Mercurio's Shadyside — Restaurant in Pittsburgh

I have tried dining here at dinner at least 5 times, and though the hours online say it's open for dining until 9, I've arrived at 7:30 just to be greeted with a sign that says "open for takeout only". After this happened twice, I began to try and call ahead before going physically in person, and my calls have never been answered. I tried going in person once more again, at around 7:30 and the dreaded sign was out. I was standing in the doorway reading the sign, and a waiter asked me, "what's confusing?", to which I replied I wasn't "confused", but merely wondering what it takes to be able to dine here, especially when they don't take reservations. He explained the restaurant was at full capacity and so was the wait time to be seated, meaning there was an hour and a half wait for a table, at which time the restaurant would be closing. I thanked him for informing me about this, as no one had ever bothered to explain that to me the multiple other times I'd been there- I'd just been told "takeout only" with no explanation. I added that I know it's not up to him, but it would be really helpful if that information was online seeing as it was the fifth time I'd tried to dine there at a normal dinner hour and hadn't been seated; and especially when they don't answer the phone. He then proceeded to speak to me very rudely, actually cutting me off, about how they don't need to do that, it's a day-to-day decision, and if I really want to dine there so badly then I should come earlier and stormed away without even apologizing for the inconvenience. And look, I've been a server before. I know it can be a lot of pressure, hence why I said I know it's not on him. I was just hoping he might mention it to a manager and it would be helpful to both them and to their customers. But this interaction was completely unacceptable and I won't be trying to dine...

Wanted to give Mercurio's a second chance before leaving a review, but unfortunately my experience didn't improve. Tonight we were sat at a table all the way in the back by a garbage can and the bathrooms -- not off to a great start, but nothing to cry about...

We ordered the prosciutto pizza which, for $17, did not meet expectations. I understand that pizzas of this size often go for more downtown (which I have often) but those pizzas are at least good. By the time the pizza reached our table, the crust was already soggy and none of the toppings actually stayed on the pizza. The quality of ingredients and service was excellent, but having to reconstruct the pizza by hand next to a garbage can was not exactly a great experience.

For dessert we had the Nutella pizza which was NOT a pizza. They put about a jar of Nutella on a pizza crust and fold it in half; it's far too sweet and (again) the crust is soggy before it even reaches the table.

Some upsides? The gelato is some of the best in Pittsburgh (the reason I didn't just give one star) and the staff is extremely nice/friendly/helpful. For $40 however, I was expecting more than a soggy pizza and Nutella-induced Type 2 diabetes. It's one of the few good looking Italian restaurants in Pittsburgh and I really wanted to give this place a good chance. Very disappointed to say that I will...

My wife and I were in Pittsburgh for a concert, and a friend of mine recommended we check out Mercurio's while we were in town. Great recommendation!

We went to their Shadyside location and ordered the Romana pizza, which had house made mozzarella cheese, cooked Italian ham, and basil. I've never been to Italy, but this pizza tasted like what I would imagine pizza in Italy tastes like! The crust was chewy and flavorful, while the toppings (especially the house made fresh mozzarella) were bursting with flavor. The sauce added a slight acidity that balanced everything out. We split the 4 slice pizza between us in order to save room for gelato (more on that in a minute). However, under typical circumstances, I'd say that a person could probably eat a whole pizza themselves.

Now to the gelato, which Mercurio's makes in house as well. They easily offered 20+ varieties, sold by the ounce. My wife got "Death by Chocolate" and strawberry cheesecake, while I ordered pistachio, coconut cream pie, and dulche de leche. The flavors were all very unique and outstanding!! I swear I could taste some cinnamon in the pistachio, but whatever the case may be, the gelato was a big hit with both of us.

Unfortunately we live 2+ hours away, otherwise we'd make Mercurio's a frequent destination. As it is, we will definitely be back the next time we're...