Monday of this week I was in Pittsburgh, PA for work. I'd never been to Pittsburgh before and wasn't quite sure what to expect. Thankfully, the ladies who work in my company's Pittsburgh office could not have been more excited to show me around their city.
After a great day at the office we packed up and headed out to dinner. We parked right next to the Heinz History Center. Did you know Heinz ketchup is based in Pittsburgh? Yeah, me neither.
On the other side of the Heinz History Center was our dinner destination, Eleven.
Eleven is actually owned by the same company that owns Kaya (where we had lunch). The company is called Big Burrito and the ladies told me they run all the best restaurants in the city.
Eleven was warm and cozy, yet still very elegant. There weren't any tables available so we decided to sit at a high top in the bar area.
The bar was beautiful.
Next to the high top tables was a lounge area with couches. If I sat there after a hard work day, I'd never get up.
We climbed onto the chairs at the high top and started looking over the menus.
Each girl ordered a glass of red wine and I ordered the Leven-ade which was orange vodka, lemonade and raspberries. It tasted just like candy, which is exactly how I like my cocktails.
After placing our orders, a server came around with a bread basket. He described the three types of bread for the evening and then individually placed our selections on our bread plates.
I went with the parmesan and black pepper focaccia which was doughy with a crispy, cheesy crust.
Our dinner arrived and everyone's selections looked incredible!
To my left, a co-worker ordered the steak and fries. The plate was literally those two components, but even to me, the vegetarian, the meat looked fantastic.
To her left, a co-worker ordered the seafood tasting plate. It came with a piece of salmon, a piece of tile fish and a crab cake. How great is that? It's basically three entrees in one!
On my right, the third co-worker ordered two small dishes - the beet salad and the smoked Jamison Farm lamb taco.
Our waiter told us the lamb taco is his absolute favorite item on the entire menu.
I went with two small plates as well, the grilled cheese and the butternut squash and pumpkin soup.
The soup came garnished with fried onion strings and tasted like a freshly pureed acorn squash.
The grilled cheese came on crunchy, toasted bread and was stuffed with white cheedar cheese and onion jam. I had to mentally keep telling myself, "Slow down!" because I almost made both halves disappear in a matter of seconds.
The grilled cheese came garnished with Brussels sprouts topped with freshly grated parmesan. Holy yum.
I happened to be wearing a dress and leggings on Monday and thank goodness! I have never been more grateful for an elastic waist!
Just as I was getting ready to call it a night, the ladies asked to see a dessert menu. Never one to turn down sweets, I peeked at the offerings.
We decided to go for it and split three desserts. No you did not misread that, three desserts.
The first selection was the chocolate, peanutbutter, pretzel candy bar. I don't like peanutbutter so I didn't taste this one, but the ladies loved it! You really can't beat that flavor combo.
Next up - the vanilla bean creme brulee. I love creme brulee, but this one's sugar crust was too sweet and stuck to the roof of my mouth. The dish did have two fun touches - a sugar covered donut and poached peaches.
The final dessert choice was the molten chocolate cake which came garnished with chocolate hazelnut crisps and vanilla ice cream.
This was the winner! I have ordered many a molten chocolate cake and this one was sensational. In addition to the piping hot center, the cake and the fudge had a pure, rich chocolate flavor that only true dessert lovers can appreciate.
When the check arrived so did a chocolate mint for each of us. What a cute, thoughtful touch for the end of the meal.
Though I likely gained five pounds during this outing, I can't say enough wonderful things about our experience at Eleven. The space is the ideal date spot, the service is excellent and the food is rich, classic, comfort food.
Visit Eleven at 1150 Smallman Street in Pittsburgh, PA and follow them on Twitter, @ElevenPittsburgh.
