Biergarten Review – Rooftop European Beers at the Hotel Monaco

With all the beautiful buildings in downtown Pittsburgh, we often find ourselves wishing for more options for eating and drinking on the rooftops of some of the tallest buildings.

While we do not have many sky-high dining options available, the folks at the Hotel Monaco have tried to rectify this problem with their rooftop Biergarten.

We had been to this one before for quick drinks and were invited back down as guests of the hotel to try more. In this one we share our full thoughts on this beautiful rooftop bar!

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Beers of the Burgh Review – Western PA’s Premier Beer Event

When it comes to drinking at Pittsburgh's breweries, we know a thing or two about it (we have been to nearly all of them, after all).

But what do you do if you want to try out our 50+ breweries without making the drive all over the western half of the state? The answer is simple, go to Beers of the Burgh.

This one is the best festival for local beer in western Pennsylvania, and will be a new tradition for us moving forward.

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Independent Brewing Company Review – Go for Beer, Stay for the Food

Independent Brewing Company is making a name for itself in Pittsburgh's drinking scene for its unique beer selection.

But did you know this one also serves a full menu that could go toe-to-toe with most restaurants? After hearing about a menu overhaul in early 2018, we made our way out to this one to have them give us their best shot!

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Casa Narcisi Winery Review – A Perfect Combo of Wine & Food

La Casa Narcisi is a beautiful winery in Gibsonia that's more than just a tasting room.

It's more like an estate, complete with a restaurant, outdoor seating area, and stages for concerts. In our opinion, there isn't much better than sitting on the patio on a warm summer night, listening to live music with a bottle of wine and a classic Italian meal.

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Cinderlands Beer Co. Review – Creative Food and Beer

Although new breweries have been popping up all over the region the past few years, a newer trend is breweries that have their own restaurants. Cinderlands Beer Co. in Lawrenceville is one such brewery/restaurant hybrid that offers creative and delicious beers with interesting small plates and entrees.

Cinderlands Beer Co. has three locations, one right on Butler St. in lower Lawrenceville, a second in the Strip District, and one in Wexford north of the city.

While the bulk of this review is based off our visits to the Lawrenceville location, we've also enjoyed The Warehouse in the Strip District many times as well. The Lawrenceville spot features cozy wooden booths along the length of the restaurant, an upstairs seating area, an exposed brick wall with a huge Cinderlands logo painted on it, and of course, the sophisticated bar that makes you feel like you've been transported back in time.

But Cinderlands has more than just good looks. We visited shortly after they opened (and several times since) and one thing that strikes is just how interesting and good the beers are for being such a young brewery. Tea kolsch, coffee double IPA, and strawberry sour IPA are just some of the unique beers you'll find here. And although the food menu is somewhat small, we really appreciate the effort they're putting in to crafting and creating these dishes.

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The Warren Pittsburgh Review – A Welcoming Bar for Cocktails

If you are familiar with the cocktails in Pittsburgh, the name Spencer Warren may be familiar to you.

For those who are not, the short of it is that Spencer Warren is a local cocktail specialist who has made a name for himself with craft creations at his previous bar, Embury (now closed).

Since then he became the force behind the local edition of the international Miracle pop-up bar (which his team managed), consulted on cocktail menus at many of your favorite local bars, and is finally returning to the spotlight with his new bar, The Warren, in the Cultural District.

As we missed being able to try cocktails at Embury, our experience with Spencer Warren's cocktails have only been on the periphery. But we liked what we saw, and made sure to make our way down to The Warren shortly after opening to give his cocktails a try.

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Tina’s Bar Review – What is Old is New Again in Bloomfield

Tina's Bar in Bloomfield is not your typical Pittsburgh bar. It isn't quite a dive, but it isn't an upscale craft cocktail bar either.

In fact, it is a bit of both, and if you're wondering how that would work out well together you're not alone. We wondered the same thing.

But we're happy to report that this one walks a fine line in a modern retro theme, and while that may not make much sense right now, we're going to do our best to highlight why this is truly the case!

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Eighth & Hays Wine Bar Review – Premium Wine Samples

Eighth & Hays is a premium wine bar located in Homestead, PA, just a stone's throw from the popular Waterfront shopping district.

While this one offers an array of high-end wines for sampling, the bar does a fantastic job balancing their offering with more conventional wines, beer, and cocktails- perfect for all drinking interests and budgets!

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Bella Bambini Cello Review – Flavorful Alcohol Infusions

Pittsburgh's alcohol scene is growing at an incredible pace, and over the last few years we've been fortunate to have many breweries, whiskey distilleries, rum distilleries, and even a vodka distillery open and call the region home.

One alcohol style we have not been fortunate enough to have is an infusion producer. This all changed when Bella Bambini Cello opened its doors in Coraopolis in late 2017.

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Miracle Bar Pop-Up Review – Wall to Wall Christmas

If there is any Christmas popup bar that we try to visit at least once every December, it would be Miracle Bar.

To call this holiday pop-up bar popular would be an understatement, as seemingly everyone wants a piece of the action- Miracle Bar is routinely the most popular and can have lines to match.

Thankfully, in subsequent years the bar has moved into larger and larger spaces to accommodate guests, and has truly grown to be the premier holiday bar in the city!

Note: Photos in this article may be from past Miracle pop-up iterations and may not be fully reflective of this year's popup design.

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