A vibrant menu and fine dining await in the Laurel Highlands(1)
Michael Henninger/Post-GazetteJoshua Fryer, chef of Out of the Fire Cafe in Donegal.
Out of the Fire Cafe hides in plain sight, in a countrified strip mall off Route 31, in the heart of the Laurel Highlands. The lodge-style building is full of natural charm, such as the tree-stump benches on a wooden porch, large vases of flowers and oversized cutlery that dangles from the ceiling just outside the open kitchen. The sprawling dining room and smaller outdoor patio emphasize a stunning view of the ridge. But tables cut off from the windows are also worth occupying for the food alone, which successfully combines summer farm stand flavors with a fine dining sensibility.
It's a lovely surprise, but a better plan. These days, those who stumble across the restaurant may well leave disappointed. Positive word of mouth has brought so much business that walk-ins should expect to wait several hours, and host staff were worked off their feet attempting to squeeze in yet another table of hopeful diners.
Jeff Fryer opened the restaurant four years ago as a 30-seat sandwich shop. But as it developed and expanded, he often turned to his son Joshua Fryer, an experienced chef in New Jersey, for advice. The younger Mr. Fryer signed on in 2009, first traveling back and forth from New Jersey as a consultant, than joining as full partner and moving with this family to the region. The Fryers hope to expand once more this winter, and to add a second kitchen for catering.
Its popularity is well deserved, especially in light of its lack of competition from comparable nearby restaurants. While the style is relatively traditional, Mr. Fryer's enthusiasm for fruits and vegetables results in a particularly vibrant menu, well matched to the lovely, natural setting.
Appetizers were mostly simple, layering a few robust flavors to good effect, like the platter of bruschetta, thick rounds of grilled bread spread with bright green pesto and piled with chopped tomato, chunks of perfectly ripe avocado and sweet King crab meat ($12). More lump crab was bound into cakes, pan-fried until golden brown then slathered with a thick, tart remoulade and served on a bed of tangy red onion and asparagus ($12).
The elder Mr. Fryer sold his own smoked salmon before opening Out of the Fire, and now it appears as an appetizer -- a must order. The substantial wedge of hot-smoked salmon brushed with a balsamic glaze, was served with sweet and savory accompaniments: Sliced pineapple and strawberries, sundried tomatoes, a creamy dill sauce and a stack of crackers brushed with olive oil ($13).
Entrees layered more textures and flavors and took more risks. The very best was a barbecued pork shank nestled into a bed of smoked white cheddar grits with sautéed sweet corn. Crispy mustard greens added a hint of bitterness against the sweetness of the rum-glazed pork and the smoky richness of rough-ground grits ($19). A bowl of grits can also be ordered as on the side -- a delicious strategic reserve ($5).
Seafood is well represented on the menu, a consequence of the years the chef spent working in Seattle. Bowls of PEI mussels, with a choice of broths and slices of grilled bread for sopping them up, could serve as substantial starters or light entrees. Spicy coconut lemongrass broth was more sweet than spicy without much of the lemongrass's distinctive perfume, but the mussels were beautifully cooked, pink and plump.
