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The Commonwealth Uncommonly GOOD
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Fried Ricotta starter dish with arrabiata sauce and grilled bread at The Common Wealth in New Castle, Pennsylvania
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The "Castle Meat & Potatoes" which is ground chuck, beer cheese, roasted tomato, pickle, shaved red onion, baby greens and is served with fries at The Common Wealth in New Castle, Pennsylvania.
by Mike Vallas and Mark Smesko
NEW CASTLE, PA. - This trip to New Castle would be our first to a true “gastropub.”
By definition (thanks, Wikipedia), a gastropub focuses on high-quality food and drink, with a slant toward local, seasonal ingredients, in a comfortable atmosphere. Without a doubt, this was our experience.
The Commonwealth is located alongside Neshannock Creek in the historic Riverplex, home of the original Warner Bros. Theater in New Castle. The bar and dining area were spacious, with the patio offering a perfect spot for alfresco dining with a waterside view.
We met up with a host of representatives, all gracious and excited to talk about their new restaurant. The Commonwealth opened in April with the goal of providing its patrons a memorable dining experience. As Hector Marquez explained, this demands attention to detail in every aspect, from food, and drink to atmosphere and music.
Dolores Stone is in charge of the bar service and said that in addition to tasting good, the drinks must look good. Executive chef Sam Ollie and his sous chef Mat Tanner were given the green light to show us some of their featured items from their menu, as well as a couple of “secret” menu delights.
Our meal began with a sampling of some (truthfully, almost all) of The Commonwealth’s specialty cocktails. Generally we don’t drink on these excursions, but it was hard to say no when the glasses were presented. They take as much care in crafting their drinks as they do with their food. All were wonderful but we especially liked The Commonwealth Gimlet and their signature cocktail, The Warner. Be sure to try one on your visit.
We next sampled a trio of appetizers. First up was quinoa falafel. Falafel is seasoned ground chickpeas formed into a ball and deep fried. Chef Ollie adds coriander, cumin, garlic, parsley and quinoa. They come out golden brown with a crispy exterior and moist center. This is served with a lemon cucumber yogurt sauce. The warm falafel paired with the cool, tart sauce made for a great starter.
We then tried the fried ricotta over arrabiata sauce. Arrabiata is a spicy sauce made from garlic, tomatoes and red chili flakes cooked in olive oil. The dish is made by taking ricotta cheese and coating it in parmesan panko bread crumbs. This is then fried and served over the flavorful sauce with grilled bread. The crusty bread, the creamy cheese and the slight spice from the sauce made for a wonderful flavor combination.
Finally, we had the bacon wrapped scallops. The Commonwealth makes their own bacon by curing pork belly for seven days then smoking it. This bacon is wrapped around large scallops and served over black bean and corn relish. The scallops were tender and the bacon added a nice smoky flavor. The relish added texture and cilantro rounded out the dish to make a delicious app.
While the menu at The Commonwealth changes often, one dish remains; their signature Meat & Potatoes.
Though the name may sound ordinary, the entree was anything but. It starts with a ribeye steak that is lightly dusted with espresso from Two Rivers Artisan Coffee Works, a cigar and coffee shop next to the restaurant. The steak is then cooked to temperature and served over garlic and parsley french fries. This is then topped with bourbon creamed brussels sprouts.
We both prefer ribeye steaks because it has more marbling, which means more flavor. The steak on its own was wonderful — tender with just a hint of coffee flavor. The fries were crispy, nicely accented with the garlic and parsley. The creamed sprouts were amazing. The bourbon was not overpowering and only provided a hint of alcohol.
The magic really happens when you take a piece of steak, a few fries and cover that with the creamy sprouts. Quite possibly one of the most delicious bites we have had in our travels over the last two and a half years.
Chef Ollie and sous chef Mat both have tremendous passion for what they do. They finished off our meal with two dishes that are not on the current menu. After trying them both, we strongly advised them to remedy that.
The first plate to appear was “zombie” fried chicken. This consists of chicken breast coated in red velvet cake mix and fried. This is served with a strawberry cream cheese sauce. As you’re reading this, you’re probably thinking that sounds odd. Well, you would be right. However, upon tasting this dish, it just works. The chicken is juicy and the sweet sauce goes well with the cake mix coating. Unusual but tasty.
Our last dish of the evening was certainly not the least.
It had no name other than it was a burger. The Commonwealth grinds beef shoulder with some beef fat to make their burgers. Nothing frozen here. This burger was topped with aged white cheddar, the house-made bacon and a runny egg. These delicious ingredients were then stuffed between two brioche white cheddar grilled cheese sandwiches. Words really can’t describe how great this was. We definitely think the Burger Guyz would approve.
The Commonwealth delivered on its promises. All aspects of our meal were unique and satisfying. With a host of craft beers, innovative comfort food and cocktails, we are sure you will find the experience memorable.