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I am a freelance writer based in Pittsburgh, PA. I contribute regularly to NEXTpittsburgh, Pittsburgh City Paper and TABLE Magazine. I love hamburgers, pinball and Negronis. I hate stinkbugs, liquid cheese and serial commas.
Planting hops at the Hazelwood YMCA. Photo by Hanna Mosca. There are over 27,000 vacant lots in Pittsburgh alone. And there are over 50 breweries (and more on the way) in the Pittsburgh region. Though the connection between the two may not be obvious, Pete Bell saw one.
It’s time we strike the word “hoppy” from our collective beer lexicon. The word has become a crutch, a way for some to find the most aggressive IPA on the shelf and for others to avoid an overly bitter beer. But in truth, the word “hoppy” doesn’t mean much at all. With few exceptions, all beers contain hops. And the tiny cones pack a wider spectrum of flavors than most of us give them credit for.
A few weeks ago, countless well-intentioned individuals resolved to drink less in the New Year. Then they remembered that January is a bleak, boring month and doled out a generous pour of something strong and brown. There are ways, however, to have a few drinks without the head-splitting Sunday mornings.
I shouldn't be blabbing about Millvale so much. I ought to keep it a secret for as long as possible, encouraging the hungry hipsters of Lawrenceville to get priced out to another neighborhood. I shouldn't sing Millvale's praises to anyone who will listen, and I definitely shouldn't write an article about it and post it on the Internet.
At many bars, bartenders are free to cherry-pick from a range of cultures and traditions, creating cocktails with global roots. But at Poros, which opened Downtown last month, the drink menu needed to be regionally anchored, brimming with the flavors of Greece and the Mediterranean Sea.
It finally feels like winter. The air is biting, and this week brought our first dusting of snow after an unseasonably warm December. Add to that the standard post-holiday malaise and you have the recipe for a lot of boring nights spent huddled at home. It doesn't have to be that way.
Picture the comforting predictability of the chain restaurant. Walk into any of the boxy, brightly branded eateries that cluster around shopping malls and highway interchanges and there is no question about the night you are about to have.
Gonzalo Cembrero at Pallantia Tapas have taken off in America in the past few decades, and diners embrace the small plates as a sophisticated and social way to dine and snack. But tapas once had a very practical purpose. According to Gonzalo Cembrero, owner of Shadyside's new Pallantia Tapas de España, the tapas tradition dates back to 13 th-century Spain.
Smallman Galley isn't your average restaurant. "It's a semi-permanent pop-up, mixed with a culinary school, mixed with a business school, mixed with a food hall," explains Tyler Benson. Benson and his partner, Ben Mantica, are the founders of Smallman Galley, a Strip District restaurant incubator poised to launch in October.