Every now and again, we find a restaurant that offers delicious food in a location we would not have expected.
JJ's World in Chicora, PA, in northeast Butler County (about 75 minutes from Pittsburgh) is one such restaurant. With a focus on smoked meats plus sandwiches, pastas, and other entrees, this one delivered a delicious meal in an unexpected spot.
So if you're north of the city looking for a tasty bite, consider this one!
Ever since I started seriously learning to ski around 2021 or 2022, I wanted to work towards being comfortable on all of the greens and blues at Seven Springs.
In the first year, I got comfortable with the greens. In my second year, I tackled my first blue. In my third year, I got really comfortable riding blues regularly. In my fourth year, I moved up to hitting my first ever black diamond and really felt like I was starting to unlock the entire mountain.
So, in this one, I wanted to take a look at the trails at Seven Springs overall, and share a progression of trails beginners should try, from the easiest slopes to more challenging runs that progress into the intermediate level. So if you're looking for a guide of where to head as you grow as a skier, this one is for you!
Note: I have received media passes from Vail resorts for visits to Seven Springs and associated properties in the region.
Oh dry January, you are always fun.
This annual celebration has become something of a global phenomenon, as many of us look to use the somewhat slow month as a chance to detox and get a break from indulgences (especially after the holidays).
Whatever your reason for participating in dry January is your own. But if you are looking to enjoy the flavors of your favorite beverages without alcohol, a number of restaurants, bars, breweries, and distilleries are starting to offer great options for dry January in Pittsburgh!
In this one, we thought we'd share some of the spots with the finest assortment of products. While this one is not comprehensive, we wanted to include places that have larger menus, share a variety of products, and more to give you a great cross-section of alcohol-free beverages in the city to consider if you are abstaining.
Please note: This article focuses on offerings for Dry January specifically and may not necessarily be accurate year-round. While many of the bars, restaurants, and breweries featured have great non-alcoholic products at all times, some increase their offerings for January. Likewise, cocktails, beers on draft, and other beverages are always liable to change. Please reconfirm directly with any business prior to visiting. Finally, some drink photos in this article may be alcoholic and are for illustration only.
Winter is in full gear in January in Pittsburgh, which means it is time to either embrace the season or rush to a museum or favorite libation spot to stay warm inside.
No matter which you pick, there are many great things to do in Pittsburgh in January- so check out the following options to get a few ideas on where to start!
As we continue our quest to stay in every hotel in Pittsburgh, we are sometimes to find a gem hiding in plain sight.
For those looking for a comfortable stay in Oakland, the Courtyard by Marriott University Center is a great option. With some of the best room rates in the city, comfortable rooms typical for the chain, an on-site pool, and a quiet location in the heart of the neighborhood, there is a lot to love about this spot.
We were guests courtesy of the Courtyard by Marriott Pittsburgh University Center, and share more about what to expect in this review!
We've been fans of Union Brothers Brewing since they first opened in Harmony. Since then, they've gained quite the popularity, expanded into a new location down the road, all while offering the same great food and beer since day one.
We recently revisited this one for a night out, with beer and food all around, and had quite the great time. So if you're north of the city looking for food, beer, or perhaps both, this one is a great stop!
There are many reasons to love the holiday season in Pittsburgh, and perhaps one of the most amazing ones is your ability to see many beautiful Christmas lights all over the region.
From the holiday displays downtown, to the many drive-thru light shows, and more, there really is no shortage of impressive Christmas lights in Pittsburgh. So in this one, we wanted to curate all the best places where you can see holiday lights and decorations in the region!
Note: Many of the experiences below are drive-thru light displays such that you can enjoy the holiday lights and decorations from the comfort of your own car. However, we felt we would be doing you a disservice if we didn't mention a few other light viewing opportunities that take place outside of your car as well!
For many years, we've been fans of Spirit for its mix of being an event venue and bar space, while also serving up some rather tasty slices of pizza to go along with it.
In late 2025, Spirit made a move to expand their pizza concept, not in their event space proper, but via a fully dedicated dine-in pizza restaurant in the back of the building (accessible via a side entrance).
As we are always about more places offering a pizza-forward menu served dine-in, with a bar program and more, we went to this one right away and really like how Spirit is elevating their pizza game all around!
One of our favorite activities when going out and exploring Pittsburgh is trying new restaurants, and over the years we've visited hundreds upon hundreds of local establishments from street food vendors to mom and eateries, fancy prix fixe dining experiences, and everything in between.
Truly, there is no cuisine type we won't try, and we've been on a mission to taste it all.
Since the early days of running Discover the Burgh, we've always highlighted a list of our 10 favorite restaurants in our Pittsburgh restaurants guide as a quick call out to the best spots right now. But in that guide, we did not spend a lot of time explaining why these restaurants made the cut.
While we thought our linked reviews typically speak for themselves for detailed accounts of a specific dining experience, in this one, we thought we'd take a high-level look at our 10 favorites and share why they've made the current list.
But before getting into it, we should note that while these are our personal top 10 places to eat in Pittsburgh, it is hard to compare any two on the list. Is there a big difference between #1 and #2 or #5 and #9 in terms of quality? Not really- they're all great, and that's the point. We could spend hours discussing the finer details of why we arranged the list as we did, but in reality, it is just our preference, and any spot on this list is going to offer a great meal.
Likewise, we should call out that these are not Pittsburgh food institutions that have been local staples for decades, nor do these restaurants necessarily sell what we'd call famous Pittsburgh foods. These are the best restaurants without any caveats. So if you're visiting the city and want to dive more into the local food scene with historic or regional ties, we recommend checking the previously linked articles out, too.
So let's jump into our 10 favorites now!
In the 10+ years of running Discover the Burgh, we've made it our mission to experience the best that Pittsburgh and southwest PA has to offer.
Thankfully, you don't need a decade exploring the region to get the best out of Pittsburgh, and if you're coming in to the city for a first-time visit and want to check out the best of the best, we've got you covered.
The following are our favorite ten attractions that make Pittsburgh Pittsburgh. Whether you visit one or two, or all of these (and many more featured on this site outside of this article!), you're sure to have a great time exploring the Steel City!