RESTAURANT REVIEW: Pepper's at Uptown

Pepper's has gone through a transformation.

The once dingy, antiquated bar is now an ultra-modern, chic restaurant.  The smell of long-put out cigarettes no longer hangs over the restaurant and the restaurant feels and smells clean. The red walls nicely off-set the white tables.

I was especially impressed by the service.  Our food came out well, and our waiter was courteous and kind. He checked on our table enough to refill drinks, and inquire about our meal, but he left us alone enough that we could enjoy our meal and talk without interruption.

The only drawback of the new Pepper's at Uptown is that it is significantly more expensive than the previous restaurant. With an appetizer, three non-alcoholic drinks, two entrees and one dessert our lunch and tip cost $53, or $26.50 a person. The meal was good, but it's still a bit expensive for a casual lunch. I found myself wishing that the restaurant offered a lunch special of some sort.

The restaurant offers a variety of sandwiches and wraps and soups and salads that range in price from $7 to $14.  They also have eight appetizers from chicken fingers ($8) to crab cakes ($12) which is the only section of the menu that vaguely resembles the old Peppers.  We ordered the Rhode Island Style Calamari, which featured sliced, breaded and fried squid.  The calamari was then tossed with spicy banana peppers and orange zest. Our waiter presented our dish with lemon aioli dipping sauce.  Although the calamari was crisp, I wasn't all that excited about it. The dipping sauce fell a little bit short of my expectations.

From there the meal picked up speed. I really enjoyed Linguini Pescatore ($12). The dish featured mussels, squid, shrimp and scallops in a spicy tomato sauce. The meal was delicious, just spicy enough to have some kick, but not so spicy that my eyes watered.

I also enjoyed the Margarita pizza ($10), which featured hand made pizza dough that was thin and slightly crunchy, with mozzarella, basil and tomatoes. The pizza, with an appetizer would have been large enough to share. 

We had strawberry cheesecake for dessert. I liked that the cheesecake tasted freshly made and had a nice presentation.

Pepper's at Uptown is a great place to enjoy an elegant meal. Although, it's a bit expensive for lunch, Pepper's make a great place for a celebratory meal.

Peppers at Uptown

• Address: 4620 North 10^th Street, McAllen
• Phone: 956-618-5533
• More Info: www.peppersuptown.com
• Atmosphere: 4
• Food: 3 1/2
• Service: 4
• Overall: 4

Paige Lauren Deiner covers features and entertainment for Festiva. You can reach her at (956) 683-4425.