Walnut Grill plans to open 5th Pittsburgh-area restaurant amid pandemic

The newest Walnut Grill American Eatery & Bar is slated to open in July.

It will be located in a strip mall at 1001 Cool Springs Road in Bethel Park (at the former Steel Cactus Restaurant). Walnut Grill, which has been in business for more than 21 years, also has locations in Bridgeville, Robinson, Pine and the Waterworks mall near Fox Chapel.

Kirk Vogel, president of Walnut Grill Holdings, told the Tribune-Review a deal was already in process when covid-19 struck.

“We were committed to this location, and we really like the neighborhood,” he said. “We want restaurants to be around and believe they will. It will take some redesigning of our business model, but we are hopeful people will want to come out and dine again.”

Vogel said the projection is to be operating the new spot in early July. They plan to do curbside pickup if Allegheny County is still in the yellow phase.

All Walnut Grill locations can provide to-go cocktails, which will be legal after Gov. Tom Wolf signs the legislation.

“Once we reopen our restaurants, it will be like making a first impression all over again,” Vogel said. “We will do whatever we can to keep our guests and our employees safe.”

This is the second new restaurant for the company during the pandemic. The other is in St. Louis, Mo., and joins three there run by Vogel’s brother.

The Bethel Park location will seat more than 100 patrons and feature a large outdoor patio.

Currently, the other four locations have takeout and food services from the full menu. Hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.