Con Alma in downtown Pittsburgh is a restaurant and bar that features live jazz music. With an impressive cocktail menu, delicious international food, and stellar music, Con Alma is a shining star in the Pittsburgh food and music scene.
Year: 2022
Sally Ann’s Review – Cafe-Style Dining in Downtown
Sally Ann's is yet-another Richard DeShantz restaurant concept, and it fills a much-needed niche of providing casual, veggie-forward breakfast and lunch fare in downtown Pittsburgh.
Taking over the old Pork and Beans spot, this large space in the heart of the Cultural District has a vibrant, casual feel with lounge-style couch seating in the center of the restaurant, plenty of high-top tables, and a large outdoor seating space on 6th Street.
Keeping in line with the cafe vibe, the food and drinks are all counter service- there is a dedicated register for ordering food, while drinks are ordered separately at the bar. There's also a separate line for coffee drinks during the day. While this took a second to get used to, it really highlighted just how different this one is compared to other restaurants nearby!
19 Venues to Check Out Great Concerts in Pittsburgh
There was a time in the not-so-distant past that if you brought up the Pittsburgh music scene, odds are good the response you'd get from others was “it is terrible, [city] is better”.
For a while, we thought that too.
But in recent years, the popularity of live music in Pittsburgh has really exploded both for bands that make stops into the city and for our music venues outright. So in this one, we thought we'd round up some of the best Pittsburgh concert venues, what you can expect when visiting, and more!
We've also decided to arrange this one by capacity (from smallest to largest, roughly), just for fun. As with everything on this site, this list only features venues we've personally visited. As we take in more shows in the area, we'll update this guide accordingly!
Jian’s Kitchen Review – A Large Chinese Menu in Squirrel Hill
Jian's Kitchen is a bit unsual by Squirrel Hill standards in that it does not have a prominent storefront on Forbes or Murray.
To find this Chinese gem, you're going to have to go into the basement of an office complex via a narrow doorway in the heart of the Forbes business district. This truly is a blink-and-you'll-miss-it kind of place, so having an idea that this one is indeed in the basement with minimal front signage is key.
So, what kind of Chinese food does this one offer? To be honest this one features unique dishes from all over the country, including popular American Chinese dishes as well, but during our first visit we decided to stick close to the Northeastern China side of the menu!
10 Great Pittsburgh Date Night Ideas – Dates for All Budgets
If you're struggling with a new idea for date night in Pittsburgh, you're not alone. It is often quite easy to get settled into a routine of hitting your favorite places over and over again (in fact, getting out of that cycle is why we started Discover the Burgh in the first place).
So while it would be quite easy for us to share some tried-and-true Pittsburgh date ideas like checking out Phipps Conservatory, exploring the Warhol Museum, or the conventional dinner and a movie combo, we wanted to think outside of the box with this one with ideas that will also really impress your partner.
But not only did we want to put together a list of ideas that will win you points with your date, we also wanted to provide a spectrum of ideas for all budgets, all seasons, and varying interests. Suffice it to say, you'll have a lot of ways to impress a date in this one!
Brew Gentlemen Returns Downtown Pittsburgh at Steel Plaza
If you're like us, you were probably pretty sad to hear that the Allegheny Overlook was not returning for another season in 2022. This pop-up space on Fort Duquesne Blvd was a relaxing hangout spot with food trucks, great views of the Allegheny River and PNC Park, and, perhaps most importantly, beer flowing from one of our favorite breweries- Braddock-based Brew Gentlemen.
While we still lament this closure, there is good news in that Brew Gentlemen is sticking around downtown Pittsburgh in the summer of 2022 with a new pop-up beer garden at Steel Plaza on Grant Street!
Naturally, we had to check this one out shortly after it opened for the season and share a bit more about what to expect at this one.
10 of the Best Free Pittsburgh Attractions Not to Miss
Sometimes we want to get out and explore Pittsburgh without spending a lot of money. Other times we want to get out and enjoy the city without spending any money at all.
While entry fees for attractions and experiences are commonplace, there are thankfully many great free things to do in Pittsburgh that you may want to consider when you want an activity that doesn't break the bank.
So in this one, we thought we'd share a few of our very favorite ideas to help you get exploring without having to bust out your wallet!
Please note: As of publishing, the below attractions are all completely free to visit; however, you may require to pay for parking at some locations depending on when you visit. These locations will be noted accordingly. Some attractions may also require advanced reservations and many have donation boxes available near the entrance. If you are able, tipping a little bit goes a long way to help keep these attractions open to all!
10 Reasons to Visit Pittsburgh in August – Summer Events and More
August in Pittsburgh is most certainly the peak of summer. Numerous sunny days means a number of great outdoor events, as well as many opportunities to beat the heat with ice cream, a cold adult beverage, a museum with air conditioning, and more.
In this one, we wanted to share some of the best things to consider checking out in Pittsburgh during the month!
So if you are looking for things to do in Pittsburgh in August, check out the following options!
An Attraction and Dining Guide to Downtown Pittsburgh
Downtown Pittsburgh has come a long way over the years, and aside from being the economic center of the city (and truly, of southwestern Pennsylvania), the neighborhood that we would call downtown proper features a number of restaurants, activities, and attractions suitable for visitors of all ages and interests.
To share some of our own personal favorites, this guide to things to do in downtown Pittsburgh was born!
As with all our guides, it is worth noting that the following is not a collection of every business in downtown Pittsburgh. This one only features businesses we personally visit, enjoy, or are planning to visit in the near future. As such, it should only be taken as a starting point. If you see something interesting while walking around downtown Pittsburgh, do yourself a favor and check it out!
A Quick Trip Into Nature at Girty’s Woods Near Millvale
When it comes to parks in Pittsburgh, many of the staples have been protected for decades and even generations. But that doesn't mean the work to protect our area green spaces is finished.
Groups like the Allegheny Land Trust are working hard to protect great nature spaces in the region and regularly purchase land to pursue their conservation efforts.
Girty's Woods near Reserve Township and Millvale is one such green space, and the trust purchased 155 acres in just 2021. So, naturally, we decided to pay this somewhat wild park a visit to see what it is all about!