Most amazing, fanciest restaurant in the Pittsburgh Area? (Nemacolin: restaurants, price)

[lllowe]

I want to take my brother and his wife out for dinner for a Christmas present, and me and my husband will also be celebrating an anniversary...so... what is the nicest, fanciest, most awesome restaurant in the Pittsburgh area? My brother is a chef, so it is hard to impress him. Last year we went to Grand Concourse because it was the fanciest place that I know of. I don't know many places. Please help! Anywhere in the Pittsburgh area, can be very expensive, and doesn't matter what kind of food. Thanks!

[fleetiebelle]

It's not particularly fancy, per se, but if your brother is a chef he'd probably like Salt of the Earth: Menu | Salt of the Earth

[Tinare]

The Hyeholde in Moon is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to eat and they go all out decorating for Christmas. I wasn't totally blown away by what I ate there, but it may have been what I ordered and I've only been there once. It appears to get good reviews but it is pricey.

Hyeholde Restaurant and The Round Room

[globalburgh]

Pittsburgh Magazine's Top 25 is worth a gander:

25 Best Restaurants: 2012 - Pittsburgh Magazine - June 2012 - Pittsburgh, PA

[groar]

first 2 posts are what i was going to suggest! both places have great food, salt of the earth is good for really au courant, interesting food, hyeholde is a lot "fancier" (it is a CASTLE, what more can i say) and the food is also excellent. it's not stodgy or old fashioned either, it's just not borderline avant-garde like salt.

if i was a chef i'd probably be most interested in going to salt.

legume or root 154 are also good choices, neither is super fancy (well, i haven't been to the new legume location) but they both have a real focus on quality, interesting food. oh and i've never been, but cure and tamari in lawrenceville seem interesting.

[CaptainPittsburgh]

Yeah, I thought of Salt too. When I think of a place that a chef might enjoy, the first places that come to mind are:

Salt
Union Pig & Chicken
Savoy
Habitat
Eleven
Spoon

Granted, I'm no foodie, and I tend to like most everything, haha.

[Copanut]

Lydia's, never had a bad meal there, ever.

[robrobrob]

Why don't you take him to Lautrec at Nemacolin.

[ML North]

If you're looking for white tables cloths, dark wood, and to blow a stack of cash then you can probably choose a steakhouse, but I think that those are neither the fanciest nor the best. And if you bro is a chef, he'll probably be looking for something a little more original.

What type of food are you looking for?

I've heard that Davio is really good for Italian, but I've never been inside (been saving it for a special occasion).

I like really long meals for special occasions, and often eat at La Tavola Italiana. It's a BYOB, and does the whole white table cloth & linens thing, but the dining room is not particularly fancy. Great food, but it can get LOUD. As I mentioned, long meals with a lot of time between courses. I've been at the table for like 3 hours, but it's generally closer to a 2 hour experience.

There are several super expensive restaurants at Nemacolin, but I really don't know anything about them. May be what you're looking for.

[greg42]

I would say Salt or if you don't want the sort of stark hard space of Salt then Eleven would be good. Hyeholde is a neat space but the food isn't really as much of an attraction.