Oakland

Phipps Conservatory’s Spring Flower Show – 5 Senses of Splendor

As the cold of winter begins to leave Pittsburgh, there is one thing we always look forward to in order to ring in the start of spring – Phipps Conservatory's Spring Flower Show!

2023's Spring Flower Show has the theme “Five Senses of Splendor” and has experiences for all of the senses!

We visited this one shortly after the show opened and wanted to share some of our favorite rooms and exhibits with you today. As with all of our museum posts, we're only sharing a selection of our favorites because you truly must visit for yourself to experience it all!

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Phipps Conservatory for the Orchid and Tropical Bonsai Show

The Orchid and Tropical Bonsai Show, aptly themed “Origin Stores” for 2023, brings these two beautiful plants (both favorites of ours) to the forefront of the Conservatory while highlighting how some of the flowers were discovered (orchids) and the history (bonsai) at every turn.

As always with our show features, we wanted to share a few of our favorite rooms from this show and hope you'll make it out to visit for yourselves!

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Phipps Conservatory’s Winter Flower Show – Holiday Magic

When it comes to holiday festivities, one of the best places in Pittsburgh to visit is Phipps Conservatory. Their winter flower show, which begins the Friday before Thanksgiving and runs until early January, is a celebration of the holiday season with festive art pieces, an array of gorgeous winter flowers, and some of the most beautifully decorated Christmas trees in Pittsburgh.

The 2022-2023 flower show is themed Holiday Magic and features numerous arctic animals plus those inspired by stories from the North Pole- like the abominable snowman and unicorns!

As members of the conservatory, we got the chance to visit this one on opening day in the 2022-2023 season (running until January 8th, 2023) and wanted to share a few of our favorite rooms here!

Note: The outdoor garden shots were from 2021's show while indoor shots were from this year's 2022-2023 show. As such, there may be some differences outside when you visit this year.

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K-Town Snack Bar Review – Mr. Bulgogi’s Calls Oakland Home

As far as Pittsburgh food trucks are concerned, it is hard to top the Korean truck, Mr. Bulgogi.

We've been enjoying this truck's delicious beef and spicy pork bulgogi bowls (plus ample mandu dumplings) at Pittsburgh breweries for years and always wondered when the owners would open up a permanent restaurant in the city as, let's be honest, we can always use more great Korean in Pittsburgh.

As it turns out, the answer was 2022 as the team here opened up K-Town Snack Bar right in the heart of Oakland. Even better? The menu here features many of the classics from the truck plus a few new dishes, all in a fast-casual setup that is sure to delight visitors to Oakland all the way to hungry college students looking for a quick meal on a budget.

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Petersen Events Center Concerts – Is The Venue Worth It?

When it comes to concerts in Pittsburgh, many venues have regular shows throughout the year. Some spots, like the Petersen Events Center, host concerts less frequently as this particular venue is primarily used for Pitt basketball games first and foremost.

But clocking in at about 12,000 seats, the Petersen Events Center is a serious stadium (roughly 2/3 the size of PPG Paints Arena) and does attract star talent periodically. While stadium performances are not typically our favorite, we have to admit we loved our show at this particular spot (Billy Strings) and have some thoughts on where to sit, what to consider before visiting, and what to avoid!

So if you plan to attend a concert at the Petersen Events Center soon, keep these tips in mind!

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Phipps Conservatory’s Summer Flower Show – Monet in Bloom

Whenever Phipps Conservatory features a famous painter as the focal point for a flower show, you know you're going to be in for a good time.

2022's Summer Flower Show does just that with its theme “Monet in Bloom” and features floral recreations of some of the master's top works (next to copies of the paintings themselves for reference), quotes from the artist, themed sound elements, and more!

As with all of our museum posts, we do not like to give away every exhibit. In this one, we're only going to share a few of our favorite rooms and encourage you to visit to see the rest!

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Viva Los Tacos Review – Themed Tacos and Margaritas in Oakland

Many Pittsburgher's were devastated when The Original Hot Dog Shop (also known as The O) closed in Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood in early 2020. While many hoped someone would come along and purchase the restaurant to bring it back to life, sadly it was not in the cards.

Instead, the prime restaurant space was renovated, thoroughly cleaned, and opened up as a taco restaurant with a loaded bar with a name and style straight out of Las Vegas- Viva Los Tacos. 

Naturally, I had to visit this one shortly after it opened to see what it was like.

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Mount Everest Sushi Review – Prepare for a Feast

If you ever look up reviews on where to get sushi in Pittsburgh, odds are good Mount Everest Sushi in Oakland is likely to appear.

We've seen this one pop up as a recommended spot time and time again, but it was only recently that we made a trip out to Oakland specifically to try this one out. 

It didn't take long after looking at their menu to realize one very important detail you should know upfront- Mount Everest Sushi is quite reasonably priced. But it wasn't until we picked up our order to go that we realized that the portions are quite large too!

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Phipps Conservatory’s Fall Flower Show – Japanese Inspirations

Phipps Conservatory is known for being one of the largest botanical gardens in the region, and also for their seasonal flower shows that are truly events not to be missed.

For the fall 2019 flower show, Phipps is transporting you to Asia with the theme Japanese Inspirations- recreating numerous festivals all adorned with stunning fall flowers!

As with all of our show reviews, we're not going to share every room in the Conservatory (you'll have to visit yourself to see them all!). Instead, we're going to feature a few of our favorite rooms from the show to highlight a cross-section of the displays!

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Spirits & Tales Review – Elevated Dining With a View in Oakland

Spirits & Tales located in The Oaklander hotel fulfills the much-needed niche in Oakland of a chef-driven destination restaurant with creative small plates and entrees. We've been huge fans of Chef Jessica Lewis since her Carota Cafe days at Smallman Galley (now closed), and we are thrilled to see she now has her own spot where she can showcase her vegetable-forward dishes.

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