February has definitely felt like the shortest month of the year, considering how fast it flew by. I started the month with a quick trip out to Raystown Lake Region to preview its Raystaurant Week. I attended the opening of a new Italian Restaurant. I have eaten a lot of great Chinese food thanks to Lunar New Year celebrations. I have eaten a lot of fried fish because of the start of the Fried Fish Season aka Lent. I attended a concert for an aging 90s band. I ate a lot of meals at home thanks to a meal prep partnership. I finished out the month with a lot of spirit…I mean spirits attending the Spirits of the Burgh festival.
Best Trip of February
It was also my only trip in February. I was in the Raystown Lake Region in Central PA for a preview of its Raystaurant Week. Near Huntingdon, PA, Raystown Lake is the largest lake in Pennsylvania, which is man made and completely contained in the state. The lake was almost completely frozen, which is rather uncommon. I was there for two days to try restaurants, create photos and videos and visit some of the tourist spots. I had great meals at a couple of spots in town, like Midnights Bar & Grill and Nanny Mae’s Café. Since this is typically a summer tourism spot, a lot of things were closed, but they opened up to let me get a look. I spent some time in Swigart Antique Auto Museum and got to see one of the Herbie VW Beetles from the movie The Love Bug. I also toured Lincoln Caverns and Whisper Rocks, which are a large underground series of caves with lots of great rock formations. I plan to head back in the summer so I can do some great activities.
Great New Italian Restaurant in Carnegie
Lucatino is the new Italian restaurant by the people behind Slice on Broadway. I have known Rico, who owns Slice on Broadway, for a few years, and I have always liked their NY Style pizzas. I was lucky enough to attend a friends and family with a portion of the proceeds going to the Boys and Girls Club in Carnegie. The food was great. I got to taste a few different items on the menu and enjoyed them all. The focaccia was light and airy with a little bit of crispness in the crust. The greens & beans were fantastic and made with so much garlic. The porchetta Roman pizza was delicious with a thin crisp crust and savory flavors from the meat and pesto. I got one of my favorite dishes, veal parmesan, as my entree. It was exactly as I’d want it pounded thin, breaded and covered in sauce.
‘Amazing’ Lunar New Year Meal #1
I was invited to celebrate the Lunar New Year with Amazing Dumplings in Squirrel Hill. This was actually my first time eating here, but I have been meaning to go for a while. They prepared a large selection of dumplings and off menu items for an amazing feast. The dinner was all about getting to celebrate with friends and family. This year is the year of the Fire Horse, which is a big deal as it signifies a year of intense change. I know I need to get back to Amazing Dumplings to try all the dumplings on the menu. This was an incredible meal and everyone was so nice.
Amazing Lunar New Year Meal #2
I attended the OCA Pittsburgh Lunar New Year Banquet Gala at Szechuan Spice for an evening of delicious food and great performances. My friend Karen organized a table at this annual OCA hosted celebration and fundraiser featuring many courses of great Chinese food. OCA Pittsburgh is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Their mission is to advance the social, political and economic well being of Americans of Asian and Pacific Islander descent. In Pittsburgh, they provide youth programs, medical clinics, education and civic opportunities for the AAPI community. Learn more about OCA Pittsburgh on their website.
Real Big Fish Sandwich
My friends at Pittsburgh Sandwich Society invited me to try the return of its Real Big Fish sandwich for this year’s fish fry season. They always go all out with delicious sandwiches. This year is a Beer-Battered Cod fillet and Mac Salad on a Breadworks Fish Bun, served with steak fries. The sandwich is available on Fridays through fish fry season at their spot at Strange Roots in Millvale.
One of the Best Fried Fish Sandwiches in Pittsburgh
I went back to Community Kitchen to eat one of the best fried fish sandwiches I ate last year. The fish was huge. It is double battered haddock. The tarter sauce was delicious and made in house too.
I’ve been a supporter of Community Kitchen for a long time. They provide culinary training to individuals regardless of their past or present. They offer training programs, transitional employment opportunities, apprenticeships, and job placement services that are designed to meet them where they are at. They also provide hungry relief to the community, and run catering, butchery and food truck programs. This year, I went back a second night to volunteer during the evening rush to serve fish.
A Concert of an Aging 90s Band
I went to see The Wallflowers at the Roxian Theater. Citizens Bank is the new sponsor of the Roxian and they were offering free tickets. I snagged a pair. The Wallflowers were good, but I remembered bands I might have liked many years ago I’m not always crazy about now. The Wallflowers played all of their best known album, Bringing Down the Horse, which had hits One Headlight, 6th Avenue Heartache, and The Difference. It was great to hear those songs. However, the audience was definitely lost at points when they played lesser known songs. They also played some Tom Petty covers, which were good, but it was very much like Jacob Dylan, pretending to be Bob Dylan, pretending to be Tom Petty.
Eating Delicious, Healthier Meals at Home with Nutre Meal Plan
I recently discovered Nutre Meal Plans when I was looking for a way to eat healthier, quality meals at home. Then I got the opportunity to partner with Nutre to try out the meals. My fridge was basically empty, so I relied on the Nutre Meal Plans prepared meals with a focus on delicious recipes made from healthier foods. Nutre just launched a kitchen in Pennsylvania, so I was now able to get these chef prepared meals prepared in Pennsylvania and shipped directly to me in Pittsburgh. I’ve tried these meals for a couple of weeks now, and I’ve been impressed with the portion size, ingredient quality, and taste of these meals compared to other delivery meal prep services I’ve tried.
If you want to try a healthier and delicious meal planning with Nutre Meal Plan, head to gonutre.com and use code ‘ALEXEATS’ to get 40% off your first order.
Disclosure: I was paid to try Nutre Meal Plan and may receive a commission on future orders.
A Spirited End of February with Spirits of the Burgh
I attended Spirits of the Burgh again at The Pennsylvania. This event is an evening of libations and celebration. They feature a bunch of local spirits and cocktails. This is a great event, allowing me to try out spirits before visiting those distilleries.
Other February Activities
I saw Seven Wonders, the Tribute to Fleetwood Mac at City Winery. This was a last minute activity. It was fun. City Winery is still just ok.
I ate brunch at Balvanara. It was actually my first time there. I got the burger and a sausage. They were pretty damn good and I should go back sometime for a steak.
I ate dinner at Cork & Crust, the new Pizza and Wine Restaurant at The Oaklander Hotel. I was hosted to check it out. It was a pretty good meal, but also if I had paid it would have been a rather expensive dinner. Since it’s in a hotel, it’s priced like a hotel restaurant.
I did some filming with Jason at Pita My Shawarma. We’ll hopefully be collaborating on something soon.
I went to the Pittsburgh International Auto Show. It was a little better than in past years. They are trying to get some more exclusive cars in again, but it’s still primarily a dealer show.
I got to attend a chocolate and whiskey tasting at Iron City Distilling with Sean of @pittsburghpours. I was taking the place of his wife, who was under the weather. We had a lovely evening sampling 3 whiskeys and a gin paired with chocolate from Valos Chocolates. This was followed by a dinner by The Chef and I Catering. This was a great event and I’d definitely want to do more tastings at Iron City Distilling.
I had lunch at 8 Star Cuisine in Gibsonia. It’s an AYCE Asian buffet. This was really good for a buffet. I ended up eating two full plates, 2 orders of sushi, a bowl of hot and sour soup that I added some wontons and some ice cream for dessert. I plan to go back.
I met up with my former coworkers at The Warren. I got a Warren Burger much later in the evening than I should have.
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