I spent November in Pittsburgh. I didn’t go to many new restaurants during November. That’s not such a good idea for someone who is trying to become a FOOD and travel content creator. That’s not such a good idea for someone who is trying to become a food and TRAVEL content creator. What I did in November was enjoy some great meals, visit several holiday pop-up bars (see the end), attend another bucket list concert, and catch up on a ton of content. I actually finished content I shot this summer from Happy Valley, Boyertown, and Gettysburg this month which is slowly getting posted.
Restaurants
I was at a networking event at Bakersfield. The catering order was food, and there was a lot of it. I regularly say this is one of my least favorite restaurants. There’s nothing wrong with the food necessarily. It’s just not anything special either.
I met a friend at Viva La Vida in Fox Chapel. A lot of people seem to like it, so I thought I would finally give it a try. It was good, but it didn’t seem any better than other restaurants. I did feel it was a lot of flashy presentation.
I ended up at McFarland’s Bar in Mt Lebanon when my power went out one night. It also happened to be their wing night. This was one of my few new restaurants this month. I ordered too many wings. They were larger than expected and pretty good. I definitely plan to go back to try more.
I stopped by Hazelwood Brew House because Community Kitchen did a beer collab with New France Brewing Company. They did a spiced brown ale named Chef Missy, after the chef at Community Kitchen. I also got a chicken sandwich from Comfort & Spice.
I had dinner at McCormick and Schmick’s. It was pretty good. I don’t go out for seafood very often. I needed something that I knew would be quick before Paul McCartney.
I grabbed a hot chicken sandwich at Coop De Ville. It had been a while since I last ate there, but I was starving after an event. Those sandwiches are still pretty good. I definitely need to try some more stuff there again.
I went to Space Bar for their 2nd Anniversary celebration. They have become one of my favorite bars since they opened. The cocktails are great and they are always very welcoming. I’m glad to go there when I can. I was actually at Space Bar three times in November.
I attended the open house for Afters Café, a new coffee shop in Squirrel Hill. They are featuring coffee, coffee drinks, smoothies, and Turkish pastries. Their idea is to mimic the places one would go after a club in other countries, but in the US and during the daytime.
I was invited to check out another new Squirrel Hill coffee shop, Pre Amp Coffee Studio. It is themed after the Japanese record bars. It’s by Richard Deshantz Restaurant Group, so there is a lot of time and money behind it, and it paid off. They have a bunch of really cool coffee brewing equipment. They have a high end dual turntable setup to play records all day. This place is a two parter because…
For me, the most exciting part was Mortadella at Pre Amp. This is their Florentine style sandwich shop pop-up that will be there until February. The sandwiches are incredible and I will be returning to get so many of those.
I ventured north of the city to try out the new restaurant Mr. Mister Supper Club in Cranberry. They are serving upscale contemporary cuisine. Our meals were fine. I liked my spicy chicken parm, but it didn’t blow me away. I also ordered oysters because I’m still trying to decide if I like them. I think they are also just ok, but that’s more my personal preference.
I ate at Rib Room for the first time in like two years. This Prime Rib supper club hidden in the back of Meat and Potatoes is still one of the best meals I’ve had in Pittsburgh. The prime rib is delicious. The sides and appetizers are great. We got a delmonico special too that was fantastic. I will not be waiting two years to eat there again.
I also went to Meat and Potatoes the night after Rib Room. I got their short rib special that evening that was unbelievably good. My only complaint would be that the special was a little overpriced. Meat and Potatoes continues to be a great restaurant.
I stopped in at The Warren Bar & Burrow several times for cocktails over the course of the month. I think we all know thats my favorite bar in the city.
Takeout and Food Trucks
I got Jet’s pizza with some friends while sampling a bunch of whiskeys. Jet’s is surprisingly good for chain pizza. Also surprising that our Jet’s Pizza is the only one in Pennsylvania.
I got tacos from Taqueria El Pastorcito while I was meeting some people at Grist House. They still have some of my favorite tacos in the Pittsburgh area.
I got my monthly takeout from Big Shot Bobs. It’s always consistent for wings so I keep getting it.
I ordered bacon on a stick from Pittsburgh Smokehouse. They serve these thick pieces of bacon on a stick. They could be a full meal but I got it as a snack.
I got the Pork Belly Bites and Holy Smokes burger from Cold Friends Kitchen. They have quickly become one of my favorite food trucks. The Pork Belly Bites might be one of the best items I’ve eaten this year. They’re so tender. The sauce is great. They are served with kimchi.
Events
I attended the grand opening showing of Metropolis at the Row House Hollywood. After almost two years of renovations, they are finally open. I couldn’t be more excited. I have been a Row House member for years. It was a great event with lots of local food. The theater is looking great as they are giving it a Metropolis motif.
I went to see Stop Making Sense at the Rangos Giant Cinema in Kamin Science Center. Stop Making Sense is the concert film by the Talking Heads filmed in 1984. It’s probably the best concert film ever. It was remastered last year. Rangos was an amazing place to watch it with the giant screen and impressive sound system. I’d see it there regularly if I could.
I checked off another bucket list concert, getting to see Paul McCartney at PPG Paints Arena. This also was a bucket list concert for my mom, who lived through Beatlemania. Paul is 83 years old. He played for almost 3 hours. My knee was sore from sitting for almost 3 hours. The show was amazing. He played so many hits that are both from The Beatles and Wings. The end of the show, before getting to the encore, was incredible. The pyrotechnics during Live and Let Die were unbelievable and the performances of Let It Be and Hey Jude were phenomenal.
I made a last minute decision to go to the Riverhounds Eastern Conference Final at Highmark Stadium. Riverhounds games have grown so much over the years. The crowd was hyped. They won and went on to the USL finals. I definitely want to go to more games next season.
I attended Beers of the Burgh: Winter Warmer, my sixth beer festival of the year, excluding Spirits of the Burgh. This was at The Pennsylvanian. Beers of the Burgh beer festivals are always a good time. This one is a little smaller than the summer one. I got to sample so many local beers. There was a great selection of dark and winter beers this time.
Holiday Pop-ups
I should preface this with, I don’t really like any holiday pop-ups. Most of them are clearly cash grabs with poorly concocted sweet cocktails. Some make up for it with a lot of effort towards decorations. Miracle and Sippin’ Santa are the only two true holiday pop-ups I fully recommend because of the wide variety of drinks, the excessive decorations, and they donate proceeds to charity. Some of the others I may recommend just for decorations, and others just for cocktails.
I was invited to the Wigle Wonderland at Wigle Whiskey. Every year, they decorate the original tasting room in snowflakes and sparkly stuff and create a seasonal cocktail menu. Although many of the drinks are batched, they are actually very good. I do appreciate attending this one. It’s far more cocktail focused. Their hours are very limited, though, being open mainly Thursday to Saturday.
I went back to Space Bar to see their Snowglobe theme for is here the holiday season. They are featuring two holiday drinks, Spiced Pearseus and Cosmic Chai Toddy, and have decorated the bar to feel like a space station snowglobe. Space Bar has been one of my favorites since they opened and I enjoyed spending the evening sipping hot toddies surrounded by snowflakes. They did a good job creating a winter theme, but obviously visit Space Bar for the cocktails and mocktails.
I was invited to The Omni William Penn Hotel’s The Glitzmas Holiday Pop-up Bar. This is year they have a large selection of cocktails, mocktails and some food items. It’s very pastel. The drinks were very sweet. This one is way better for your photo ops with multiple backdrops and displays.
I was invited to check out the Atomic Tinsel Cocktail Club holiday pop-up at The Industrialist Hotel where they go hard on the mid 20th century theme of clean lines and the age of nuclear innovation. Very unlike my normal tastes, I was a big fan of the Moon Pie Martini made with vodka, Irish Cream, chocolate liqueur, vanilla and toasted marshmallow cold foam. This one was less in your face with decorations. The drinks were pretty good.
Miracle and Sippin Santa are back on 7th Street. These are always my favorite pop-ups. The drinks are the best of all the pop-ups. They actually have a variety of sweet drinks and spirit-forward drinks. They donate their proceeds to charity. It’s run by the same people at The Warren.
Shorty’s North Shore and Shorty’s Waterfront are doing Shorty’s Santa Shop: A North Pole Pop-up. I was invited to check it out. They added lots of holiday decorations to both restaurants. The drinks were very sweet. The special food items were just ok. Not really my vibe.
