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All Star Sports Bar and Grill Restaurant Review at Robinson in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Our family finds itself in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, several times a year, so that means that we seek out new restaurants and family dining outings in and around Pittsburgh several times a year too.  Our latest Pittsburgh trip happened just a few weeks ago.  We were only in town for one night during this trip--so, we headed to the All Star Sports Bar & Grill in the Robinson Mall area of Pittsburgh for dinner on a Friday night.  With a Pittsburgh Steelers' Playoff Game on the horizon
--what did we think of the Robinson location of the All Star Sports Bar & Grill in Pittsburgh?

What do we think of the location of All Star Sports Bar & Grill?  We seem to frequently dine in the Robinson Mall area when we head to Pittsburgh Airport.  It's a convenient drive to/from the airport and airport area hotels--and there are a lot of food options.  The All Star Sports Bar & Grill has a nicely sized, strip mall location that is easy to find via GPS and has easy and adequate parking.


The Sports Bar Atmosphere Is There Before you Walk Inside.  You can see the tv's before you hit the door--but, we weren't hit with a loud, sports bar sound. The All Star Sports Bar & Grill has a laid-back feel.  We were greeted when we walked in--but, were told to pick our booth (there were a handful open on one side of the sports bar).  The walls are lined with sport team jerseys and sports memorabilia--and the Pittsburgh Penguins were front and center on the big screen.  Other TVs dot the bar, and each booth has a personal tv for the diners to watch.  The space has a fun, casual, lively atmosphere--but, is open and the tables and booths are nicely spaced so that the lively atmosphere isn't overwhelming.


How was the Service at the All Star Sports Bar & Grill in Robinson?  Although it was a "seat yourself" experience, we were immediately greeted by an employee who let us know that we could seat ourselves and she pointed us to an area of open booths.  Our table's server was great the entire time--and she was busily serving several tables throughout the space.  We noticed the manager (or maybe the owner?) talking to various tables throughout the evening and engaging.  Every employee that we encountered was friendly, upbeat and ready to help.  We didn't see any table on our side of the space addressing any issues during the meal.  That's not common--and says a lot about the service, the food, and the atmosphere. 

Okay.  
Now for What you really want to know...
How was the Food at the All Star Sports Bar & Grill in Pittsburgh?

When we travel, we really do try to visit small, local restaurants or experience small area chain options.  The All Star Sports Bar & Grill has only a handful of locations in and around Pittsburgh.  When we visit an area restaurant or sports bar--we try to find offerings on the menu that make the place different than the chain place down the street.  The All Star Sports Bar & Grill met that challenge.

The Drinks
 Generally, I am the first to try the bar's special cocktails or mixed drinks--while my husband is up for a beer from a local brewery.  We both failed a bit this visit--he had a Dogfish 60 Minute IPA and I had an Angry Orchard.  But--they do have a well-drink list...we were just "same old same old" this time!

Appetizers
 Okay.  Before we went, I knew that I was going to order the stuffed hot banana peppers--and I knew that we could not go to a sports bar without trying their Buffalo wings.  So. How were the appetizers?

The Stuffed Hot Banana Peppers

The dish wasn't necessarily pretty--but, let me tell you, this appetizer was a huge hit.  Don't let the banana pepper phrase fool you--these stuffed peppers are surprisingly spicy. 
 

I took a close up of the sausage/beef "meatball" filling because it was also surprisingly yummy.  The meat filling, the sauce, and the cheese meshed perfectly with those spicy banana peppers.  Our youngest daughter loves spicy foods.  (She could probably eat Wasabi Horseradish straight and drink Flaming Buffalo sauce...Umm. Really.)  She thought these banana peppers were spicy. Spicier than she expected.  I think this was one of my husband's favorite appetizers out in a long time--through a lot of travel.  We would all definitely order this again and recommend it for those of you who enjoy spicy/Italian/cheesy dishes.

Bone-In Buffalo Wings Flaming Hot Flavored


If you are going to try the Buffalo Wings at a new spot--try the hottest, right?  That may not be everyone's logic--but, it is always ours.  We try the hottest--and we usually try an unusual flavor combination.  This time--we just opted for the hottest.

And.  

The Flaming Hot wings at the All Star Sports Bar & Grill are hot. 

It's a "hot" that hits you after a couple of wings--but, it's also a flavorful hot (with a hint of cinnamon and Caribbean Jerk-like spices) that tastes great while hitting you with that lip-burning, tongue-tingling heat.  These wings aren't super saucy--but they are packed with flavor--and heat.  We would all order these again--and would recommend them if you love hot, hot, Buffalo wings--with something in the flavor beyond hot sauce and butter.

Main Courses
 While my husband opted to just eat his dinner from the wings and hot pepper appetizers (and he still had leftovers)--Miss M and I ordered from the menu. 

Chicken Caesar Salad for Miss M 


A Caesar salad is the go-to meal for both of our younger girls when we eat out.  Especially for our middle daughter who "sat this trip out" because she was performing in the halftime show at the Outback Bowl in Tampa...instead of freezing in Pittsburgh...but, I digress...  The girls will share our appetizers, but almost always order salads.  Madelyn ordered the Chicken Caesar salad. While there was nothing necessarily "special" about the Caesar salad--she loved the flavors of the grilled chicken and suggested that Dad and I taste it. 

The Pittsburgh Wrap for Mama


I ordered the Pittsburgh Wrap because it seems that every local Pittsburgh spot has a variation of the standard, Pittsburgh, "meal in a sandwich." (Tourist-y thing?  I don't know.) You get meat, fries and coleslaw wrapped in a wrap or served on a sandwich so that you can eat your whole meal at once.  This time, I also received fries as a side dish--which I shared with the family.  What did I think of the Pittsburgh Wrap at All Star Sports Bar & Grill?

I really liked this wrap.  I am (sadly) not a fan of meat, fries and slaw on thick slices of bread--because it's just too much food--and too much "width" for my small mouth--but, putting it all in a thin wrap was great for me.  Also--ordering coleslaw from any restaurant is a crap shoot.  I am pretty picky about my coleslaw and this was really probably the only coleslaw I have ever liked from a restaurant.  Really.  It's not too sweet, not too soggy, not too "vinegary"...

I could only eat half of the wrap.  Our little one ate the other half of the wrap for lunch the next day--and it was just as big a hit with her when it was cold.  We would both order this again.

Dessert
There was no room for any sort of dessert or extras--and I am not even sure if there were any desserts or extra because we didn't ask.

Would we recommend the All Star Sports Bar & Grill at the Robinson Mall in Pittsburgh? We heard zero complaints from fellow diners during our visit to the All Star Sports Bar & Grill.  The atmosphere was family friendly (though I am sure that could possibly change during heavy traffic, playoff game weekends), the employees and our server were friendly, helpful and just ready to serve us during our visit--and we loved the food.  The food isn't "fancy"--but, it is really well done for "bar food."  We will definitely visit again when we are in Pittsburgh.  This dining adventure was really one of our better non-chain Pittsburgh family dinner experiences over the past several years.  When the service is friendly, the space is well laid-out, and the food is great--it doesn't really matter if you are Columbus Blue Jackets or Cincinnati Bengal fans visiting from "out of town," right?  (For the record--we didn't ask to watch the CBJ game while were there!  Though, I really think our server would have just given us some good-natured-teasing if she saw the CBJ game on our table screen--she just had that personality.)

It was a fun night out, with great service, great food and we would recommend it to readers who like a sports bar atmosphere for a family dinner every now and then.  

Learn More about the Restaurant Featured Here:

Disclosure:  We were not compensated for this post.  We simply found a family dining spot that we enjoyed and wanted to share!  

All Star Sports Bar & Grill Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato 

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