Twisted Thistle, upscale eatery in Leechburg, reopens after 6-month closure

Twisted Thistle, an upscale eatery along Market Street in Leechburg, has reopened after a nearly six-month closure.

“I’m just so excited to be able to open this beautiful restaurant again,” owner Linda Alworth said. “I’ve put too much of my life, sweat and tears into it. It should never have closed to begin with. We really missed seeing everyone.”

The restaurant shuttered its doors in June because of staffing issues, increased food prices and poor quality of produce and meats. The business was losing about $30,000 monthly before the closure.

Although workers still are hard to come by in the food and hospitality industry, and the cost of everything from apples to zucchini has increased, Alworth said she is confident now is the time to start serving again.

“It’s not just restaurants (having these problems),” Alworth said. “It’s every single business. Anywhere you go, any business owner that you talk to cannot get employees, and it’s a shame. They either don’t want to come off of unemployment or they say they have child care issues. I had no idea everything in a year-and-a-half could change so differently and drastically. We’re talking a drastic change of employment issues.”

A few private parties and event bookings continued during the closure, but not enough to cover the restaurant’s various bills and licenses.

Alworth, 67, of Washington Township said she sold her car, several pieces of equipment and other personal items to catch up with everything in order to reopen.

She also owns an event center across the street from Twisted Thistle as well as Lingrow Farm, a wedding venue in Gilpin.

The restaurant held a soft opening Nov. 18 and was open on Thanksgiving.

Alworth is assisted by chef Wayne Brandt, manager Kathy Fedoush, assistant chef Joe Kardos and several others.

The skeleton crew keeps the restaurant open three days a week with the hope of adding more days once they get more workers. Chef specials are posted Thursday, Friday and Saturday on the restaurant’s Facebook page.

Fan favorites such as chicken marsala and steaks have returned as well as dragon noodles, an Asian-American pasta dish featuring vegetables and a spicy sauce served with either steak, chicken or shrimp.

New items were added to the menu as part of the reopening.

They include a barbecue brisket sandwich, smash burgers, a Philly cheese brisket sandwich and clams linguine.

The restaurant also added fresh-made pasta from Forma Pasta in Pittsburgh’s Allentown neighborhood.

“I am so thankful for those who stuck by me,” Alworth said. “I’ve had a lot of support from the town. They wanted me to get open. When my daughter posted on Facebook that we were going to reopen, we’ve gotten 7,000 ‘likes’ within a week.”

Chuck Tursky of Parks Township was at the restaurant with some folks Friday.

“There’s not a lot of really upscale food places to eat in this area,” he said. “We needed it. When it was closed for business, we missed it. We’re really glad that they’re open.”

Masks are optional, and people don’t need to show proof of vaccination to get in.

People can make holiday reservations. However, the restaurant will be closed on Christmas and New Year’s Day.

A breakfast with Santa is planned from 10 a.m. to noon Dec. 12. Reservations and walk-ins are welcome.

More information about Twisted Thistle activities is available on its Facebook page.