brown. I was nice about it and just asked for a much more rare steak. It came back again, even more well-done. Who taught this chef, Peter Clark, to prepare a steak? So, we asked to talk to management to let them know that we were never informed that medium rare at this restaurant is more like medium-well to well-done. Peter is the manager as well, and he told our server, "If they want to talk to me, tell them to come down and talk through the kitchen window." Great management skills Peter! I went down and calmly explained that both steaks were incorrectly prepared. He did not even look at me..looked down at the floor the entire time...and kept repeating, "That steak was medium rare! The menu explains it. You should have known." First of all, the way a steak is prepared does not fluctuate that much from restaurant to restaurant. And what a COWARD?! You are the manager of an expensive restaurant, LOOK at your customers! To top it off, the menu does not explain that he cooks medium rare steaks more like well done. Peter INSISTED that he was correct right to the customers face! When I showed him that it was not on the menu, he simply said, "It used to be." How would that help me, my first time there?! I would assume the manager would know this! All in all, TERRIBLE EXPERIENCE! Food is not that great for what you pay. Miserable servers. The head cook and manager all-in-one, Peter Clark, does NOT know how to prepare a steak...and he needs to learn management skills before anyone puts him in charge of their restaurant. Moral of the story...At Coal Hill Steakhouse, the customer is NEVER right and you eat what you get...a well-done, burnt steak!

• Pros: Excellent view!
• Cons: Terrible management by Peter Clark...COWARD! Peter, also the cook, does not know how to prepare a steak as ordered.

05/20/08

All Around Nice Evening

by Marley8765

I don't usually do this but we had such nice evening here. Everything from the moment we walked in was pleasant. They really seem to value customer service. The Chef came out and talked to our table and shared some stories. Our sevrer was unintrusive but good. The dinner was suberb... I reccommend the esprsesso rubbed filet with vidalia onions and mashed potatoes. I get the same thing everytime and it never disappoints me.

• Pros: food, view, service
• Cons: none

11/25/07

Best steak ever!!

by babst_9624

I recently had dinner here with family friends and I have to say everything was so good! We were greeted quickly and with a smile which is so refreshing these days. The menu is wonderful....it took me forever to pick out what I wanted because everything sounded so good. I ended up going with the filet and crab cakes which I might add were cooked perfectly (another pet peeve of mine). The steak sauce was the perfect touch. I told the chef when he visited our table (something he does a lot of from what I heard) that he should bottle it. It is so delicious!!! The prices were normal for a steakhouse, especially one on Mt. Washington. Our server was great...my water glass never went empty (the best sign of a great server to me). Overall I strongly recommend going there and taking friends :).

• Pros: Food, service, view, ambience
• Cons: nothing

11/18/07

We loved it!

by hungryme23

Best crabcake in the burgh! We enjoyed the lobster bisque also. The portions are huge and the prices are fair. The view of the city is best seen at night. I would definitely suggest going up at night time. My husband really appreciated the New York Srip with the sauce they serve it with. I would suggest this to any body but escpecially anyone trying to impress out of town guests. The service was good but parking can be a small issue. Worth checking out!

• Pros: View and food
• Cons: hard to get a reservation

11/17/07

Refreshing change

by murphslaw

Recently my boyfriend and i tried out this restaurant and were impressed. The food was beautiful and very tasty. The steak sauce is delicious and definitely signature. The service is very friendly and you get the feeling that the whole staff is really trying to make you comfortable. I love the casual atmosphere of the place and can't wait to go back. The prices are a little higher than we usually like, but it is easily made up for with quantity and quality.

• Pros: Portion size, drinks, view
• Cons: none found

11/17/07

Who is the Post-Gazette hiring!!??

by robbie29

I recently read a review in the Post-Gazette by some Millman person about The Coal Hill Steakhouse. The review was horribly written and from my experience was completely unfounded. I took friends up to this establishment for Light-up Night and was totally charmed by the whole experience. At our table we ordered the Crab Cakes, Prime Rib, Lamb Chops and the Filet Mignon. I could not coax a complaint from anyone at the table. The food was perfectly cooked and each sauce served complimented each respective dish. The service was attentive as well as knowledgable. There was a couple getting engaged in the dining room and everyone congratulated them. It was so cozy and friendly. The view is unbeatable of course. The only part of the review that I could agree with is that the dining room is attractive but needs a few minor updates. I really can not understand why the rude and poorly written review was even published. Outstanding place!!!!

• Pros: Food, service and view
• Cons: parking

10/25/07

best crabcakes in Pgh- awesome view- perfect date night

by rbieltz

My husband and I went to Coalhill Steakhouse on a Friday night and had a delicious, relaxing evening. Our window seat had a beautiful view of the city. Dinners include 2 choices of sides which I was impressed with since other Steakhouses have sides as a la carte. My hubby ordered Filet which I would rate at the same level as Ruth Chris. The chief's steak sauce was very good. I had the crab cakes which I believe are the best I have had in Pgh. Bold statement I know but the lump crab meat and little filler was the perfect combination. As a side note, I especially loved the homemade corn bread that was served before the meal.

I was very surprised reading some of the other reviews that stated problems with the service. Our waitress was extremely attentive and very personable and from what I remember, the wait staff was frequently checking on the tables around us.

We had a great date that night and we were full and relaxed when we left.

• Pros: Steak/Crabcakes, good wine list, view of city
• Cons: none