Published by Jeremy. Last Updated on August 27, 2020.
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Burgh Bits and Bites is a popular food walking tour company in Pittsburgh with numerous tours throughout the city's neighborhoods.
But this company is also expanding to include tours outside the city limits, and one of their first of this style tour is in the historic borough of Saxonburg- located about 45 minutes northeast of the city.
We were guest of the Butler County Tourism and Convention Bureau on this tour, and share our thoughts of the day out in this one!
The Burgh Bits and Bites Tour Begins at the Saxonburg Museum
The food tour began with a quick tour of the Saxonburg Museum- a moderately sized museum located just off the main street that features an array of historical artifacts from the borough's 180+ year history.
Of note is the exhibit dedicated to John A. Roebling, a German immigrant who founded Saxonburg after purchasing over 1500 acres in 1851. About a decade later Mr. Roebling would then create a new technique for producing wire rope that would be used in many large and iconic suspension bridges in the country- most notably the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City.
Getting an appreciation of the history of the village is a great way to start the food tour because the historic sights continue throughout the day!
An Array of Historic Buildings and Snacks to Enjoy
One of the things that we really loved about the Burgh Bits and Bites tour of Saxonburg is that it is as much a history tour as it is a food tour- going well beyond the museum tour mentioned above.
The reason for this is that more or less the entire town of Saxonburg is historic, with many of the buildings dating back to the 1830s with ties to John Roebling and his family. As such, while on the tour you are able to learn about the town's history while also sampling some of their businesses' creations.
During our tour, we were able to try food from five businesses plus a welcome pretzel sandwich from Lil' Bean Cupcakes & More to kick off the tour. The storefronts visited included:
- Mainstreet Bake Shop – A local bakery that specializes in cakes, monster cookies, and famous cinnamon rolls.
- What's Cooking on Main – A diner in the heart of Saxonburg featuring homemade soups and sandwiches.
- Saxonburg Coffee & Tea –Â The local coffee shop with an assortment of coffees and teas.
- Batch – Hand made products ranging from soaps and shirts to food including soups, jams, and breads!
- Hotel Saxonburg – A historic hotel that once hosted Woodrow Wilson with on-site restaurant and bar.
- …plus a few other retail oriented shops!
These shops also allowed for the tastings to come together for a full meal. Between a perfectly cooked cinnamon roll at Mainstreet Bake Shop, a cup of soup and a half sloppy Joe from What's Cooking on Main, an espresso at Saxonburg Coffee & Tea, another cup of soup at Batch with freshly prepared bread, and a quiche with a stellar texture at Hotel Saxonburg, we were quite stuffed (and that was before even touching the pretzel sandwich from Lil' Bean Cupcakes & More).
Suffice it to say, we left with a rather full to-go bag full of partially eaten items and a rich understanding of the historic town of Saxonburg as well!
When it comes down to it, that is exactly the kind of tour we like, and we hope to make it back to Saxonburg quite soon to try more.
To book a tour, check out Burgh Bits and Bites. They have a number of tours available in Pittsburgh as well as the suburbs. This tour was a walking tour but was easily managed and only covered a few blocks over the course of 2 to 2 1/2 hours. We were invited onto the tour as guests of the Butler County Tourism and Convention Bureau.
