Casbah — Restaurant in Pittsburgh

I made a reservation for January 14th at 8:45 for my birthday. If I knew now what I knew then I would’ve made a reservation earlier in the night or honestly at a completely different restaurant. Unfortunately, we got winter weather hindering our drive to said reservation. We tried calling around 8:40 that we were experiencing what every other driver was experiencing, poorly plowed and unsalted roads. No one from Casbah answered so we kept trying to safely drive there. We finally arrived shortly before 9. It may have even been 9, but we were met with no hostility or issue at the host stand. We are seated, but then promptly told by our waiter that the restaurant is closed and we should rush these orders in to the kitchen. She didn’t even tell us her name or any of the other pleasantries until the 2nd or 3rd stop at the table. Also, I guess we’re forgetting the fact that parties of two are allowed an hour and 45 minutes to their reservation as per the email confirmation says. Cool. Already feeling the love. We quickly receive bread and butter from someone that definitely didn’t hide their disdain of us being there “so late.” So to make things easy we quickly choose our appetizers and “entrees.” Tuna tartare and Calamari and Rock Shrimp. And we ordered our drinks. All which were absolutely delicious. Our entrees that were ordered at the same time as apps arrive. Lobster Saffron Pappardelle pasta, Short Rib Ravioli and Meatballs and Polenta. Everything was just fine I would say. The ravioli is good, but the sauce is very thin and loose. The meatballs are meatballs. Can’t really mess them up. The pappardelle pasta was one of the most bland tasting dishes I’ve ever had. It tasted like oil and butter, that’s it. Even the lobster tasted like nothing. This is like a $39 pasta that tasted like a college student’s poverty meal. Salt and pepper? Didn’t exist? Saffron? Where? At this point it felt like a purposeful rush job from the kitchen because I can’t imagine a real chef would proudly present that to a guest. The only flavor I tasted was from the random basil leaves. All I wanted at that point was to leave. We told the server how we felt about the pasta and it was removed from the bill thankfully. We paid and left a 20% tip, even though the service and experience wasn’t worth it. I truly can’t even put into words how I felt about that atrocity of a birthday dinner this was. I’ve dined here so many times with late night reservations and never experienced this tension and animosity from staff. I am so extremely disappointed with this restaurant and won’t be coming back...

So let's say you're a student at the University of Pittsburgh working a campus job on top of a full course load. The ladies that swipe you into the terrible all-you-can-eat dining hall know your name because you finagle meal passes from your friends and strangers all the time. You can prepare ramen in seven minutes flat. If this is you, this may not be the right time to try this restaurant. However, if you cannot resist the temptation of good food and good wine, come to Casbah and just work harder on finding swipes and tolerate ramen for a few weeks. I am usually averse to places with dim lighting and swanky ambiance, but the food here is exceptional. I had the mussels, and I thought about them every single day for a year and a half - I am completely serious. Contemplated getting a tattoo of mussels on my biceps (GET IT?), but I didn't have the resolve. I believe this is the "mediterranean" restaurant in the Big Burrito group, but I don't really see the influence besides the amazing seafood. These folks know how to sear a scallop. Overwhelming wine selection that stupefies you in the menu and also when you're walking past the wine cellar on the way to the bathroom (nice bathrooms as well, since that's definitely a metric for me when I go to a restaurant). The waitstaff knows the menu in and out and are quite patient. The price is pretty steep, but it's worth it for the quality of the food. My only qualm is that the menu is pretty stagnant. I would hope that a restaurant with such focus on ingredients would use the talent of their chefs to craft some new and creative...

8/5/23 Update: Returned to very much the same experience - exceptional food but below average service. Wow. At least it's consistent. Beet Salad and octopus were both outstanding. Seafood paperdelli and salmon were both quite nice. Waiter (tall good looking young gentlemen) very luke warm to cold. Did he even want to wait on us at 8:10pm on a Saturday night??? Sure did not seem like it. Not attentive, and cold, aloof energy. Tipped only because my husband is nicer than I am. Over $150 for his attitude?!? I won't return. Servers are consistently below average and seem to be in pain doing their job. Hard pass. Go somewhere where servers are in a good mood. He set an awful tone. Pass on the food because the servers will downgrade your evening to such a level that you will feel cheated of a happy dining experience. PS Blonde ponytail server from last experience is still there. WTH. Why are your servers always miserable? Oh wait; no excuse and don't care.

• Food delicious as as always! Atmosphere outstanding (I prefer the enclosed patio to the bar area and indoor dining area) Beet salad is always a good start. Crab cake also excellent. Artichoke appetizer also fabulous. Waitress yesterday, however, the only down side. Blonde with ponytail didn't seem happy to be there, or at least happy to be waiting on two women, namely myself and my friend. A cheery demeanor would have been preferred but still tired her well. Hope her evening got better after we left. FYI: a smile cost nothing. You're attitude brought my rating of yesterday's...