I couldn’t believe how incredible A Taste of India ended up being. Janey was right for bugging me every time I drove by the storefront…A Taste of India is phenomenal, and as we’ve all learned from high school, you can’t just a book by its cover.
So many of the hidden treasures I’ve found in Pittsburgh have been on the stretch of Penn Avenue that makes up Bloomfield and Garfield. Furthermore, I once again find myself being completely surprised by a totally unassuming restaurant. In this case it’s a restaurant with a rather plain looking storefront by the name of A Taste of India. While its outward aesthetics leave more to be desired it more than makes up for it in the quality of their food.
If you haven’t guessed it, A Taste of India serves up Indian food, what you probably wouldn’t guess while walking past the inconspicuous restaurant is that the proprietors are serving incredible food. Janey had been to A Taste of India before with our neighbor and has been suggesting we go back ever since. Specifically, she’s wanted me to review it. She was completely right. A Taste of India is exactly the type of restaurant I should be reviewing. When someone drives by the restaurant for the fifth time and curiosity finally encourages them Google it, I hope they find my review and it compels them to try the restaurant. Read more »
Tags: Bloomfield, Curry, Indian, Pittsnurgh Restaurant, Takes Credit Cards, Tandoori, Vegetarian
You’re not going to get amazing home cooking that feels like you’re at the dinner table of some seasoned, Italian mother but you do get quality food that appeals to a wide range of customers. There’s nothing challenging at La Capella but they’re just fine with that.
Usually when you’re recommending Italian food the words “Bloomfield” or “The Strip” will inevitably pop up. They certainly have a monopoly on fresh, authentic Italian cuisine. I’m not a snob, though, and while I think Olive Garden is atrocious I still have respect for the types of places that keep their prices low, their atmosphere casual and maybe don’t adhere as thoroughly to the traditions carried over and adapted from Italy. Yeah, it’s weird for me to suggest a place tucked into a suburban strip mall in Fox Chapel. It’s even weirder to suggest it once you see that it’s kind of chainy looking.
La Capella almost looks too nice from the outside. Two expensive looking signs and an elaborately stony façade give it a certain show-offishness that I relate to a middle-aged, in-debt man in a toupee driving around in a flashy car; the flashiness is always compensating for some other shortcoming. I believe Janey was the one that first suggested the spot. She loves Italian food. My love goes as far as New York pizza and slows to a halt halfway over pasta; I could take it or leave it. After our first trip to La Capella we both agreed that their flare comes simply from wanting to impress. Their food could easily stand on its own. Read more »
Tags: American, Fox Chapel, Italian, Pasta, Pittsburgh Restaurant, Pizza, Takes Credit Cards
I can’t be sure, but it seems like they’d rather err on the side of caution and play it safe with their menu. The service could also use a little training to make everything flow a little bit easier.
I love Mediterranean food but I don’t eat it nearly enough. My main love is for Greek food but my experience with that side of the world more or less ends there. Thankfully, there’s a Turkish restaurant down the street from us by the name of Istanbul. They offer up Turkish and other Mediterranean delights. The building originally belonged to a group of people who had a similar concept but failed in its execution. They offered Mediterranean cooking with an emphasis on a lounge setting. They had an extensive beverage menu that stretched way beyond your average coffee and tea fare and delved deep into foreign waters. Unfortunately, they closed shop before I could visit. Almost immediately Istanbul moved in with a similar, but simpler idea for a restaurant. It appears that Istanbul’s simpler motif is doing wonders for the spot, but, after visiting Istanbul a few times, I can’t help but think that they could make it a little less minimal. Read more »
Tags: Baklava, Cash Only, Greek Food, Lawrenceville, Mediterraneon, Middle Eastern, Pittsburgh Restaurant, Turkish, Vegetarian
Growing up I always thought that my mother had a certain elegance in the food that she made. There is never any excess in what we had and while I’d like to think that my palette is vast enough to have an appreciation for many foods[...]
Having craved Champorado (wikipedia) all week, I was telling Jake about what it was and he was persistent that we make some and post a recipe — after all, it is very simple and quick! If you’re looking to sweeten up your day prior to your morning commute to that 9-5 or maybe you’re having some rainy day blues, try a little Champorado for a hot breakfast or chill it to have a little snack or dessert later in the day. Read more »
Tags: Champorado, Filipino, Filipino Recipe, Pinoy, Pinoy Recipe, Porridge
Uncle Sam’s outshines most establishments when it comes to their French fries. They come out hot, thin, crispy and with a touch of saltiness.
Chain restaurants are never really a good thing. There’s usually a consistency issue when local business inadvertently spread themselves too thin, dealing with multiple locations or, at the other end of the spectrum, we face consistent mediocrity from the massive chains that attempt to micromanage literally hundreds of restaurant in multiple states. Of course, having said that, I’ll explain the exception. That would be Uncle Sam’s Sandwich Bar. It’s a chain local to Pittsburgh and exudes a certain personal charm yet has an aura of professionalism that, until I read their web site, led me to believe that they were a chain with much deeper roots than the few locations found in Pittsburgh. This isn’t the case; Uncle Sam’s Sandwich Bar has only a handful of locations, located around the city of Pittsburgh, and each one is as authentic as the last. While Uncle Sam’s has four locations total, I’m going to be referring to the one in Fox Chapel unless otherwise noted. Read more »
Tags: American, Cash Only, Cheese Steak, Hoagies, Pittsburgh Restaurant, Subs
The bar has a local charm to it. The seating arrangement is definitely tailored to the younger, more forgiving crowd and the twenty-one and over rule gives the Round Corner Cantina an aura of credibility that I think supports the business.
The first day I saw renovations occurring to the defunct Round Corner Hotel in Lawrenceville I was excited at the possibilities. The first time I heard about what was being put there—a Latin restaurant and bar—the excitement grew to monstrous proportions. Once the place was finally ready to open the excitement waned somewhat when I was told they will only be serving drinks for the first month or two. When food was finally being served it got a pretty lukewarm response; a lot of people were giving the service poor marks and saying both the food and drinks were too highly priced. My interest was negligible at this point. My friend and I always have conversations about the “hipster phenomenon” and how incredibly mundane things (in this case, a taco) suddenly become absurdly priced when you eat them in a crowd full of Buddy Holly era glasses, knee length blue jeans and Chuck Taylor’s. Unfortunately, the Round Corner Cantina in Lawrenceville suffers from this phenomenon, to a point. Read more »
Tags: Bar, Drinks, Latin, Lawrenceville, Mexican, Pittsburgh Restaurant, Takes Credit Cards, Tex-Mex
[...]China Star dances around the competition in an incredibly modest fashion. Thankfully, I feel through word-of-mouth that their presence will be more obvious in the coming months.
There’s some kind of paradoxical rule when it comes to Asian restaurants. It’s usually the most unassuming and randomly located places that taste the best. The big, show-off places with huge faux-ceramic roofs and massive horse statues conveniently lacking genitalia (I’m looking at you, P.F. Chang’s) actually tend to be the nastiest when it comes to authenticity and flavor. Unfortunately, the city of Pittsburgh is absolutely saturated with Americanized Chinese food that is consistently syrupy in texture, overly sweet and under-spiced. In a drab plaza off of the commercially infested road of McKnight sits the inconspicuous China Star. They offer an Americanized menu for those of you who lack culture. However, if you like heat, take a look at their Sichuan menu that packs enough spice to melt your smiling face. Read more »
Tags: Asian, Authentic Chinese, Chinese, Pittsburgh Restaurant, Ross Park, Sichuan, Spicy, Takes Credit Cards, West View
I am in love with the concept of the Conflict Kitchen. It’s an interesting idea that is light-years ahead of most of the social commentary you’ll find in Pittsburgh.
When many people in America think of the Middle East they feel a complex mixture of fear and anger. The problem with this is the Middle East is filled with people exactly like you and me; some I’m sure are irritable, some are really nice, some may be a bit annoying. The difficulty of relating is with finding emotional common ground with a group of people that the media and the government portray in a very negative light. We can’t help but associate the negativity of the Afghani and Iraqi wars with its people. It’s not your fault! It happens to everyone! Fortunately, artists John Peña, Jon Rubin, and Dawn Weleski set out instead to associate delicious food with the countries the United States is in conflict with. It might be a small step, but it goes a long way in bridging the cultural gap between America and its “enemies” and showing the odd ignorant American that people across the sea are just that, people, they have their highs and lows, their ups and downs. The project I’m referring to is called the Conflict Kitchen and as a strict rule they only serve the food of countries the United States is currently in conflict with. For the time being, Iran is on the menu in the form of Kubideh. Read more »
Tags: Cash Only, East Liberty, In Conflict, Iranian, Kubideh, Lunch, Pittsburgh Restaurant
Some of the cuisine can be made using simple ingredients you already have or get from the grocery store and do not require you to be a contestant on Fear Factor.
Mabuhay everyone! By now I’m sure you’ve pegged me as Jake’s other, pickier, half. While I may not always be incredibly enthusiastic about our food experiences (Jake exaggerates) I am always enthusiastic about FILIPINO FOOD! Growing up with a Filipino mother there was never a day that she would not cook some kind of savory dish with rice. Whether we had Beef Caldereta to more simple dishes like Milkfish and rice, she always had something cooking that would delight my taste-buds and create an aroma all throughout the house (sometimes much to my dad’s dismay as no one really wants a fishy house smell). Read more »
Tags: Adobo, Asian, Chicken, Filipino, Filipino Food, Filipino Recipe, Pinoy, Pinoy Recipe, Recipe
I wouldn’t rave about the food at Bistro To Go but I’d definitely put it above the likes of Boston Market and KFC.
The North Side of Pittsburgh has always been an uncomfortable part of town for me. It’s bursting to the seams in poverty. Not the kind of poverty you feel a pang of sorrow over. The poverty of the North Side is the pervasive sort that makes you lock your doors in as nondescript a manner as possible and jump frantically over loud noises. During my visit today a nearly blind homeless man noted the camera around my neck and offered to show me “some art” for 89 cents (at least he was specific). Needless to say, I offered him a dollar and shuffled over to my car before the exchange could become even more awkward. Quirks aside, the North Side does still have some great places to visit and some good eating. I recently decided to try out Bistro Soul; it was closed, so I went to its sister, Bistro To Go. Read more »
Tags: American, Fast Food, North Side, Pittsburgh Restaurant, Soul Food, Takes Credit Cards
Binge! Eating in Pittsburgh is a Pittsburgh food blog containing restaurant reviews and other food-related nonsense. Read my reviews and look at all the pretty pictures.
