Written by Karen Talbot



Oct. 15, 2014: Coals, which just opened on September 29, is a branch of a successful Portchester restaurant with the same name that fills the need for casual dining in Bronxville and is located on Parkway Road, across from the train station.

Previous restaurants have occupied this space, but the food was nothing to get excited about. Coals has a simple décor with hardwood floors, wood tables, and deep terra-cotta walls and has a friendly and attentive waitstaff. We went on a Friday night, so the bar scene was full and very lively, and many people were eating at the bar.

The Coals menu is concise with appetizers (which include soup and a couple of salads), pizza, and a burger. My husband had the arugula salad with pears, walnuts, and grana Padano in a sherry vinaigrette dressing, and I had crispy Brussels sprouts with walnuts, raisins, and grana Padano. Both were very good, and my husband, who does not like Brussels sprouts, ate at least one-third of my dish!

Their thin-crusted grilled pizza is a great reason to come here, with nine choices to choose from. We chose to share the "Dean Martin," which had fontinella, fresh mozzarella, tomato, pepperoni, and pecorino. It was delicious and we lapped it up. We would have had a burger too, but it was not available to order during the opening week. It is made of high-quality ground beef on a potato bread bun with a choice of asiago or Vermont cheddar cheese. Coals entered a gourmet burger in the Westchester Beer & Burger Blast back in June, and it came in at second place!

For libations, they offer white and red wines by the glass, $8 to $11, or by the bottle, $30 to $50, plus nine beers on tap and twelve in cans or bottles.

The owners are Tim Shanley and Nick Restaino and the chef is Bill Etzel. Lunch is available on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays for now. Appetizers ran $8 to $10, pizzas are $12.50 to $16, and the burger is $9.50 (French fries are $3.00).

So when you are in the mood for very good casual food at decent prices, this is the place to go! 

Pictured here: Coals restaurant in Bronxville.

Photo courtesy Karen Talbot