Chengdu Gourmet Review – Authentic Sichuan Cuisine

Chengdu Gourmet is a much-lauded Chinese restaurant specializing in Szechuan cuisine, with two locations in Squirrel Hill and McKnight Road. With James Beard nominee Wei Zhu at the helm, you really can't go wrong with anything on the traditional Szechuan menu here. Just be sure to dine with lots of friends or family, as the portions are family style – the best way to experience the restaurant is to order lots of food and share.

Chengdu Gourmet has captured the hearts and stomachs of many a Pittsburgher over the past decade with their Squirrel Hill location. We are excited for the newer McKnight Road location as it makes shopping trips infinitely more enjoyable knowing that there is delicious Szechuan food waiting for us once we complete our errands.

Although we have been to the Squirrel Hill location before, we visited with just the two of us and it was hard to fully appreciate the restaurant. Fast forward to the McKnight Road location opening, where we've visited with friends and have a much greater appreciation and understanding of the delicious food that is being served here.

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Della Terra Review – Delicious Italian Dining in Zelienople

Della Terra in Zelienople is an Italian restaurant serving pizzas and pastas with equal prowess. One glance at the menu here and you'll likely want one of everything, which we highly encourage. From traditional and familiar Italian flavors to plates with a few twists, everything we tried was satisfying and delicious.

The delightful food was enhanced by excellent service and stunning mid-century decor.

The decor instantly caught our eye upon walking in the door. Several of the features from the building's history as a bank remain in place like the super tall ceilings and the bank vault door that leads from the dining room to the kitchen. But what I couldn't stop staring at the whole meal were the 1940s-style chandeliers – simply amazing!

Suffice it to say, Della Terra has quickly become a favorite of ours in our local Italian dining scene.

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Wise County Biscuits & Cafe Review – Biscuits and More

Wise County Biscuits & Cafe is a breakfast and lunch spot serving up their delicious homemade biscuits, breakfast sandwiches, and more in their adorable North Side cafe.

We have long been fans of their biscuits and are regular customers at their farmer's market booths, so we are ecstatic that they now have a brick-and-mortar shop where we can continue to get our biscuit fix all year long!

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Lilith Review – A Treat in the Heart of Shadyside

Lilith is the newest venture from Pittsburgh Chefs Jamilka Borges and Dianne DeStefano. Located in Shadyside, this cozy little spot is allowing them to showcase their talent and creativity in very delicious ways. Our recent visit for dinner had us savoring the satisfying and interesting flavor combinations of their entrees, and left us wanting to return immediately.

In short, this is honest-to-goodness delicious food that's also beautifully plated, served up in a delightful dining space.

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Ritual House Review – Not Quite What We Expected

Ritual House is an upscale modern American restaurant in the Union Trust building in downtown Pittsburgh. On our recent visit for dinner, we had excellent service, although we were a bit let down by the food and drinks.

We thought the menu descriptions of the food and drinks didn't align with what we thought we were ordering, namely in terms of the flavors and presentation. Overall, the proteins in the dishes we ordered were cooked well, but we just thought the flavors had a recurring theme of being far too sweet.

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Sia’s Garden Grown Review – Vegan Dining in East Liberty

Sia's Garden Grown closed in early 2024.

Sia's Garden Grown is a casual vegan restaurant in East Liberty offering counter-service sandwiches, soups, salads, and desserts. Even though we're not vegan, we're always on the lookout for new vegetarian and vegan spots in Pittsburgh as our town could definitely use more options in this category.

Our recent takeout meal from Sia's hit all the right notes for us – sandwiches bursting with flavorful veggies and spreads, hearty soups, and tasty desserts combined to make a healthful and filling meal.

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Deniz Mediterranean Cuisine Review – Approachable Turkish Fare on McKnight

Deniz Mediterranean Cuisine was formerly named Ross Cafe. We visited the restaurant prior to the rename.

Deniz Mediterranean Cuisine on McKnight Road initially opened as a breakfast and brunch spot, focusing on items like omelettes, waffles, and crepes. We're always looking for bright spots on McKnight to invigorate our mundane shopping trips, and this spot seemed like an interesting break from the mold.

Our interest was piqued even further when we saw a few Turkish options like Menemen (a scrambled egg dish with tomatoes and peppers) and Sigara Boregi (rolled phyllo dough stuffed with cheese and fried). Shortly after opening, we checked out their menu again online and noticed that they had started serving dinners, too, focusing on Turkish dishes like kebabs, wraps, and pide (Turkish-style pizza). 

We went in for a meal right away and are already planning our return.

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Fat Cat Review – A Modern Pub With Throwback Vibes

Fat Cat closed in March 2024.

Fat Cat Lounge in the North Side is a new concept from the owners of fine dining spot Fig & Ash next door. With a retro vibe, casual food and drinks, and a second floor music venue, Fat Cat adds to the growing list of destination eating and drinking spots on East Ohio Street.

Fig & Ash is one of our favorite restaurants in the city, so when we heard the owners were opening up the Fat Cat concept we were thrilled. On our recent visit shortly after their opening, we were instantly amazed at the transformation of the space.

The front door opens into the bar space with a retro vibe including 70s-style couches and old cartoons playing on the TVs. To the left of the bar is a separate dining area that continues the retro theme, and upstairs is an open space that serves as a music venue, complete with another bar.

Yes, this space will do just nicely, and thankfully the experience got even better from there!

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