Eastern Pittsburgh is served by a small but highly specialized bistro called Savory Hill. Nestled in the foothills of Moon Township, this spot is the brainchild of Tom Langan, who was formerly the executive chef at Heinz Field, and a name many Steelers fans may recognize, who left the organization to start his own restaurant. It’s the kind of story you can really get behind from the outset, but the fact is that the restaurant has the quality and the masterful use of ingredients that makes it stand out on its own.
The cuisine is short but diverse, every individual kind of food has been imagined in a very specific way. Like nachos? Try them with duck meat. How about a risotto with mushrooms? A lot of the dishes have an interesting twist to them to make them a little more complex. Barbecue and salmon don’t necessarily sound like they pair, but the “Asian BBQ” sauce actually is a little bit lighter and stands on its own.
I’ll point to two of the dishes I really enjoyed at Savory Hill. The first, a seasonal item, a flatbread, topped with a grilled and marinated strip steak and a salad of some green peppers, onions, jack cheese, jalapeno, lettuce and pico de gallo. Overall, excellent. Just the right amount of steak marinade, coupled with the pico de gallo and jack cheese give it a distinctly southwestern flavor. I will say, I didn’t like the jalapenos. They were cut horizontally into slices, and topped the flatbread. With the already spicy ingredients, they were a little much. Might have been better to dice them instead and leave the seeds out, so the heat doesn’t overwhelm the dish.
The second dish I loved was the buffalo chicken nachos. It’s fresh, white meat chicken with bleu cheese, some celery and a buffalo-cheese sauce. I say the chicken is fresh because I actually found a small bone in mine. No harm done, and I think it really speaks to the ingredients, all of them, being very very fresh. It’s no short order to find that kind of use of even simple ingredients, and I really love to see that.
Savory Hill makes out well as sort of an upscale bistro concept, with a small but extremely refined menu and top-notch ingredients. A good experience at a spot as well-thought out and organized as this one is almost a certainty, whether you’re looking for a quick but creative lunch or an evening with friends, good service and fresh ingredients put Savory Hill high on my list.
Recommendations
- This is a good destination for an adult group of friends, though families are also welcome.
- There’s a diverse selection of beers and wines on the menu, including a lot of good local Pittsburgh brews.
- I suggest the seafood dishes, in particular the duck nachos.
Another Food Critic 
Since when is Duck considered seafood???? Nice restaurant though.