179 Pittsburgh Restaurants to Consider for Your Next Meal Out

The Top 10 Pittsburgh Restaurants

The following are our current Top 10 Pittsburgh restaurants. The restaurants that earn this distinction are ones we are certain we can order anything on the menu and not be disappointed.

1. Cure – Lawrenceville – Cured meats, inventive cuisine, and overall one incredible menu.
2. Gaucho Parrilla Argentina – Strip District – Argentinian meats done right in sandwich form (and on their own).
3. Federal Galley – North Side – An interesting food hall in the North Side featuring four chefs and a stellar bar.
4. Umami – Lawrenceville – Japanese food you've likely never had before in an amazing bar setting.
5. Morcilla – Lawrenceville – Spanish tapas bar with gourmet pintxos and small plates.
6. Kaya – Strip District – Caribbean fare with the best burger and sweet potato fries in the city of Pittsburgh.
7. Fish Nor Fowl – Garfield – Fine dining with an interesting menu and cocktail pairings for every dish.
8. Bar Marco – Strip District – Modern American, craft cocktails, but rather expensive.
9. Apteka – Bloomfield – Eastern European, vegan meals coupled with a wonderful bar.
10. Or, the Whale – Downtown – Trendy seafood and chophouse in downtown Pittsburgh.

Great Meals in Pittsburgh

If you want to be able to order anything from a menu and anticipate it being good, these restaurants should have it. 

If a restaurant achieves this rating then it is guaranteed that we will go back to try more at some point in the future (or already eat there as regulars). Restaurants towards the top of this list are just as highly rated as those in our Top 10, but are not highlighted above because, well, we chose to only call out ten!

These are also the first we pull out when asked “where to eat in [neighborhood]” without knowing anymore about what you're looking for.

11. Smallman Galley – Strip District
12. La Tavola – Mount Washington
13. Poulet Bleu – Lawrenceville – French
14. tako – Downtown – Upscale Mexican
15. Park Bruges – Highland Park – Belgian
16. Point Brugge – Point Breeze – Belgian
17. Brugge on North – North Side – Belgian
18. Noodlehead – Shadyside – Thai
19. Pizza Taglio – East Liberty – Pizza
20. Legume – Oakland – American / Fine Dining
21. Better Maid Donut – Crafton Heights – Donuts
22. The Harmony Inn – Harmony, PA – German
23. Driftwood Oven – Lawrenceville – Pizza
24. Altius – Mount Washington – Fine Dining
25. Teppanyaki Kyoto – Highland Park – Japanese
26. Golden Pig – Cecil, PA – Korean
27. Coca Cafe – Lawrenceville – Brunch
28. Istanbul Sofra – Regent Square – Turkish
29. Monterey Bay Fish Grotto – Mount Washington – Seafood
30. Baby Loves Tacos – Bloomfield – Tacos and Burritos
31. Jozsa Corner – Hazelwood – Hungarian
32. Lorelei – East Liberty – German/Alpine
33. Cafe on Main – Sharpsburg – Brunch
34. Spoon – East Liberty – Fine Dining
35. Udipi Cafe – Monroeville – Indian
36. Soba – Shadyside – Asian
37. Azorean Cafe – Bloomfield – Portuguese
38. Threadbare – North Side – Pizza
39. Ineffable Ca Phe – Lawrenceville – Vietnamese
40. Pizzaiolo Primo – Downtown – Italian / Pizza
41. Meat and Potatoes – Downtown – Modern American
42. Penn Avenue Fish Co. – Strip District – Seafood
43. Butcher and the Rye – Downtown – Modern American
44. Tessaro's – Bloomfield – Burgers
45. Eleven – Strip District – Fine Dining
46. Braddock's Street Side – Downtown – Modern American
47. Oishii Bento – Oakland – Japanese
48. Nicky's Thai Kitchen – North Side and Downtown – Thai
49. Everyday Noodles – Squirrel Hill – Taiwanese
50. Hidden Harbor – Squirrel Hill – Caribbean
51. Sienna Mercato – Downtown – Multiple
52. Duncan St. Sandwich Shop – Millvale – Sandwiches
53. Spork Pit Barbecue – Garfield – Barbecue
54. Spork – Bloomfield – Tapas/Italian/Modern
55. Bitter Ends Luncheonette – Bloomfield – Healthy Fare
56. Clem's Cafe – Blairsville – Barbecue
57. Smoke Taqueria – Lawrenceville – Modern American (Tacos)
58. Ephesus Pizza – Downtown, Aspinwall, and Bellevue – Turkish / Pizza
59. Pamela's P&G Diner – Various Locations – Breakfast / Brunch
60. Alla Famiglia – Allentown – Italian
61. Pork and Beans – Downtown – Barbecue

Pretty Good Meals in Pittsburgh

Restaurants that fall into this category are generally recommended if you are in the mood for a specific entree or cuisine style. The entire menu may not be astounding (although it certainly could be), they may not have the best service, or even be a place you dream of eating at more frequently, but it'll be a good meal if you need to satisfy a more specific craving.

These are the ones we recommend when being asked for “where to eat [cuisine type] in [neighborhood],” so if the cuisine type and location matches what you seek, we recommend giving these a try.

62. Bills Bar & Burger – Downtown – Burgers and Brunch
63. Casbah – Shadyside – Mediterranean
64. Bird on the Run – East Liberty – Chicken
65. Pittsburgh Barbecue Company – Banksville and Murrysville – Barbecue
66. Onion Maiden – Allentown – Vegan
67. The Grand Concourse – South Side – Brunch
68. Pittsburgh Food Truck Park – Millvale – Food Trucks
69. Burgatory Bar – Various Locations – Burgers
70. The Pennsylvania Market – Strip District – Multiple Vendors
71. Chick'n Bubbly – Oakland – Korean/Japanese
72. Pusadee's Garden – Lawrenceville – Thai
73. Bier's Pub – North Side – Burgers
74. Muddy Waters Oyster Bar – East Liberty – Seafood
75. Pittsburgh Poke – Downtown – Seafood
76. Showcase BBQ – Homewood West – Barbecue
77. Two Brothers Bar-B-Q – Presto – Barbecue
78. Siempre Algo – North Side – Modern American
79. V3 Pizza – Downtown and Lawrenceville – Pizza
80. Bea Taco Town – Downtown – Mexican
81. Nu Bistro – Squirrel Hill – Jewish / Sandwiches
82. Max's Allegheny Tavern – North Side – German
83. Cafe io – Mount Lebanon – American
84. Slice on Broadway – Beechview – Pizza
85. Dive Bar – Lawrenceville and South Side – Modern American
86. Big Jim's in the Run – Four Mile Run – Italian and American
87. Piccolo Forno – Lawrenceville – Italian
88. Butterjoint – North Oakland – Burgers and Pierogies
89. La Palapa – South Side – Mexican
90. Bull River Taco – Squirrel Hill – Tacos
91. Johnny's Diner – West End – Breakfast
92. Bubba's – Pizza and Polish – Greensburg
93. honeygrow – Healthy Fare – East Liberty
94. Casa Narcisi Winery – Italian – Gibsonia
95. Bigham Tavern – Modern American – Mount Washington
96. Union Standard – Downtown – American
97. Station – Bloomfield – Modern American
98. Scratch – Troy Hill – Modern American
99. Badamo's Pizza – North Side and Mt. Lebanon – Pizza
100. The Vandal – Lawrenceville – Modern American
101. Independent Brewing Company – Squirrel Hill – Modern
102. Proper Brick Oven – Downtown – Italian / Pizza
103. Monterey Pub – North Side – Irish Pub
104. Burgh'ers – Lawrenceville and Harmony – Burgers
105. Huszar – North Side – Hungarian
106. Condado Tacos – Downtown – Tacos
107. Dinette – East Liberty – Pizza and Small Plates
108. Fiori's Pizzaria – Brookline – Pizza
109. Brian's Barbecue – Finleyville – Barbecue
110. Cocothe – Sewickley – Fine Dining
111. D's Six Pack and Dogz – Regent Square – Hot Dogs / Burgers
112. Mike & Tony's Gyros – Multiple Locations – Gyros and Modern
113. Merchant Oyster Co. – Lawrenceville – Seafood
114. Coughlin's Law – Mount Washington – Gastropub
115. Peppi's Old Tyme Sandwich Shop – Various Locations – Sandwiches
116. Quik-It Chicken – North Side – Fried Chicken / BBQ
117. The Porch – Oakland – American
118. Royal Myanmar – West View – Burmese
119. Caliente Pizza and Draft House – Bloomfield – Pizza
120. Lidia's – Strip District – Italian
121. Joe & Pie – Downtown – Pizza
122. Eighth & Hays – Homestead – Wine Bar / Modern American
123. La Riviera (formerly Bar Frenchman) – East Liberty – French
124. Taiwanese Bistro Cafe 33 – Squirrel Hill – Taiwanese
125. DeMore's Pizza – Millvale – Pizza
126. El Burro – North Side – Mexican
127. Police Station Pizza – Robinson Township – Pizza
128. The Pub Chip Shop – South Side – British
129. Kavsar – Mount Washington – Uzbek
130. Acorn – Shadyside – Modern American
131. Cinderlands Beer Co – Lawrenceville – Modern
132. Tram's Kitchen – Bloomfield – Vietnamese
133. Aiello's – Squirrel Hill – Pizza
134. Willow – Ben Avon – Modern American
135. Superior Motors – Braddock – Fine Dining
136. Bakn – Carnegie – Brunch and American
137. Ki Pollo – Lawrenceville – Korean and Argentinian
138. The Original Oyster House – Downtown – Fried Seafood
139. Beto's Pizza – Beechview – Pizza

Average Meals in Pittsburgh

Although we'd call them average, odds are good if a restaurant's offering fell into this range there were some good components and some bad. Most restaurants here we may not fully recommend from a personal standpoint, but there could be reasons we'd go back for a re-try (such as seeing a dish next to us that looked amazing, new menu items being added, etc).

Generally speaking, we walk out of these saying the meal was “fine” with little fanfare beyond that.

The following restaurants are also places we could recommend to specific people if we knew they had different tastes than us. When reading our reviews, odds are good you will know if this is you and some of the following could be worth checking out.

140. Pig Iron Public House – Cranberry – Modern American
141. Floor 2 – Downtown – Fine Dining and Brunch
142. Banh Mi & Ti – Lawrenceville – Vietnamese
143. Waffles, INCaffeinated – South Side – Breakfast / Brunch
144. Revel and Roost – Downtown – Modern American
145. Spak Brothers – Garfield – Pizza
146. The Yard – Shadyside and Downtown – Grilled Cheese / American
147. Rowdy BBQ – South Hills – Barbecue
148. City Works – Market Square – American
149. D&G Pizza – Beaver Falls – Pizza
150. Spirit and Slice Island Pizza – Lawrenceville – Pizza
151. Industry Public House – Lawrenceville – American
152. The Abbey on Butler Street – Lawrenceville – Pub Fare
153. Pizza Parma – Downtown – Pizza
154. The Warren – Downtown – Sushi and Bar Fare
155. Grandma B's – Hill District – Breakfast
156. Blue Dust – Homestead – Sandwiches
157. Chengdu Gourmet – Squirrel Hill – Chinese
158. Primanti Brothers – Strip District (and Various Locations) – Sandwiches
159. Area 51 BBQ – Belle Vernon – Barbecue
160. Giovanni's Pizza – Dormont – Pizza
161. Wilson's Bar-B-Q – North Side – BBQ
162. Streets on Carson – South Side – International
163. Square Cafe – Regent Square – Breakfast / Brunch
164. Lola Bistro – North Side – International
165. Zen Asian – Lawrenceville – Chinese
166. Casa Reyna's – Strip District – Mexican
167. Double Wide Grill – South Side – American / BBQ
168. Doughboy's Pizza – McKee's Rocks

Our Least Favorite Meals in Pittsburgh

When it comes to bad meals, a restaurant has to miss a fair bit for it to be featured here. Generally speaking, the entrees we tried had little redeeming factors, and the meals of others next to us (when available) did not look that inspiring either to warrant a second try.

169. Caffe Mona – Bloomfield – Brunch
170. Mineo's – Squirrel Hill – Pizza
171. Pizza Fiesta – Multiple Locations – Pizza
172. Subba Asian – North Side – Nepali
173. Mendoza Express – East Carnegie – Mexican/Tex Mex
174. Doce Taqueria – South Side – Tacos
175. Fuel and Fuddle – Oakland – American
176. Pho Van – Strip District – Vietnamese
177. Barb's Corner Kitchen – Lawrenceville – Breakfast/Diner
178. BRGR – East Liberty – Burgers
179. NOLA on the Square – Downtown – American

Check back soon as we add Pittsburgh restaurant reviews every week as we eat our way around the city! 

Looking for more food options in the city? Be sure to check out our listing of the best Pittsburgh food trucks which features a collection of our favorite local trucks, carts, and street vendors as well as our selection of awesome bakeries in Pittsburgh! Or if you're looking for other things to do in Pittsburgh, check out our guide to the city's best spots!

Or are you looking to visit Pittsburgh? Find the best neighborhood to stay in at the previous link!