Cioppino

I probably have high cholesterol. I need to stop eating anti-pasta and charcuterie every week, but it is just so delicious. This anti-pasta plate from Cioppino, pictured above, was really fantastic. The meats were fresh, recently sliced and flavorful. I was very appreciative that the plate came with a variety of vegetables and two different types of cheese (buffalo mozzarella and provolone.) The prosciutto in particular was so good that I think they must have purchased it from a specialty vendor in the Strip District.

If you look at the very top of my picture you can see the pate I had as my second course. The pate was not good at all - I'd even venture to call it lousy. We could not get it to spread and spreading is half the fun. If the flavor had been acceptable I might have forgiven the pate for the poor texture, but the flavor was also lackluster. Don't get the pate!

I've heard very mixed reviews of Cioppino, but overall I really liked it and I would go back. The happy hour was well attended and there was even a band afterwards. Be sure to dress for success as I noticed that everyone in attendance was very well kempt. (One patron even commented how out of place he felt in his sports apparel.) Also, make sure to check out the cigar room. It was surreal, almost what I would expect a country club to look like in the 1950's. If I knew Don Draper, I'd take him to Cioppino.

1947 Tavern

The 1947 Tavern is charming. There are no televisions on the wall, the fireplace creates a nice cozy atmosphere and the bar is rather stylish. I found the menu engaging, this is to say that I was actually interested in ordering more than one of the selections. I cannot say this about every restaurant I visit. (Note that they did not have short rib during my visit, this made me a sad panda.)

I like gauging the quality of a restaurant on something basic, such as the meat plate pictured above. I thought the meat was quite good, especially the roast beef. The menu claims that they are house meats and I found them very delicious and well paired with the bread and sauces. I must say though, please include something else on your charcuterie plate other than just the meat. Throw some olives on there, maybe some miscellaneous vegetables, something. I think you need a little roughage to round out an entire plate of meat, perhaps I've grown soft in my old age.

Overall I have to give this bar a strong recommendation. They have a great bourbon selection, a fantastic atmosphere and the service was pretty decent considering how crowded they were. Apparently 1947 is owned by the same people as Bites n Brews. If you've been to Bites n Brews please leave me a message as I'm interested in possibly visiting.

The Beerhive

If you've read my posts, you know that I'm not overly critical of bar food. Really, the only purpose of bar food is to allow you to have something to munch on while you slam brew-dogs. The bar food at the Beerhive was terrible. I ordered the meatballs to start. They were incredibly salty. So salty I found myself wishing I had more bread so that I could cut down on the massive amount of salt I was consuming.

Following the meatballs I decided I had better play it safe and order something healthy. After all, I'm not 21 anymore and I can only imagine that a myriad of health problems will be coming to haunt me in the next decade. I went with the chicken lettuce wraps. SO SALTY. The chicken was spicy, but so ridiculously salty I once again had difficulty consuming the concoction. Unfortunately, lettuce does an even worse job of cutting down on saltiness than bread does. Additionally, there was not enough lettuce to use all of the materials on the plate. What a disappointment.

I can't say I disliked the bar, the atmosphere was good, the service was decent and the guy running trivia night was pretty cool. Just don't eat here.

EDIT

WoW! These guys are commited to service - check this email out!!! 

"Hi P.H.H. My brothers and I recently came across your review of our establishment. First, we would like to sincerely appologize for your over salty dining experience. We have taken immediate action to get to the bottom of why your meal was so salty. We've spoken with our cook on duty the night you dined, and questioned their obvious over-salting of meals. We appologize for not catching this mistake sooner, and are grateful that you've brought it to our attention. It is our goal to make sure that every one of our customers receive the experience and product they deserve. Secondly, we would be more than happy to refund you for your meal that evening. Nobody should have to pay for an unsatisfactory product. Thank you for your time."

Nine on Nine

I'm consistently impressed with the quality and presentation of the food at Nine on Nine. A week before happy hour I stopped by for a lunchtime steak  - it was easily one of the best steaks I've had in months. I'm not sure if it was the shallot butter or the A-9 sauce, but the meat was amazingly well seasoned and tender.

Pictured above is the charcuterie plate I enjoyed during happy hour last week. It was very good, but not quite as good as the charcuterie plate I was served at Braddock's. In particular I was disappointed by the mortadella. What is mortadella but fancy bologna anyhow? I find the texture and flavor disgusting. If you do decide to order the charcuterie plate from Nine on Nine, keep in mind that it is not half price during their happy hour like many of their other items. I was a bit disappointed when the check came. However, I've never been disappointed by Nine on Nine. Their food is some of the best in the city and their happy hour is pretty decent as well. Three dollar domestics, helpful staff, half price bar food and six dollar specialty drinks.

Jack's Rose Bar

I once threatened to file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau because someone stole my Steelers headband from Jacks. It was an idle threat. Jacks is one of my favorite bars in Pittsburgh. They boast a surprisingly large menu, but you wouldn't want to eat most of the food. As a matter of fact the menu doesn't even exist in one concise location, it is just a variety of food offerings posted around the bar on hand drawn posters. I couldn't even find an entry for Jacks on UrbanSpoon. One poster on the wall offers the one dollar "boneless chicken dinner." This consists of three hard boiled eggs. The food at Jacks is not flashy. Take these happy and sad cheeseburgers for example.

Who's a sad cheeseburger?

 

 

 

 

Despite the sympicity, the bar food offerings are fine. I've never gotten sick from the deep fried meals I've consumed at Jacks and the cheeseburgers aren't bad at all. If you are really important, or extra nice, you may be able to negotiate some of the off the menu delicacies such as sweet potato french fries, generally reserved for staff only. Also, I once had the "nachos a la Ben" which is a specialty nacho dish made with pickles and ranch dressing.

Jacks is somewhere you go to drink. The bar is open 365 days a year and the prices are cheap as hell. (Someone once threw up on my coat at Jacks on Christmas day.) You are likely to encounter individuals from every walk of life including the homeless, city councilmen, motorcycle gangs, frat boys and vivacious hipsters. I would recommend grabbing something to eat before you go, but if you are extra nice the bartenders will make you food at any hour of the night, provided that they aren't too busy.

Jacks is a bar for best friends. 

Sammy's Famous Corned Beef

I liked Sammy's Corned Beef the first time I walked in the place nearly a year ago. It is dark, it is dirty and the service is below average. The bathroom is gross -  it makes me feel right at home. As for the corned beef, it isn't bad at all. I've enjoyed every corned beef sandwich I've ever had at Sammy's. Don't get me wrong, it is no Slyman's (My first, and most intimate moments with corned beef were at Slyman's in Cleveland), but Sammy's can hold their own.

Pittsburgh has never really been much of a corned beef city.  I think the texture of the Sammy's corned beef is fantastic, but the amount you get, and the flavor are just not as good as other corned beef restaurants I've been to. The bar itself is truly amazing though, a real last stop before the end of the world. If you don't understand what I mean by, "Pittsburgh isn't really a corned beef city," here is a picture of some guy at the bar eating an egg salad sandwich.

Egg salad is gross.

Diamond Market

Diamond Market just opened in Market Square, which is quickly becoming the bastion of downtown happy hour mayhem. The establishment is owned by the folks who own Primanti Brothers, and it shows. A lot of the furniture is the same and the general layout and feel of the menu is also similar.

I struggled with the menu. I was trying to explain to a friend recently that I enjoy menus that are challenging. I personally like a menu that has some exotic food options including items I've never tried before and things that I cannot, or have not made at home. We all suffer some form of human weakness. I find that many eaters enjoy routine. They like the same meal, prepared the same way, with genuine consistency. (This is after all how McDonald's became the world's most successful restaurant.) Personally, I suffer from a condition where I desire that which I cannot have.

The Diamond Market menu was not exciting. It looked like a re-tooled Primantis menu minus the traditional sandwiches. Some items that caught my eye included the Pittsburgh poutine and the deviled eggs. Poutine because, well, I've never seen it on a menu in Pittsburgh. Deviled eggs because, well, eww. Despite my reservations towards the menu, I cannot deny that I really enjoyed the one item that I did try.

I attempted to tell one of the restaurant patrons that the grilled cheese was out of this world. He laughed at me. Grilled cheese is one of those timeless classics that is really good no matter what, unless you burn it. This grilled cheese knocked me out though. It had a delightfully crunchy exterior due to the use of home-style bread and a parmesan crust. The pairing of internal cheeses was even more delightful - cheddar, gruyere and cambozola. Cambozola was the dominant flavor, a combination of camembert creaminess and gorgonzola punch. I must admit that after being hesitant to eat based on the menu I cannot wait to get back to Diamond Market to see what their other dishes are like.

Also, this place was absolutely slammed for happy hour. We met a nice Japanese man, a Greek who insisted he knew someone in every region of the world and the mayor of Pittsburgh just happened to be there with a giant entourage. Like I said, bastion of happy hour mayhem.