PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Cedrick Wilson was charged with assaulting his estranged girlfriend at a suburban Pittsburgh restaurant tonight.

Wilson, 29, entered the Patron Mexican Grill in Pine Township shortly before 8 p.m. and saw Lindsey Paulat sitting at the bar, according to a criminal complaint filed by Northern Regional Police.

Paulat told police Wilson pushed her on the shoulder and, when she turned around, punched her in the left side of her face before leaving the eatery promptly, according to the complaint.

There was redness and swelling on Paulat's left cheek, and witnesses told officers what happened, police said.

Officers later found Wilson as he was leaving his Pine Township home in his car, police said.

Wilson was charged with simple assault, harassment and disorderly conduct and was taken to the Allegheny County Jail to await arraignment.

The relationship between Wilson and Paulat, the mother of his 1-year-old daughter, Anya, has recently been violent.

In January, they were involved in a fight at Wilson's home that ended with her holding police at bay for about 12 hours.

Paulat, of Fawn Township, accused Wilson of encouraging her to commit suicide when she spoke to him on the phone during events that led to her armed standoff. Wilson's attorney, Paul Goltz, said at the time Wilson never spoke with Paulat by phone until after police got involved in trying to quell the standoff, and those conversations were monitored by police.

Paulat surrendered to authorities in the early hours of Jan. 20 and was charged with aggravated assault and reckless endangerment.

Police withdrew those charges last month, but Paulat faces trial on charges of discharging a firearm in an occupied structure for allegedly firing two shots after Wilson left the house. Police said the handgun belongs to Wilson.

On Jan. 22, Wilson obtained a temporary protection-from-abuse order against Paulat, alleging she kicked him and that he feared she would shoot him if she got a gun.

A message left with Goltz's answering service was not immediately returned. A message left early Thursday for a Steelers spokesman also was not immediately returned.