What a crazy month?!?! I did so much in September this year. The most important thing was that I quit my job to become a full time content creator. After 16 years working a corporate job, I decided it was time to give making videos and working with businesses and events a shot full time. Even though I took quite the pay cut, I am so much happier. I’m trying to catch up on content I shot months ago and actively seek new partnerships. The other big thing in September was I was an organizer of the first BaconBurgh Festival. I partnered with Beers of the Burgh to bring a bacon themed festival to Pittsburgh. I think it was a big success and it is definitely coming back next year.
Restaurants
I walked up to Jamison’s West Liberty for wing night. For a bar with great food that is only 2 blocks from my house, I should be there more often. They have some of my favorite wings in the area, and they also have great burgers and mac and cheese.
I finally went to Emerson’s for their burger. It’s a pretty sizeable smash burger with a special sauce. I can definitely recommend this one.
I attended the 3rd anniversary of one of my favorite restaurants. The Parlor Dim Sum celebrated with special dishes and cocktails. I love dim sum and have been eating at The Parlor since they were just pop ups so many years ago. My favorites I get often at the Siu Mai and Char Siu Bao. Some of the specials today were cold peanut chili noodles, beef pot stickers and a giant juicy dumpling. Looking forward to many more meals at The Parlor in the future.
I got lunch at Chinatown Inn with my coworkers on my last full day physically in the office. They know it’s my favorite restaurant because it is the best restaurant around. I got my usual lunch meal of General Tso’s Chicken, fried rice and a chicken egg roll.
I stopped by The Warren for some celebratory drinks after leaving my job. For dinner, I got Vito’s Last Corleone flatbread. I don’t typically get flatbreads. This was delicious, topped with the sweet Italian sausage from Frankie’s.
I had to do some shopping out in Robinson and decided to stop at the Deluca’s Diner out there. I ordered a Corned Beef and Swiss Omelet. It was pretty good and massive.
I finally ate at Alberta’s Pizzeria in North Side. We ordered a bunch of apps and pizzas. I enjoyed the most the appetizer special of stuffed banana peppers and the Electric Banana pizza made with hot banana peppers and gorgonzola.
I ate at 1930 by Atria’s with my parents for Pasta Night and Octoberfest. Every Thursday is pasta night, where 1930 by Atria’s features a different pasta dish each week. This time, they were featuring veal parmesan, which is a favorite of both my dad and me. What I really liked is that their pasta sauce actually has a little bit of a kick to it, similar to how I make it at home. They also have their Octoberfest menu right now, and my mom opted for the veal cutlets with Swiss cheese and bacon and a side of potato salad. I know I need to go back for some of the Octoberfest items. I returned to 1930 by Atria’s a couple of days later for late night drinks.
I finally ate at Happenstance Cafe, an adorable neighborhood cafe in Lawrenceville. I’ve heard great things and wanted to try their food because they are one of the restaurants participating in One Day to Remember’s One Bite One Day, Pittsburgh’s premier foodie event, on October 23 at the Pittsburgh Opera. Happenstance Café was delicious. I tried three of their comfort food dishes: Pulled Pork Mac and Cheese, Fried Chicken and Croffles, and the new burger, Jamal’s Jammin’ Jalapeño Burger. I loved the Pulled Pork Mac and Cheese the most. I’m definitely going to be eating at Happenstance Café again.
I made a quick stop at Jackworth Ginger Beer for an afternoon cocktail and to pick up some 4 packs of ginger beer featuring their new labels. They have the best ginger beer I’ve tasted and love using it in my cocktails or drinking it straight.
I checked another restaurant I’ve never eaten at off my list, going to Gordo’s Tacos & Tequila. I was up there to take some photos before Party on the Mount. I was impressed by the tacos. The handmade corn tortillas and delicious barbacoa.
I stopped in at Shiloh Plate & Pour on Mount Washington for a burger. This is in the old Redbeard’s space. It really liked my Black and Bleu burger. I’ll need to stop in again sometime.
I had dinner at Tocayo in Shadyside. I got a carnitas Drowned Burrito covered in queso and salsa.
I went to Bob Evans for breakfast as part of a partnership to show off their Farmer’s Choice breakfasts. I was pretty happy with all of the items I tried. I don’t always go with sweet breakfasts, but actually liked the Caramel Apple Farmer’s Choice the most.
I was an impromptu guest at Chef Alekka’s cooking class at the Kitchen on the Hilltop in Mt. Oliver. I got to make Chicken Cacciatore. It turned out great. Alekka learned I can actually cook and not just eat.
I went to Mixtape in Garfield for their House of Burton 3 popup. I don’t attend a lot of popup bars. However, I like Mixtape goes all out with the décor. They had activities to do at the popup. The drinks were pretty good.
Takeout & Food Trucks
I finally got to try Street Fries food truck when they stopped by Back Alley Brewing. I had been hearing they had some of the best fries in Pittsburgh. They were also a vendor for BaconBurgh so I really wanted to finally check them out. The fries alone were great, but they are amazing topped with all the sauces and bacon. I did a BBQ Bacon Ranch and a BBQ Bacon Cheese. Both were so good.
I attended one of the days of Four Chords Music Festival. My friends at Blue Sparrow were there. Of course, my festival meal had to be from them. I got one of their giant burritos.
I stopped by Pittsburgh Smokehouse to try a bunch of Bacon they were making up for BaconBurgh. I tasted some of the great bacon items they will be serving ahead of the event. They are smoking up several types bacon infused with flavors like jalapeno, pepper garlic, and candied. They are also bringing these incredible rattlesnake tails, jalapenos stuffed with sausage and wrapped in bacon. Last but not least, they will have bacon on a stick, which are big pieces of bacon perfect for eating while walking.
I ate so much at BaconBurgh. I got Bacon on a Stick from Rogue BBQ, Pork Belly Burnt Ends from Wood Stoked BBQ, Bacon Chicken Shawarma from Pita My Shawarma and Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Manicotti and Bacon Wrapped Kielbasa from Brisketburgh. So much great bacon.
Events
As mentioned right above, I attended the first day of Four Chords music festival. I’m not much for pop punk or festivals, but they had Bowling for Soup, Jimmy Eat World and Blink 182 all performing the first day. I’m a fan of all of them. I’d never seen Blink 182. They were amazing. The festival was a lot of fun too. Lots of food and non food vendors. I’d attend it again for sure, just for the vibes of it.
I got to see David Byrne of the Talking Heads on his new tour Who is the Sky. He brought his new stage show to the Benedum Center. It was very similar to the American Utopia show he did a few years ago. Lots of great choreography and visuals. They played most of the Talking Heads songs you want to hear. I loved it.
I checked off another amazing performance by seeing Adam Sandler at PPG Paints Arena. I have been a fan of his comedy albums since I was a kid. Two of the first 2 CDs I bought were ‘They’re All Gonna Laugh at You!’ and ‘What the Hell Happened to Me’. My parents definitely shouldn’t have let me have those as a 10 year old, but they were so funny. He did a lot of jokes and songs. Almost nothing political. He brought with him Rob Schneider, Tim Meadows, Please Don’t Destroy and Nick Swardson.
I made my first appearance on KDKA Pittsburgh Today Live to talk about BaconBurgh. It was great to see Heather Abraham again and meet David Highfield. Gabe from Cold Friends Kitchen was with me to make up some of this Pork Belly Bites and mac and cheese.
Months of work finally led to BaconBurgh – A Celebration of All Things Bacon on Sept 27 at Southside Works. We had over 15 food trucks, a bunch of non-food vendors, 4 different musical acts, a mechanical hog and the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile. It was an incredible day and I was so glad to be a part of the planning and execution of it. I had so much fun and ate so much. I can’t wait to do it all again next year and hopefully work on even more events. A full recap will come soon.
I visited the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank to volunteer for the morning. They provide food assistance in the greater area. I was there at the Volunteer Engagement Center to help sort food and pack boxes to be sent out to pantries in the region. It was interesting to learn more about how they receive food, how they sort and store the food and how they distribute the food. I really recommend thinking of them if you are looking for a volunteer opportunity.
