North Park Lounge Richland — Restaurant in Richland Township

I went to this restaurant when it was The Clubhouse, and I found that iteration to have pretty good food at very fair prices, but an atmosphere that felt dark and kind of rough around the edges, with a mix of loud kids at the gaming area and the normally busy bar creating a pretty chaotic atmosphere.

When I saw that the original North Park Lounge took over ownership, I thought about checking it out. When going to Google ahead of time, it seems this changeover caused a bombardment of scathing reviews. Most focus on the changes long time guests of the old establishment are angry about. It had me curious to see for myself, and I decided to try it out for lunch with my family while my parents from Ohio were in the area for a quick visit.

The style of the place after the changeover feels like an upgrade to me overall, as it looks cleaner, more inviting, and better partitioned out. I can understand the gripes about the shrinking of standard dining space with part of the restaurant now dedicated to a private event space, but the amount of tables in the current dining area still seems pretty vast for a standard restaurant of the same offerings, and I understand the need to divest pathways for profit in the current economy and restaurant landscape. Granted, I wasn't there for a busy dinner service, but my experience was well mananged and spaced seating wise.

The service was pleasant and attentive overall. I felt like it took a decent amount of time to get set up with drinks and everything, but nothing so out of the ordinary, and I think I was paying more attention to it because a number of bad reviews on here mentioned it as a major concern.

The food was quite good, I'd say a bit better than the previous restaurant iteration. It's nothing so adventurous since we are talking about a classic American brewpub style dining affair, but everyone in my party enjoyed their food (my 3 year old actually ate more than he ever has at a restaurant- he was really enjoying the mac and cheese😅. I had the Nashville Chicken Sandwich, and I found it to be quite well made, and the portion was quite large, especially for the price weighted against similar options at similar restaurants. I also tried a bite of my wife's reuben, and it was rather tasty.

What probably helped me decide between a 4 and a 5 star review (I admit to weighting a bit high on reviews when it comes to supporting local businesses in this crazy economic landscape) was the options for the kids, which can be a huge factor for family dining. In an era where kids meals seem to just keep getting more expensive while the portions get smaller and quality lesser, the NPL was a welcome respite. The kids meals, with 8 varied options, ran between $6 and 7.50, already a value for a decent sit down restaurant. They came with a choice of 10 plus sides, which can be a godsend for picky eaters, they price also included a choice of drink (my kids both opted for chocolate milk) and a rather large, warm cookie. To get all of that out for two kids for 15 bucks or less...that's a monster value, and my kids also both really enjoyed their food. So that alone should be a big reason for families to give this place a shot.

Overall, I can only go off of my personal experience, but I feel like a lot of the really bad reviews seem to be more about diners who miss the old place and came into the new one with negative expectations from the start. I wasn't blown away by anything in particular, save for the aforementioned kids' meals prices, but for a standard brewpub style experience, this one was a good one, and is limrly elevated to a very good one when considering the desert that part of route 8 is for decent, non chain restaurants that aren't specializing in international options that may not satiate every palette (but you really should go to K Asian Bistro nearby...it's pretty fantastic😍). And no, I don't work for NPL and wasn't paid by them to write this review- but anyone can pay me to read it if they...

My first review follows this, we have been there twice since I wrote the first review and were not disappointed. The second time we were there I had the apple walnut salad with chicken, the chicken was tender and juicy and had a nice grilled taste to it, the salad also had a good balance of apples, walnuts, greens and craisins, and yes you read that right craisins.The third time we were there I had chicken noodle soup and a cheeseburger. The soup was delicious, had a good balance of chicken noodles and vegetables. It also wasn’t over salted like some of the chicken noodle soup I’ve had at other restaurants. The burger I had was well done and very tender and moist, one of the best burgers I have had in a very long time. We had Sarah as our server this time and she every bit as friendly and efficient as Bri whom we had the first two times. You can’t go wrong if you have Bri or Sarah as your server. I am glad that I found a way to edit my first review this review because this restaurant deserves a lot more 5 star reviews. People who have given it less than 5 stars either haven’t given the place time to get established and need to pay a return visit or they just can’t be pleased no matter what you put in front of them. In reference to my first review which follows, I had the chicken Cobb wrap, with mac and cheese side. It was excellent, I’m not fond of ranch dressing so I had it with honey mustard. My wife had the chicken ranch flatbread with cottage cheese as a side. Excellent taste, excellent value for the price. We’ve been eating at NPL for a number of years and have always been pleased with the selection and value of the food. It’s not just bar food, there are quite a few family friendly choices also as well as a kids menu. We live in Monroeville and I have no problem going a distance for good food and service. Our waitress was Bri and she is the best. We always asked for her when she worked in Murrysville and she is part of the reason we went to NPL Richland. So if you go to NPL Richland make sure to tip her well if you fortunate enough to have her as your server. This place just changed ownership and I just don’t think it has had enough time to establish a good clientele, but I’m sure they will. We will definitely return in the future. I only wish they would have salmon like they do at their other place, I’ve always thought it was the best salmon in the area, and when put on top of the apple, walnut salad...

We started going to the Clubhouse over 15 years ago & have always loved it. We haven’t been there in a while & were looking forward to our visit last night. My son ordered a club sandwich (turkey, bacon, ham - basic club) & requested it cold, untoasted. When the food arrived, he inspected it before diving in (thanks goodness!). He took the top part of the bun off his sandwich & asked “Mom, what’s this white stuff on my bacon?”. I looked at it & discovered that the bacon was completely raw!! I called the waitstaff over, they were embarrassed & said they’d get him a new sandwich & took it away. The manager then brings it out a ‘new one’ for him - complete with cooked bacon. However, she didn’t offer any sort of compensation for my son almost eating raw bacon - no free meal, no percentage off - nothing. Then, my son ended up getting extremely sick when we got home. Could it be coincidental timing of the stomach bug? Or was it food poisoning? It’s most likely the latter. Instead of a fresh new sandwich being made as promised, my guess is the same sandwich that housed the raw bacon was used, making my son sick, causing him to spend most of the night in pain in the bathroom. He was literally fine until shortly after dinner. In hindsight, I should have kept the raw bacon sandwich while waiting for his new one to ensure the same meat & bun wasn’t used. Now I know better. So disappointing. I want to add that I have never given a bad review - ever. Things happen, I get it. But I expect more from a manager. And my son had to physically suffer the ramifications from this experience. I’m not...