Shopping

Drinking Your Way Around PA at Pennsylvania Libations

Pennsylvania liquor laws are weird. In fact, we'd go as far as saying they're awful. Between the state-run liquor stores, limited accessibility of beer and wine outside of producers and select sellers, and other oddities, finding a good bottle to enjoy in Pennsylvania does not come without its challenges.

Thankfully, some of the most archaic of regulations have been changing in recent years, and one such change has allowed for the creation of a unique store in the Strip District called Pennsylvania Libations.

Their products? 100% Pennsylvania-made spirits.

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11 Specialty Stores for Shopping in Pittsburgh (Outside the Strip)

When it comes to boutique shopping in Pittsburgh, it is really easy for us to simply direct you to the Strip District and (almost) call it a day. This neighborhood has so many specialty stores that you can find a great number of products all within a ~10-block shopping district.

That being said, leaving the shopping discussion to purely the Strip District would be doing you a disservice as there are many other boutique and specialty stores in the Pittsburgh area. 

In this one, we wanted to share a few of our favorites all with one thing in common- none of these are located in the Strip District. So if you're looking for a store to go deep into a particular style or item, these are a few great places to start!

Note: We know that there are way more than the following in the metro area. As with everything on this site, we will add more great stores as we visit them!

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Grove City Outlets is a Massive Shopping Mall Near Pittsburgh

I'll be honest- in our quest to support local we often overlook some of the more commercial and national entities that are available in the city. Shopping is no different.

As such, I never expected to find myself stopping at Grove City Outlets. But on my way home from a trip to Erie and Presque Isle State Park, I saw the outlets coming up and decided to pull over.

While the outlet is still a commercial retail space for national brands, I have to say that the collection of shops is rather impressive all the same.

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Salty Pork Bits Review – Charcuterie by Justin Severino

When Justin Severino's acclaimed restaurant, Cure, closed in 2019, we were pretty heartbroken. So heartbroken, in fact, that we would tag the chef in sad updates every time we walked past the now-closed Lawrenceville storefront. (I'm not sure he appreciated it, granted, we also never asked.)

We do this because, in all honesty, Cure was perhaps the best restaurant in Pittsburgh during its run and we were sad to see it go.

Thankfully, Justin Severino had a plan to offer his charcuterie to the world and opened up Salty Pork Bits- a subscription service where you can get a box of charcuterie every month. Naturally, Angie got it for me as a birthday present, and it was like having Cure's stellar charcuterie board at home as much as I wanted.

Even better? Shortly thereafter Salty Pork Bits opened up a brick and mortar store in Lawrenceville (just feet from the former restaurant) for local pickups of one-off orders too!

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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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7 Pittsburgh Christmas Ornaments Perfect for Gifting

Whether you're a Pittsburgh sports fanatic, a Pitt Panther, a lifelong Yinzer, or are new to the city but have fallen in love with it, there's a Christmas ornament out there for you.

We've been looking for the best Pittsburgh Christmas ornaments, and we're here to help you with your holiday shopping with a list of some of our favorites found on Etsy!

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10 Gift Ideas for Your Favorite Pittsburgher

Are you looking for a gift for a Pittsburgher? It is no secret that we all love this city, so why not pick up a Pittsburgh inspired gift that is sure to wow them!

In this guide we are sharing 10 gift themes that focus on all things Pittsburgh. Within each theme we have featured multiple different ideas to hit all interests, gift types, and budgets. So go beyond a restaurant gift card and impress your favorite Pittsburgher with one of the below!

Note: This article contains gift ideas for all budgets. Recommendations are as low as a $10 Pittsburgh novelty or book, a $20 shirt, and can be as expensive as a $100+ ski pass or $200 Steelers ticket. We wanted to give a range of ideas in this one and as such prices run the full spectrum.  

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Salonika Imports Review – Greek Groceries and Gyros

We love to go to the Strip District when we want to hit a lot of different types of ethnic grocery stores in one trip, or when we're entertaining out of town visitors. But that doesn't necessarily mean the Strip District is the best place for all types of ethnic grocery shopping.

For better prices or a bigger selection, sometimes you need to look at specific stores outside of the Strip. One such store is Salonika Imports, a Greek and Bulgarian grocery store on the edge of lower Lawrenceville and the Strip District.

We recently ended up at Salonika Imports on a Friday during lunchtime and were pleasantly surprised with the great prices, the wide selection of products, the delicious gyros, and the friendly service.

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17 Pittsburgh Books to Add to Your Home Library

Pittsburgh Dad

Pittsburgh is one of America's greatest cities, there is no question about that.  We have an incredible history, amazing sports teams, an exploding food scene, many local celebrities, and just about everything else you could ask for in a city.

As it is our quest to discover all of these aspects of Pittsburgh, we've recently turned to reading any and all Pittsburgh related books we could get our hands on to learn more about the city we call home.

The following are some of our favorites that we think you should definitely check out!

Note: When available, we offer links to purchase the book on Amazon and Bookshop.org. Bookshop.org is an online retailer that supports local and independently operated bookstores with every sale either through direct purchases (if available) or profit shares. Please try and support local stores as much as possible!

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