Tarentum's Pasta King gives takeout the royal treatment

Tarentum resident Dale Davis has earned his title as the pasta king.

A longtime chef in restaurants across the Pittsburgh region, Davis made the leap to open the soul food takeout eatery Pasta King at 621 E. First Ave. in Tarentum just more than a year ago.

“I started way back, cooking with my mom and grandmother, and they inspired me all my life,” said Davis, 63.

“I like to see people taste my food and smile.”

The walk-up restaurant across from Dreshar Stadium is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. Menu items are all homemade and are available for catering.

His specialty, the King’s Chicken Ranchero Pasta, is the most-requested item. Made with bacon, pepper rings, tomatoes and ranch sauce, the hearty dish is served with garlic bread for $11.95.

Other popular items include Davis’ wings, rib dinners and the Chicken Philly, a hoagie served with green peppers, onions and honey mustard barbecue.

Grab-and-go foods, such as the catfish nuggets, come with a side a fresh-cut fries for $7.50.

For the calorie-conscious, there are a variety of salads, but Davis encourages people not to miss out on Grandmom’s banana pudding pound cake for dessert.

“That pudding is bangin’,” customer Beth Suncine said.

She stopped recently to grab a takeout meal on her lunch hour and said the food never disappoints.

“My favorite is the spaghetti with shrimp, veggies and garlic butter,” she said.

Growing up in Pittsburgh, Davis learned the ropes of managing a kitchen from the ground up. He started as a bar stocker and busboy, then worked his way up to a prep cook and chef in several well-known city restaurants.

He worked at the Clark Bar on the North Shore, Dell’s in Bloomfield and the Grand Concourse at Station Square.

Davis moved to the area a few years ago to care for an ailing brother and decided to settle in.

“It’s quiet here,” he said. “I like it.”

He said the title for his restaurant was a natural evolution of his experience working in a bevy of Italian restaurants and learning to master distinctive sauces.

This week, Davis launched a special called “10 Buck Sundays.” Rib or chicken dinners are served with two sides of greens, potato salad, yams or mac and cheese.

His next goal is to get an outside grill and a few tables so customers have a place to sit and enjoy their meal, he said.

“I would love to be cooking outside,” Davis said. “I think people would really love the flavors coming off the grill.”