8 TWELVE OAKS RESTAURANT REOPENS IN GORGEOUS BROWNSVILLE MANSION
from the editor
20
V&V SCRATCH KITCHEN A HIDDEN GEM OVERFLOWING WITH LOVE
DISHING UP SOMETHING DELICIOUS
Without even meaning to, this edition of Mon Valley Magazine is all about food and some of the wonderful options available to patrons throughout the area. I love it when an inadvertent theme comes together. Of course, this time of year is perfect for talking about sweet treats and meals that make you feel like you’re at home.
One of our stories in this issue is about V&V Scratch Kitchen in Finleyville, which has been one of my personal favorites since it opened. It’s where we take visiting friends and relatives when they’re in town. They also provided our Thanksgiving meals when we were isolating at home and could not travel to visit family during COVID.
My fiance and I were out and about in Mingo Creek County Park just a few weeks after V&V Scratch Kitchen first opened. We visited during a quiet afternoon and dined on excellent sandwiches paired with homemade chips. We were thoroughly impressed and hoped that, despite the odds, the little restaurant would make it.
Now, almost a decade later, Chef and Kristen still remember us each time we visit. That’s just the kind of people they are. Their menu states that their mission is to “cater to the well-behaved” and asks that visitors be kind. I think we could all use some of that kindness, now and forever.
Writer April Barbe chatted with Heidi Hoffman about her festive shop, Sweets by Mrs. C, in Monongahela. This ice cream parlor is decorated for Christmas year-round and is perfect for a sundae or other sweet occasion.
Our cover story comes from Dave Zuchowski and highlights a Brownsville mansion that has recently reopened its restaurant after sitting dormant during COVID. The space is sumptuously decorated and even offers items for sale in its gift shop.
“At Christmas, I plan to post tiny red stockings on items I think might make good Christmas stocking stuffers,” owner Susan Yurkovich said. “Our items range in price from $1.50 to $189, so we have something for everyone.”
No matter where you visit this season for special celebrations, I hope you and yours can do whatever brings you joy in the months to come.
If you have a story idea, please reach out. Email me at tthurston@observer-reporter. com, or give me a call at 724-222-2200 ext. 2421. I love hearing from readers. Take care, stay safe and see you in the next edition.
Editor
Christmas-themed sweet shop offers ice cream, candy and more
By April Barbe
Does your sweet tooth wish Christmas was all year long? You’re in luck at Sweets by Mrs. C in downtown Monongahela. The festive shop is open year-round and offers many flavors of ice cream, as well as other treats.
“We have over 49 flavors of soft serve ice cream, hand-packed ice cream and more than 300 different candies, including hard-to-find retro candy and freeze-dried candy,” said owner Heidi Hoffman.
Hoffman said the sundaes at her shop are also very popular. The festive concoctions include names like “Rudolph Reese Revenge,” “Prancer’s Pretzelberry Prize,” “Kringle Krunch” and more. Customers can also help name new sundaes on the business’s Facebook page.
At the Christmas-themed store, customers can also enjoy retro-bottled soda, homemade waffle and cake cones or ice cream nachos.
Hoffman opened the sweet shop in August 2019. It’s named after Hoffman’s mother, Dorothy Jackson, who “loves to dress up as Mrs. Claus and give gifts to children,” she said.
Find Sweets by Mrs. C at 260 West Main St. in Monongahela.
Photos courtesy of Sweets by Mrs. C.
Owner Heidi Hoffman’s mother, Dorothy Jackson, is the namesake of Sweets by Mrs. C.
She added that it was a lifelong dream to open the business. As a child, Hoffman said her mother, now 93, named her button and yarn shop after her. So, she had always awaited the day she could return the gesture.
Hoffman, a Charleroi native who now resides in Monongahela, made the shop feel like stepping into Christmas with an 18-foot, turn-of-century counter painted in festive red and green.
“The tables and chairs, as well as the hutches, were all bought used in order to convey a feeling of home when you enter,” she said.
Several hutches throughout the shop contain over 350 items of candy, including hard-to-find retro candy and popular candy found on social media. Hoffman is also in the developing stages of creating a candy subscription box to take the candy nationwide.
Sweets by Mrs. C has also won several awards for best ice cream throughout Washington County.
Hoffman said her dream is to make Sweets by Mrs. C the place to come to celebrate life’s joyful moments. She has also added several family games to the shop for folks to enjoy, including Perfection, Connect Four, Yahtzee and Trouble.
“When you want really good ice cream in a fun, friendly and festive atmosphere, you really don’t need to look any further than Sweets by Mrs. C,” Hoffman said.
The business is located at 260 West Main St. For more information, visit the website at sweetsbymrsc.com or find Sweets by Mrs. C on Facebook.
According to Sweets by Mrs. C, the s’more Santa sundae is Santa’s favorite because he always wants s’more. It features vanilla soft serve layered with graham cracker crumbs, chocolate shavings, marshmallow syrup and topped with whipped cream and a sprinkling of graham cracker crumbs and a piece of Hershey bar.
has banana soft serve layered with sliced bananas, vanilla wafers,
and just a “dash”
Chairs one would find around their grandparents’ dining room table make the shop feel like walking back in time.
Festive Christmas decorations greet customers no matter the season.
The dasher’s delite sundae
warm caramel
of cinnamon.
Serving the Mon Valley since 2005, Spartan Health
Surgicenter is a free-standing, Medicare certified, Joint Commission accredited, ambulatory surgery center located off of Coyle Curtain Road in Carroll Township.
Spartan strengthens the convenience of health care in the Mon Valley Community by providing greater comfort, more privacy and a relaxed environment for outpatient surgery center patients.
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Ophthalmology:
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Patrick Garman, M.H.A. Executive Administrator
Patricia Monaghan, R.N. Director of Nursing
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General Surgery: Prakorb Isariyawongse, MD
Pain Management: Anthony Cuneo, MD
Gastroenterology:
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Twelve Oaks Restaurant reopens in gorgeous Brownsville mansion
Following a five-year hiatus that saw the Twelve Oaks restaurant close during the COVID-19 pandemic, the stately 1906 mansion in Brownsville’s south end reopened on September 10.
Patrons now have the option of dining on the main floor surrounded by the elegance of ten-foot-tall ceilings, hardwood floors, white linen tablecloths, lace curtains, ornate chandeliers and many beguiling artifacts scattered throughout the building. Or they can choose to dine downstairs in Carpetbaggers Tavern or the Ashley Banquet Room, which reference the restaurant’s “Gone with the Wind” theme.
“We have both an upscale, high-end menu and a casual tavern menu that offer affordability and appeal for every palate,” said David Yurkovich, co-owner, along with his wife, Susan.
To signify the goal of providing a touch of Southern hospitality, the owners have placed close to 100 pineapple figurines throughout the restaurant and second-floor gift shops.
“The pineapple is a symbol of Southern hospitality, so they further accent our overall theme,” Susan said Not to be missed is the six-foot-wide wooden staircase that leads from the main floor to the rooms on the second floor. It’s what reminded the Yurkoviches of the Southern plantation home of the Wilkes family mentioned in the film and
In the main dining room
Photos and story by Dave Zuchowski
The grand staircase
suggested to them the name of their restaurant.
To oversee the food preparation in the kitchen, the owners selected executive chef David Galiffa, who was born and raised in Donora and is still a resident of the Monongahela River town.
“I came to a culinary career rather late in life, in my early 30s,” he said. “I started at the bottom level of the restaurant business and worked my way up to executive chef in a few short years.”
Galiffa’s experience includes working in country clubs and, most recently, The Lab at Armen’s Barrels in Washington. Assisting him in the Twelve Oaks kitchen is sous chef Vadym Zhuravskyy, who worked with him at The Lab and made the move with him to Twelve Oaks.
“Our goal is to bring beautiful food to everyone coming through our doors,” Galiffa said. “As to our style of food, even though I love classic French cuisine, I love getting inspiration from everywhere.”
Word from the kitchen is that the Twelve Oaks country cut berkshire pork chop is the number one bestselling entree.
For beef lovers, the 12 oz. ribeye has proved more popular, so far, than the 8 oz. filet mignon. For those with a taste for seafood, Galiffa said the crab cakes have very little filler and are mostly made of crab.
Susan likes to spotlight the house’s plantation chicken, a boneless breast, hand-breaded with panko and almonds, then topped with a honey butter amaretto sauce.
“The chef came in with a chicken recipe of his own, but when he tasted the plantation chicken, he decided to stay with
David and Susan Yurkovich on the second-floor landing
Executive Chef David Galiffa at work in the kitchen
ours,” Susan said. “Also keep in mind that our lobster mac is a dish of creamy gouda cheese sauce and langostino lobster over cavatelli, a pasta you rarely find in lobster mac.”
Interestingly, the main menu is served in Carpetbaggers Tavern, along with a special tavern menu that includes sandwiches and specialty items like steak and fries and chicken tenders.
“After three false starts, we finally opened in September,” David said. “We got the word out via Facebook, and the volume of business has grown ever since.”
Even though the restaurant closed in late 2018, the owners maintained the building’s heat and air conditioning. Before they reopened, they replaced four of the building’s eight furnaces and air conditioners, redid the floors and installed a new kitchen stove and prep tables.
Pittsburgh architect Henry Estep designed the classic revival style house with Spanish baroque influences. Now listed on the National Registry of Historic Places, the 21-room house with 11 fireplaces proved so attractive that it caught the eye of several filmmakers, one of which featured the house in the Netflix movie “I’m Not Okay With This.”
Before or after dinner or even as a drop-in without dining, patrons can explore more of the house on the second floor, where six rooms are filled with unique, sometimes whimsical gift items. With Christmas coming up, Susan has decorated nine trees to give the house extra sparkle and holiday cheer.
and jewelry, while the children’s room specializes in children’s clothing.
“At Christmas, I plan to post tiny red stockings on items I think might make good Christmas stocking stuffers,” Susan said. “Our items range in price from $1.50 to $189, so we have something for everyone.”
Due to its unique atmosphere, the house has been a popular spot for special occasions like anniversaries, birthdays and holiday parties. It has also served as a site for weddings.
“Twelve Oaks is such a gem that I’m glad to see that it’s reopened once again,” David said.
Located at 815 Water Street in Brownsville, Twelve Oaks Restaurant is open from 4 to 9 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. Reservations for weekend dining are strongly recommended. Call 724-785-3200 or twelveoaksbrownsville.com.
Most of the rooms are themed. The sumptuous tea room, for instance, has everything needed for afternoon tea, including tea, honey, jams and delicate china. The western room features tooled leather items, canvas bags, cowhide wearables The lamb lollipops
In the tea room
The chamber had the pleasure of being part of a ribbon-cutting ceremony for KD Dance Studio’s NEW location at 164 Finley Rd. Suite 160, Belle Vernon, in Gabe’s Plaza.
For more information visit their website at kddancestudio.com or call 724-518-4294.
Speer Street Financial recently opened a new office
in Peno’s Plaza along Route 481 in Monongahela. Owner Bill Hecklick is excited to offer financial advice to the residents and businesses of the Mon Valley area.
Speer Street Financial specializes in providing simple, clear, personalized financial advice. They offer hourly advice, flat-fee financial advice, and full-service investment management services. Financial advice services are also available for local employers that want to offer financial wellness as an added employee benefit. Initial, no-cost consultations can be booked online on their website: www.speerstreet.com
Pictured is Kim Duranti, Center, surrounded by her students, friends, and family during the ribbon-cutting celebration.
The Residence at Hilltop
For
C.J.’s Furniture Continues to Thrive in Local Market; Prioritizes Customer Service
by Michael AlbaneseTaking over a company that has a history nearing nine decades isn’t an easy feat.
However, Jaimie Amati and her husband, Joe, knew the challenges when they purchased C.J’s Furniture in 2021.
And while ownership has changed -- Jaimie Amati admits they haven’t changed much. Because they didn’t have to.
She said the customer experience and the experience with the vendors is still the same, as all the upholstery is made in the U.S. and they sell quality pieces “you can’t get other places.”
C.J.’s Furniture works with vendors such as Temple Furniture, Elk Home and Kincaid. They sell items to furnish living rooms, dining rooms and bedrooms, as well as wall art and accent pieces.
Jaimie Amati said she and her husband pride themselves on exceptional customer service, as they work with all their costumes from “beginning to end.” She said they go through what they need for their space, visit their homes and see how they can coordinate and deliver what the customer needs.
She added their customer service is “unmatched.”
C.J.’s Furniture offers free delivery and inhome consultations for its customers. According to its website, C.J.’s Furniture has the understanding that “every home has its unique story and style” and its consultations are designed to help customers choose the pieces that are right for them and their space.
Jaimie Amatio said she’s heard the “horror stories” of customers who went to box
stores. She noted that while mistakes happen, it’s how one handles it, and they go above and beyond to help the customer.
And that customer service and commitment to the customer has helped them in uncertain times.
C.J.’s Furniture, nestled in Monongahela, Pennsylvania, which has a population of just over 4,000 people. Unemployment in Washington County was 4% in August, slightly lower than the national average of 4% for the month.
Jaimie said business has been great as they’ve stayed consistently busy despite the current economy.
And staying busy is something they are grateful for, as she has heard furniture sales are down.
According to a Forbes article from June 2024, Williams-Sonoma reported a 5.4% annual revenue drop for the quarter ending April 28. Ethan Allen, a custom furniture retailer, posted a 21.4% decline in net sales for the quarter ending March 31. The company cited “sluggish” demand in the overall industry, according to CFO Matthew McNulty.
Jaimie Amati attributes their success recently to a strong base of repeat customers that have kept sales consistent.
She said they hope 2025 is more of the same as they look to update their offerings, offering newer pieces and options.
One aspect they look to expand upon is their ability to reupholster furniture. She said they are doing it on a limited basis currently, with her husband doing some of the work, but they hope that it becomes a big part of their service in coming years.
She added her and her husband will continue efforts to expand their customer base by increased marketing. She added they have succeeded with a local customer base but know they need to ex-
pand their reach.
She said the biggest item is getting their name out there, as they are people who purchased an item 25 years ago and didn’t think the store was open.
However, she said, it is key they are “reminding people that the store is still here.”
And according to C.J.’s website, “you’re not just a customer; you’re part of the family,” and Amati invites customers to “experience the difference of shopping with a store that truly cares.”
Visit www.cjsfurniture.com for more information.
CJ’s Furniture is located at 142 West Main Street in Monongahela
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Joe and Jaimie Amati are the owners of CJ’s Furniture.
A hidden gem overflowing with love V&V Scratch Kitchen
By Michele Gillis
Photos courtesy of V&V Scratch Kitchen
When asked what the main ingredient is to V&V Scratch Kitchen’s seven and a half years of success, the owners would say love.
Martin and Kristen Lamarche are the owners of V&V Scratch Kitchen. Though their love story started many years back, the loving way Martin speaks about his wife and children emulates in everything he does.
“You know my kids are why this place is here,” said Martin. “My wife is the reason why it’s successful. She’s not only my muse. She brings out the best in me as far as my motivation in the entrepreneurial world is concerned, and she has an incredible aptitude for vision.”
The restaurant is named after their children, Vincent, 14 and Vivien, 10, who help out at the restaurant.
“You know, this girl is 10 years old,” said Martin. “She can work the register at a busy restaurant, never miss a beat. She knows how to talk to people. She buses tables. She’s just the most amazing little person. If you give them enough trust and space, these children are future adults. They know more than you want them to and the things that they can do are so impressive.”
Martin is so proud of his son as well. “He works the floor,” he said. “He does all the jobs that need to be done on Friday nights. He’s just so busy with sports that he’s not here as often as his sister, but he is dynamite, too.”
Martin got his first job cooking when he was 13 years old and hasn’t stopped since. He has worked as a chef for most of his life and has worked at Michelin Star restaurants such as The Inn at Little Washington, Terra Restaurant in St. Helena for Chef Hiro Sone and some in the Hamptons.
Above: Martin and Kristen Lamarche are the owners of V&V Scratch Kitchen.
Left: Chocolate peanut butter cheesecake
But what solidified his path was meeting his future wife, who was bartending at the restaurant where he was a chef in the Hamptons.
“The truth is that I met a girl from Pittsburgh, and we started our lives together and then two kids came from it,” said Martin. “And from that was born this incredible entrepreneurial spirit, that, through this love story, found its path to Finleyville. And gosh, is it satisfying.”
V&V Scratch Kitchen opened seven and a half years ago.
The building they are in had been occupied by several businesses before, but none had survived or thrived. The building owners were going to make it office space if this restaurant didn’t survive, but luckily, that didn’t happen, even though they were a little nervous at first.
“I just kept looking over at my muse, and she seemed excited, and I was like, okay, I better get excited, too,” said Martin. “I need to think this thing all the way through, take all my own experience, do the best I can, show up every day and do this thing from the heart. We were two and a half, almost three years into it when COVID hit.”
Because of the foundation they had laid and their dedication to their love story, they made it through those challenging times and are still thriving today.
“From there, we’ve just been building this wonderful business,” said Martin. “Pre-COVID, we employed almost 50 people. I think we had 48 people on payroll, part-time and full-time. And this is all born from the two of us who honestly have never been wealthy. We’ve never had a lot of money, but we didn’t borrow any money from anybody but the equity out of our own home to open this business. We started by just rolling our sleeves up, really digging into the idea and having a lot of faith. And with that, here we are. It’s just so crazy. We were able to weather one of the toughest times in modern times, at least of our generations.”
Martin said he was just so excited that their idea was viable and met a need in the area with the restaurant.
“So we’re meeting a need by trying every day to create an excellent product. We’re not trying to just make a mediocre product. We’re trying to deliver every day on an excellent product. And that is such a difficult task, especially at this vol-
Vivien, half of the V&V from the restaurant’s name, helps out in the restaurant. Here, she shows off a to-go order from the restaurant.
Wood-fired pizza is now available at the restaurant, like this smokey pepper pizza.
ume, because we’re feeding thousands of people a week.”
V&V Scratch Kitchen is a counter-service restaurant. They call it fast casual. You order at the counter and sit down with your order number. Patrons can bring adult beverages since V&V does not have a liquor license.
They are adding a wood-fired pizza shop, V&V Wood Fire Pizza, to the restaurant, and business is booming.
The ingredients are locally sourced and high quality, the dishes are fresh and inspired, and the atmosphere is cozy and unpretentious.
The core menu includes sandwiches, entrees, salads, soup, appetizers, little bites and desserts. Colorful chalkboard menus are updated with specials that change daily.
Notable menu items are the lobster rolls featuring lobster, house-made rolls and butter; smoked brisket, pastrami, pork, chicken wings or anything off the smoker. Burgers, fish and other seafood are also very popular at the restaurant.
“So you come into the restaurant, and there’s three giant chalkboards. There’s stuff every day that we’re creating out of the best product that we can find,” said Martin. “We are truly a from-scratch kitchen. That’s the best value for us. We are a custom-from-scratch kitchen. If it’s a lunch meat that we’re slicing here, we make it here; if it’s a sauce or vinaigrette, we make it here; if it’s a piece of fish, we’ve butchered it here, and if it’s a steak, we’ve cut it from sub-primal cuts.”
One thing they do not make is their ciabatta bread. Martin said the one they get from Mediterra Bakehouse is so good, and they can’t replicate it … yet.
“And they’re Pittsburgh’s premier bakehouse,” said Martin. “They just make such good bread. But I am driven to create a similar product here so I can stop buying it. Not because I don’t like them, but just because that’s what we’re down to. And we’ve just been steady, just chipping away at it.”
Martin explained that if someone calls for catering, they will talk to them first about what they like or don’t like, not about their menu.
“Those are the types of challenges that this little restaurant thrives in,” said Martin. “It’s just like trying to create an excellent product.”
Kim Hufnagel has used the catering services and enjoyed it.
“Our family has been eating at V&V since they opened,” said Hufnagel on Facebook last year. “We have had V&V cater two separate events. The food, the presentation and the service were the best. Chef and Kristen are such an asset to our community.”
Martin commits himself to making an excellent product while his wife handles the restaurant’s vision, bookings, books and catering, all while keeping the business clean and organized.
“Mind you, it’s just so great to work for powerful women like my wife,” said Martin. “It’s so great to fight the battle for a powerful young lady like my daughter. I can’t get it out of my head how impressive my little daughter is and how impressive my wife is. And I highly recommend to anybody if they want a happy life, you know, happy life, happy wife, right? I think it’s more important that you go out and find yourself somebody
Pan-seared wild-caught blue nose bass
Chef Martin Lemarche believes his restaurant’s success comes from hard work and love.
Sacred Heart Catholic Cemetery serving Catholics in the Mon Valley announces an addition to the Sacred Heart Mausoleum. Special Pre-Construction Savings are now available!
•
www.ccapgh.org 724-258-2885 contactus@ccapgh.org
you consider impressive. Because then making them happy, that’s no big deal at all. You’re at their service.”
Currently, they are focusing on taking orders for Thanksgiving and other holiday catering.
“You design a delicious menu based on their food choices and their budget,” said Martin. “That’s been such a blessing, the catering end of our restaurant, because it’s like an incidental side of it. But we’ve grown it to be a pretty powerful part of our business.”
Debbie Boughner agrees that they have an excellent, delicious product.
“Our first time here, and it was delicious,” said Boughner in a Facebook post. “Everything we had was amazing, including the wings, brussels sprouts, soup of the day, beet salad, hot pastrami sandwich and lemon bar for dessert.”
A fun thing they do at the restaurant is have a chef’s table event every Saturday. It is a multi-course meal that customers reserve and dine on more unique cuisine.
“It wouldn’t be unusual for us to have frog legs, escargot, Maine lobster, Chilean sea bass or foie gras,” said Martin. “There are so many wonderful products and everything that
we can find out there in the world that causes or sparks an interest in our kitchen. We bring it in, and we create a small tasting from it. So, if we discover something on a trip that we enjoy, we’ll bring it back to our chef’s table.”
Bringing in new ideas helps to keep the chef’s table menu fresh, so they have never had to repeat a course.
“We want to be the place where you come to a couple of times a week,” said Martin. “We want to be the place that you think of when you think, ‘Oh, man, I want a great sandwich.’ I want to be the place that you think of when you think, ‘Gosh, I just haven’t had a great piece of fish in a long time. Let’s go to V&V.’ We run the gamut of sandwiches to excellent cuts of beef and excellent chops of fish. We try and make every product with as much care as we can. Whether it’s a housemate bologna sandwich or it’s an eight-ounce piece of Chilean sea bass, we’re putting the same love into it.”
V&V Scratch Kitchen is located at 6108 Brownsville Road in Finleyville. The hours are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday. Saturday-Monday are by appointment only. Visit vandvkitchen.com for more information and check the Facebook page at facebook.com/ vvscratchkitchen for updates on specials and more.
A pineapple and prosciutto pizza
how do i...
how do i get my business at the top of search results?
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A LIFE OF YOUR OWN
Community LIFE helps keep seniors independent and in their homes with an all-inclusive program and insurance plan. With eight Health and Wellness Centers throughout the region, you can drop by and have a cup of coffee, laugh with friends, and take care of your health all at once. And for your convenience, this program offers transportation to and from the centers and to medical appointments.
This friendly, vibrant community is created
through Community LIFE’s commitment to inclusivity and diversity, as they welcome seniors from all walks of life to join their program. They offer a complete network of medical specialists to cover the full spectrum of medical and health care needs, from diseases like dementia to physical disabilities. Comprehensive health care teams help coordinate care with access to physical and occupational therapists, dietitians, social workers, and more.
“My life just completely turned around.”
-James Y.
Community LIFE services:
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Let Community LIFE handle your everyday care, so you can spend more time with the people you care about.
Visit commlife.org to apply or call 1-866-419-1693 to learn about program eligibility.
