Jan 24, 2019 4 min read

If there’s a common theme about the Speers Street Grill in Lower Speers (don’t let the Belle Vernon mailing address fool you), it’s longevity.

It’s been owned and operated by members of the Pappalardo family since 1991. Today, Joe Pappalardo’s daughter, Michelle Jones, owns and manages it along with David Mendicino, who has been working at the family’s establishments since he was 19. Mendicino began under the leadership of the late Joe Pappalardo – Speers Street Grill’s sister restaurant, The Back Porch, is across the street and owned and operated by Jones’ siblings Patty Keller and Joey Pappalardo, and another sister, Jamie Spadafore, runs 2 Fine Caterers in Charleroi. “I left a couple of times, but they kept bringing me back,” Mendicino says with a smile. “Joe was a big mentor to me.”

The staff of the restaurant has been there practically forever – at least when compared with typical turnover at restaurants. Instead of turning over a large percentage of staff year over year, chef Graham Baker has been there since he was 16. He’s now 35. Members of the kitchen staff have been on board for eight to 10 years, and members of the wait staff have been there for four years, seven years, eight years, and so on.

That lack of turnover is a testament to Jones and Mendicino’s leadership, as well as the food that keeps guests coming in regularly. Beautiful Monongahela River views and countless old photos of the Valley to peruse surely don’t hurt anything.

When the space opened in 1991, it was Jamie’s Ice Cream Parlor, complete with an old-fashioned soda fountain. But, it wasn’t profitable, and ergo, didn’t last. Then it morphed into a grill, everything served out of baskets, very few dishes requiring silverware to eat – think ribs and burgers. Today, Jones classifies the menu as “casual American cuisine.”

“Our salads are popular, they’re big, jumbo, Pittsburgh-style salads. A lot of people like our fried zucchini, the recipe originated from Mark’s in Uniontown,” she says.

Her dad loved the fried zucchini there, and when Mark closed the restaurant, he agreed to teach Joe how to make it. It’s sliced extra thin, fried crispy and served with either creamy ranch dressing or marina sauce.

Twice a year, seasonal items are switched out on the menu. “We take heavy meals off of the winter to make room for lighter meals in the summer, but it’s hard to take anything off because everything sells,” Jones says.

Mendicino adds, “Probably in September, people start asking for the meatloaf.”

Speaking of the meatloaf, which makes its debut with the winter menu each November: Baker has put a personal, modern touch on it. It’s a tall dish, beginning with a layer of Texas toast, stacked with meatloaf and red-skin mashed potatoes, smothered in gravy and topped with thick, fried onion rings.

Julia Cain has also been with the restaurant for as long as anyone can remember. She makes all of the soups and sauces from scratch.

While the restaurant has no shortage of regular customers – many come on a certain night because they know their favorite server will be working – Jones and Mendicino are working to get the younger adults through the doors. To help draw them in, there’s a rotating list of craft beers, and a couple of trendier items on the menu, like poutine, for example.

There are, however, a couple of things that you won’t find at Speers Street Grill – televisions and live music. The space is too small for live music – Jones and Mendicino say they’ve tried it, but it overwhelmed the atmosphere. As for televisions, well, “We never had TVs in here, we want you to come in here and talk to each other,” Mendicino says.

And honestly, what goes better with a dish of breaded eggplant lasagna or a New York strip steak than a great conversation in a homey, comfortable atmosphere? Nothing. And you can bet that will be the case for a very long time.

Speers Street Grill is located at 121 Speers St. in Lower Speers. For more information, call 724-483-1911 or visit speersstreetgrill.com. Editor’s note: If punching the address into your car or phone’s GPS, use Charleroi as the city, not Belle Vernon. Otherwise, you’ll end up on the opposite side of the river!