The Yard Gastropub

A good place to go for a great selection of craft beers, but the menu isn’t that great in my opinion. The sandwiches are pretty expensive for something you could probably easily make yourself. With that being said, if you do go here for food, be sure to go on a Monday for ½ off sandwiches from 7 to midnight and $ 4 pints. Also, I came here for some drinks with my friends for my birthday and my partner and I ordered a larger size quantity of beer to share. I don’t remember how many ounces it was. I thought it would come in a large handled glass or something, but it came in a tall beer tower/​tube looking thing and it was really hard to drink. It required a decent amount of concentration to not spill it when drinking, especially with the bubbles going on. Imagine what Ron Swanson would say if he ordered a simple beer it came in this strange device. Those were my thoughts.

The Yard is one of those places that I really, really want to love… but unfortunately, it falls short for me.
The atmosphere is pretty much that of a typical pub. The restaurant itself is actually underground, which is interesting. I have a hard time with the lack of windows and wish it were a little brighter, but they do have free wifi which is nice! Be warned that it is extremely loud here — I always seem to find myself screaming in order to talk to my friends no matter what time I come.
One of the biggest aspects of The Yard’s menu is the grilled cheese. They have dozens of different craft grilled cheeses with all different toppings. I am no stranger to the idea of craft grilled cheese — if you have not heard of MELT in the Cleveland area, you should look it up. It is absolutely phenomenal. Needless to say, MELT has given me extremely high expectations, so I came to The Yard expecting comparably amazing grilled cheese sandwiches. I regret to say that I was disappointed. I have tried The Big Che-​bowski as well as the Smack Yo Mama. They’re good, but not great. I always feel that the bread is a little hard and the flavors are not as distinct as I would like. I love the concept of getting a cup of tomato soup with your sandwich, but the tomato soup is oddly pasty, and almost everyone I have gone with has disliked it. Overall, the food is a bit of a miss for me.
Most recently, I came to The Yard for the bottomless mimosas deal on a Saturday afternoon. The Yard is one of the only bars in the burgh that seems to do the «bottomless» deal for brunch, and it’s really a great bargain. The mimosas are clearly watered down, but at just $ 15, it’s still worth it in my eyes. I have not been overly impressed with the service here — we actually had a waitress who seemed to be ignoring us at our last trip, and had to keep asking other waitresses for assistance when we needed something. Very strange.
Overall, I’m not rushing back to The Yard for dinner anytime soon. The bottomless mimosas are a great deal, and I recommend that on a weekend. Otherwise, there are much better options in Shadyside for dinner.

Being a big fan of cheese (grilled or otherwise), I had been itching to try out this place devoted to this mighty sandwich. We went on a Saturday night around 9, and it was packed. I think we waited around 30 mins, which wasn’t too bad.
We were seated in the main dining room and it was LOUD. I mean, it was a Saturday night and everything, so maybe I shouldn’t be too harsh, but I don’t love having to lean across the table to converse with my husband. They have a HUGE draft list, and we started off with a couple of beers. We were also pretty hungry, so we ordered the pub pretzels as an appetizer. These were standard issue pretzel sticks served with mustard and beer cheese dips. The pretzels were warm and soft with just the right amount of sauce, and the dips were tasty (especially the beer cheese), so no complaints there. For the grilled cheese, I got the Daniel Lafferty, which essentially has all of the components of a chicken parm (chicken, cheese, basil and marinara), while my husband got the Wang Chung Tonight (gouda, Asian slaw and pulled chicken). Each sandwich comes with a side of tomato soup and choice of fries (I got the garlic parm fries and my husband opted for sweet potato fries).
My grilled cheese was just okay. I mean, there was nothing particularly wrong with it, but there was nothing spectacular either. The sandwich was pretty small. They did use fresh mozzarella cheese, which was a nice touch. But for $ 12, I felt like it was overpriced and I could have made something just as good or better at home. The tomato soup that came with the grilled cheese was a bust. It was lukewarm, too thick, and had an off-​putting smokey taste (but not a natural smoke flavor, the weird added fake kind). It was not appealing at all. Even the fries were lackluster… the garlic parm seasoning was delicious, but it seems as though I got the scraps of the fry batch, as many were short stubs. My husband did enjoy his grilled cheese. Unfortunately, his sweet potato fries came loaded with sugar and cinnamon… I wish they would note that on their menu, because neither of us is a fan of sweet potato fries served that way. So sadly, his fries went untouched.
On the dessert side of things, my husband noticed a s’mores donut dessert that he wanted to try (he is obsessed with donuts as a dessert food even though I insist they are to be strictly consumed for breakfast). So I begrudgingly agreed to get that for dessert. Well, it was literally just a glazed donut on a plate surrounded by some whipped cream and topped with marshmallow sauce, fudge, and graham crackers. That’s it… a $ 0.50 donut fancied up with a few toppings and they charged $ 7 for it. Now those are some high food margins! Needless to say, the dessert was quite underwhelming (even my husband the donut fiend thought so), especially for such a high price.
Overall, I walked out of The Yard feeling like I had spent too much money for what I had received. Next time I might just walk over to the grocery store and get some bread and cheese and make my own dang sandwich.

Really good place to go if you’re looking to have some comfort food and beers, they have great selection and good appetizers too. Price is good and friendly staff, pretty packed and busy on weekends and happy hours, you have to stand for quiet awhile until you make your way in but worth the try.

I stopped by here not too long ago on a Thursday evening with my wife and another couple for dinner. We had made reservations through opentable but as soon as we entered the dining room portion of the restaurant I could tell that was unnecessary. The Yard is located on Bellefonte Street down a flight of stairs. Upon entering the restaurant you are in the bar area with the dining room to the left. After checking in the hostess led us to our table in the dining room. The most distinctive feature that I remember of it was that it had a number of flat screen TV’s which means that you had a view of at least one no matter where you were at.
The Yard has a pretty nice sized beer menu with a large number of craft beers. So to start out the evening I went with the Sierra Nevada Narwhal which I hadn’t seen before, or since for that matter. Then for my entrée I went with the Smack Yo Mama Grilled Cheese. I mean how can you not go for a grilled cheese whenever you visit a place that has a grilled cheese section of the menu. It consisted of BBQ pulled chicken, onion straws and beer cheese. As you can imagine there’s not much that you can dislike about that comfort food and it was pretty much as good as it sounds. Then for my side I substituted in the Mac and cheese for the tomato soup. It was also pretty good as the cheese sauce was tasty and the spiral pasta held it nicely.
The bottom line for me is that I would head back here again in the future. The yard with its grilled cheese menu is almost the ultimate comfort food spot, now if that could only be good for my waist.

Really bad food I had the chicken and waffles. The waffles tasted funny & were gummy, the chicken breast had no meat and was cold. My date had the chorizo scrambler which was a bunch of ingredients over tatter tots.
Worst of all the coffee was burnt ! I can do without food in the morning but I need that coffee.
I couldn’t even get down half a cup.
The only redeeming factor was our waitress Shana. She was very sweet.

I have been interested in trying the Yard for a few months now, and I came here with a friend after a 9 PM class ended one night. There was a Steeler’s game so the place was packed, but we still were seated right away.
I ended up with the Mac Attack ($ 12). This was a grilled cheese on Texas toast with mac and cheese in-​between. The Texas toast and the cheese weren’t anything special. On the other hand, the mac and cheese was spectacular. It was loaded on the grilled cheese, and I would recommend getting a side of mac and cheese if you come here. This is some of my favorite mac and cheese in Pittsburgh!
Each grilled cheese comes with tomato soup and fries. The tomato soup went untouched between my friend and I. It tasted like marinara sauce. It was good to dip your grilled cheese in, but it was too much alone. As I don’t really eat fries, I was surprised to enjoy the ones here. They have plenty of specialty options, with NO up-​charge, and I liked the garlic parmesan fries.
My only complaint was that our waitress was slightly over-​attentive. She was over three times in five minutes pressuring us to order. At 9:30 PM, there were still some tables left so it was just a touch off-​putting. Otherwise, I really enjoyed my evening here.
They have lots of daily specials!

Wish this place was open during my college days. Nice addition to Shadyside, has a bar and also a restaurant.
Be prepared for a restaurant wait on Friday night. They have the cool text system to let you know when your table is ready. But while you’re waiting– why not go ahead and grab a beer? Definitely highlight is the number of beers they have on tap and it constantly rotates!
I got the pumpkin cider– and it was the best pumpkin flavored drink I got, tasted super «spicey»
Nachos– the food was a little sparse and pretty sure the chips are Tostitos, very salty
Smack yo mama– yum! Love the bread, not sure which bakery they get it from. Chicken was good, but the cheese could have been melted a bit more. Tomato soup was mehh. French fries could be better also, but I love the variety of seasoning!

I was pretty excited to try this new place in Shadyside. The first day I came here. I ordered the wang Chung grilled cheese and honestly it was nothing special. The second time, however, I ordered the breakfast sandwich and it was great! I would definitely order that one again. Also, I understand the concept of grilled cheese and soup — but the soup is nothing to write home about. But I do really enjoy their sweet potato fries with cinnamon butter — it is soo good. The service was a home run the first time and a strike out the second time even though it was less busy the second time around. Would I come here again? Probably but not for a while!
P. S. Their wake and bake dessert is absolutely amazing.

This was the first time I came across a gastropub that could be said to specialize in grilled cheese, at least in Pittsburgh. The selection was remarkable with over 20 choices ranging from traditional to breakfast style with egg and bacon, or with artisinal ingredients. They are served with tomato soup and fries which come seasoned with a number of choices including Cajun, parm, and old Bay. There were others but I was sold on old Bay. There are also plenty of other menu items for those that do not want to go the grilled cheese route.
I ordered the turkey Cristo wood was quite delicious. The cheese was perfectly melted and the berry compote added that sweet balance to the salty sandwich. It wasn’t battered like a traditional Cristo but I take no issue with that. It is a grilled cheese take after all. Only issue there was the bread was a tad soggy in the middle of the sandwich. The fries were hand cut and delicious. The negative was I did not care for the tomato soup at all. It was a smoked tomato soup and the smoked flavor was overpowering. In general I only like a smokey flavor in barbecue meats so this was a turn off for me. For those that like that sorry of thing it’s probably great.
The server was expedient and on top of our order but odd. Also they did not carry my first beer selection yet it was still on the menu. Neither was a deal breaker. A big plus was Champions League soccer on TV.
Overall was a really good gastropub and I will be returning.

The grilled cheese menu is pretty extensive and interesting. We tried one with sautéed shrimp and jalapeños, and another which was basically a caprese salad with bread. Both were good, although the shrimp one wins in my opinion. Sadly, we both thought the quality of the bread was on the cheap side — seemed like basic boring white bread. Both sandwiches came with fries (choose from four varieties), but they weren’t great — kind of soggy. Tomato soup was also included, which I thought was a nice touch.
The draft beer menu is extensive and interesting. If I come back, it’ll probably be to grab a beer rather than for a meal. Unless the bread gets better…

In the past 6 months I have come to the Yard three times and I had the same waitress each visit. She alone makes my visit here wonderful with her funny jokes and her attentiveness towards her customers. It could be borderline overwhelming how attentive she is, but that’s being modest of the great service.
The place itself is lively with the jukebox right in front of the door, but for anyone who is looking to chat with a friend or do business, don’t be alarmed. The music does not get carried over immensely to the dining area.
What really attracts me to the Yard of course is the GRILLED CHEESE! For an average of $ 11 to have a huge gourmet grilled cheese, tomato soup, and your choice of fries is a bargain. Not to mention they have DAILY specials! We came in on half off wine and $ 4 whiskey. It was definitely worth every penny I spent.
For any BBQ lovers the Smack Yo Mama grilled cheese is heavenly sweet and the pulled chicken has a nicer texture than pulled pork.
Lastly the Cause We Got High dessert is hands down one of the best desserts to get if you’re a huge chocolate fan, willing to get diabetes, or to have as a sweet topping on a nice evening out drinking.

Scott was our waiter in the back room, we had reservations but didn’t need them because it was early, 5:25, so the rush hadn’t started yet
We had the mac attack app, which was incredible, deep fried ball of mac and cheese which somehow was crispy on the outside and gooey Mac and cheese inside
I had the big Che-​bowski and it came with soup and fries. I asked for the Cajun style and they were excellent!
I posted a pic of the sandwich, also incredible! Cheesy with crispy bacon and a Fried egg on top!
Then the beer… I could write another entire review on that!
Great selection, always rotating and they tell you what’s coming so you know when to come back!

Ambiance: Modern gastropub with a neighborhood feel. Located in a basement just off of walnut street. Bar area with numerous TV’s on the right and separate dinning area to the left with some TVs.
Food: Wide variety of fairly standard gastropub type food including burgers, wings, a wide variety of apps, salads, etc… Of note, they do have about 25 gourmet grilled cheese offerings which are paired with a cup of tomato soup and french fries. I’ve tried 3 – 4 of them and all have been pretty good. Also recommended are the flatbreads, particularly the imperial swine.
Drinks: About 40 beers on top with options of 12, 16, or 32 ounce as well as mix-​and-​match flights. Pretty good selection of regional and national craft brews. A few hard to find beers make it in here from time to time, though not as «beer nerdy» of a selection as Caliente’s or Sharp Edge. Also with a full bar including some craft cocktails and a decent wine selection, though I usually stick to beer here.
Service: Always have had attentive, knowledgeable service.
Tips/​Extras: Not the best cell phone service as it is in the basement. Trivia is on Wednesday’s. Good daily specials on food and drinks.
Overall: A great place to stop for food or drinks. The only thing that stopped me from giving 5 stars is that while everything here is done well, nothing really stands out as amazing.

I have been here two times and I have never had a bad experience it’s just for a place that really works on grilled cheese I find they are always good but never amazing. Just a little over hyped for what it is.
My most resent meal I had the Big cheesy. I found it was loaded with everything apart from chorizo that felt a little skimpy. It was good but still not to die for. The sides of Cajun fries and tomato soup were very good
What was really good was the dessert which was called (because we got high). This is a monster you want under your bed. Two peaces of fried bread with Nutella, bananas and peanut butter inside. Flowing off it like a blob is marshmallow fluff and a chocolate drizzle. It was the perfect mix of salty and sweet. It’s best split between 2 or 3 people. Alone it must be ones calories for a week. But so worth it.
I would say give this place a try but don’t fall for the hype.

I came here with a few friends for brunch on a Saturday that everyone in Shadyside was celebrating St. Patrick’s day. Because I had one too many frozen cosmo’s the night before, I wasn’t in the mood for green beer, but they had plenty other options.
The hostess had that rude «couldn’t-be-bothered» sort of attitude to her, but I wasn’t about to let a 21 year old make ME (a paying customer) feel like a jerk for not having a reservation to a neighborhood pub that serves green beer on a Saturday morning. She seated me promptly after an eye roll or two.
The waiter was more than accommodating with lots of water and coffee for the table and was pretty hilarious for most of the meal. My friends got the grilled cheese with pierogies and I opted for the chorizo scramble. My dish needed lots of extra seasoning to make it not taste like a bland heap of nothing. I finally got it right after hitting it with salt, pepper, AND hot sauce. It still wasn’t good and I only ate about ¹⁄₃ of it. My friend’s all reported that the grilled cheese was extra greasy and really not all that great, but the fries with the old bay hit the spot.
My only regret is not visiting here during happy hour because their draft list and bar area looked pretty amazing. There were lots of beers I hadn’t heard of and the prices didn’t seem that unreasonable. The place definitely prides itself on it’s beer selection, as the first 4 pages of the menu featured various different sorts of beer.
Oh, and the music was bad. Like laughably, noticeably bad.

I absolutely love this Bar as the newest addition to the Shadyside bar scene. The shop opened this past June and has quickly come to conquer the hearts of locals and various college students alike.
The place used to be a high end Italian stowaway. The dungeon feeling has been retained climbing a set of stairs down in order to get to the location.
The space is divided into two portions, to the left — a long stone set bar top lined with drafts and a humongous craft beer chalk board with more than 30 listings rights off the bat. A few tables are scattered around the standing room and a few TVs line the ceiling. Come in for Happy Hour or a night cap, beware of game days it gets packed quickly.
To the right, there is the dining room which is predominantly filled with tables, a second bar, TVs around the room and to the back of the restaurant portion there is a happy hour pit which is perfect for group setups.
The drinks — they have a full bar but the seller are their listings of craft beers. Sort these either by alcohol content, type or location. My favorite is the Sweet Baby Jesus [a peanut butter stout]. If you cannot decide, get a flight of 3 and snift your way through.
The food — come to the Yard for a couple reasons: Happy Hour specials, Grilled cheese menu or Brunch. There is a daily special on food, most notably the Juicy Lucy Special [cheese melted into the Burger] with a Beer for $ 10. Considering a Beer will run you around ~$ 6 – 8 dollars which is a steal. The 3 varieties of fries are separate but they are well worth it as well. [I love mine smothered in Parmesan]
There is a whole page dedicated to Grilled Cheese. that’s right. The bread is additionally slathered in Butter so it’s a decadence of amazing. Get this as a combo with Tomato Soup.
Brunch — Every Sunday come in for the Brunch special. The Yard has a special menu in place simply with brunch paired with a Mimosa or a Bloody Mary. I personally do not like bloody Mary but I have heard great things.
To sum up — Great atmosphere, great Beers, good food. Come again, come often!

I can’t rate the food because I can here looking for unusual beers and dessert.
The Yard had a solid beer selection. About 35 taps and a big selection of bottles. Some of your standard fare, but some good, unusual crafts as well. Much better priced than some of your other beers options as well…
So let’s get to the BEST part-​dessert. I ordered «Cause We Got High». It is «Peanut Butter/​Nutella/​Bananas/​Thick Cut Texas Toast/​Battered/​Deep Fried/​Topped with Melted Marshmallow. It’s smells amazing!!! Looks incredible! It’s enormous! (You definitely want to share it.). And tastes like crunchy, gooey, salty, sweet, sticky, chocolate goodness. It is a MUST TRY!!!
Now to go walk this off in freezing temps. LOL

Came here for brunch a few weeks ago.
We were told that there was a $ 5 flatbread special on Sundays and got the Imperial swine. It was delicious. I highly recommend their flatbread. I loved the texture.
We also got a few entrees and split them. My hubby got the chicken and waffles which were delicious. I really liked the bacon maple syrup. I got one of the grilled cheeses called the Wang chunk tonight, which had this delicious sweet chili chicken on it. I really liked it. I also got it with the cajun fries. I was not really impressed with both the fries or the tomato soup, but the grilled cheese was so good!
We also got dessert (I know dessert at brunch, but we were full until the next day at dinner time) which was called the because I got high. This is the most decadent and ridiculous dessert I have ever encountered. Everyone should get one to share with 6 friends!
Overall I can’t wait to go back and try more of the menu!

Awful, very greasy grilled cheese & canned tomato soup. This restaurant has a great concept, about 15 different grilled cheeses to pick from however I was so disappointed how terrible the food was. I ordered the fried green tomato grilled cheese with tomato soup & sweet potato fries. The grilled cheese was SO greasy, the fries were soggy & the tomato soup was canned Campbell’s Soup or some generic brand (come on, they can’t make a tomato soup from scratch). I could barely eat it, I didn’t even eat half & couldn’t finish. Service was just ok. Didn’t have the cleanest feel either.
Very disappointed! Do not waste your time or money eating @ The Yard.