The Starlite Lounge - Pittsburgh

The place reminds me of the old bars I would go to in Detroit with my grandfather before we went fishing in the morning (yep, bars were open at 5am for those chronic drinkers who knew! . Its an unassuming place with little decor that hasn 't seemed to change since the 80 's. I can see where this would put some persnickety kale eaters off, but, for me, there is a nastolgic charm to it. The only things missing were clouds of smoke lingering just below the ceiling and a few old timers wearing their pants and liver out on their habitual bar stools. With that aside, I often find that these are the places where you can get some great honest cooked meals that do one or two dishes really well. Dishes that a corporate chain, with their stiffling adhearance to standards, could never recreate. Menu is typical for this kind of bar with a few gems that looked like the things to dive into: Meatloaf sandwich, fried fish sandwich, pierogies, Polish platter. I ordered the Polish Platter: 2 pierogies, keilbasa, sauerkraut, and haluski. This is not a light meal, mind you, wear your belt with the extra notches. I came here looking for some of those great pierogies Pittsburgh is known for. I don 't know if I got them, but what I got really hit the spot. They were huge, fist size pierogies with a good ratio of dough to filling. The kraut was kraut (I like it in most of its incarnations . The haluski was decent and satisfying especially mixed with the kraut and keilbasa. The keilbasa was decent as well, better than what I can get in LA, but no keilbasa will ever compair to Kowalskis from Hamtramck Michigan, sorry. My only disappointment was that there was no horseradish. But that 's me, its hard for me to feel completley satisfied with a Polish meal without horseradish. Staff was nice and friendly. They seemed to know everyone who walked in the door and had more than a cursory connection to them. I must have stuck out like a toad with three eyes! The cook (maybe owner? came out to raz the staff and some of the guest. He made a point to check in on me too, which was great. That kind of sincere personalized service is something you can only get in a place like this (the insincere form of this in corporate food is called table touching, the difference is palpable . If i ever get back to Pitt, I would definietly stop here again and try something else on the menu that looked good, probably the meatloaf sandwich...that looked great to me...mmm gravy!!!

Very impressed with my time at Starlite. I heard they have the best fish fry Friday and that is an understatement. Absolutely freaking incredible fish sandwich. The waitresses are so nice and never stop working. Pro tip: make a reservation! And do it ahead of time. If they get too slammed (which is a lot) they will turn the phones off. Just a great vibe all around. Wish I lived closer but next time I'm over here, I'll be back!

I saw this place on Diners, Drive ins, and Dives, and as one who is always ready to try a dive, I had to give this place a try! When you walk in it's truly an eclectic Pittsburgh dive. Fun decorations in the dining room that make you feel like you're at a yinzer family member's home. I got what Guy Fieri got pierogis and pasta diablo. Two words of advice: come hungry. You get so. much. food. And this is a great thing!! Pierogis were huge and tasty. Plenty of butter and perfect textures from the sear on the outside of the pierogi. Cheesy potato deliciousness. The pasta has a ton of fresh peppers and had good flavor. Carb overload but well worth it. It's a Triple D joint. It's a dive. It's a fun spot to pig out!

Delicious food, great service and live music. Everything was just so good the pierogis, kielbasa, noodles, sauerkraut delish. We are from out of town, and the only thing I'd change is that two of us would have shared as the platter is enormous. Three enthusiastic thumbs up!

Starlite's pierogis are still my favorite. They are huge and fun to make at home if you buy them frozen. The restaurant has been updated over the years, but it still has that old school Pittsburgh dive feel with lots of regulars and older patrons. Service can be slow with only one cook, often Moondog himself. Prices are cheap for the amount of food you receive. I had a large grilled chicken salad with grilled peppers, onions, mushrooms, lettuce, tomatoes, and pepperocini. With a Tito's soda, my tab was $16. Don't expect a fancy dive, this is real Pittsburgh food. The service can be slow, so allow over an hour for dinner.