February 2012 • - Nightwire Magazine

James Street Gastropub & SpeakeasyBy: Suz PisanoPhotos By Man NguyenAlittle bit of history repeating itself? James Street Gastropub& Speakeasy picks right up after a well-known jazz club fromback in the day. No way! Speakeasy? Nightwire wants tospeak very loudly about the newest establishment in a very oldneighborhood- James Street is back and it’s bigger and badderthan ever. You’re gonna love the menu, the atmosphere andthe service. I can’t wait to tell you about our dining experiencethis month, and I can’t wait to go see some live music at theSpeakeasy underneath the pub.Partners Lisa Saftner & Adam Johnston invited the Nightwirecrew, and we were most happy to oblige. Little did we knowthat so many wonderful things would soon be presented. Theappetizers were enough for at least three meals and well, whenthey brought us the Sweet Meat- a burger served on a donut bun-I thought I couldn’t eat one more bite.But let’s start at the beginning……..It all started for me with the Crab Cakes ($15): all crab, all thetime with these babies. I’m not ashamed to tell you that there wasnot one crumb of crabmeat remaining. No filler, and I mean, nofiller. Even I wondered what held them together. I am going onrecord here to say that I think it’s magic! I saw Cajun Oysters onthe menu & thought, “Oh, jeez, I hope we don’t have to try those!”Our publisher Joyce would never ever eat one, my husband Timnever ate one, and our photographer Manny looked skeptical. Iknew I’d have to be the one to try them, and I did, though it tooka bit of coaxing from Adam. I immediately I wished I hadn’t. Theywere amazingly delicious. Soft and light, I could taste the oyster!It was definitely not what I thought! So then I ate another one andTHEN came the Tiny Tunas ($14) Ahi tuna sliders! I ate an entireone of those because (and only because) the wasabi mayonnaisewas so delicious with the tuna. These tiny tuna sliders served12 • February 2012with avocado, citrus scented sprouts, red onion & that deliciouswasabi mayonnaise were so pretty on the plate but hearty in thestomach. I was starting to worry that I ate a few too many “bites,”but the food kept coming. A unanimous Nightwire favorite-- thePipe Bombs ($9), which were flank steak, jalapenos & pepper jackcheese in a crispy wonton wrapper accompanied by a Guinesssteak sauce-- made us think of beer, so Lisa paired them with anice Flying Dog seasonal beer. I ate at least two pieces of this! (Ihope you see where this is going- I couldn’t skip one thing!)Accompaniments are important so pay attention to this atJames Street. All sauces are house made and there are quite afew. For example, Suds & Spuds ($7), beer-soaked Idaho potatochips served with tomato relish, cheddar sour cream and spicyranch dipping sauces. I honestly couldn’t pick a favorite! I likedeach and every one and imagined having them “next time” witha couple of great beers. James Street has Gary’s Nut Ale, one ofmy personal favorites. Shop local, eat local & drink local. This isdefinitely one of the benefits of visiting James Street Gastropub &Speakeasy- it’s in a great neighborhood and there’s plenty of freeparking. Speaking of neighborhoods and parking in Pittsburgh,of course you can get a Pittsburgh favorite: the Pierogies ($7).Yes, homemade pierogies…….sautéed to perfection with perfectcaramelized onions, they had a cheddar sour cream sauce on topof them, and let me tell you- I wanted to eat every one of them! Itried to lie to Joyce by telling her that they had mushrooms in themso that she wouldn’t want hers but she knew otherwise! Pierogieson the menu- I’m there, and I’m so happy James Street is in myneighborhood.Sandwiches included another Nightwire favorite- the TwistedChicken ($8), which was brick chicken, peppered bacon, candiedonion, sharp cheddar and baby spinach served on a pretzel bun.That’s a whole lot of flavor on one sandwich! The only sandwichon the menu that I probably wouldn’t try WAS the Turkey Burger($9); it sounded “too healthy” to taste like anything but we DID tryit, and it DID taste like a savory & delicious healthy burger. It wastopped with muenster, avocado, tomato, sprouts and onion, whichwas another surprise, and I’m glad I tried it. Adam acknowledgedthat most turkey burgers are very bland, but they were determinedto bring their own version to the table, and it was awesome. Othersandwich offerings include the Crab Cake ($15), Oyster Po’Boy($12) (made with those delicious fried oysters!), Pulled Pork ($8), AGrilled Veggie ($8) and a Flank Steak Philly ($10). All sandwichesare served with a generous side of house cut potato chips. Don’tforget the sauces!Don’t forget the burgers either…..I mentioned the Sweet Meat