Marty's Market - Strip District

Lunchtime in the strip district with my fellow blogger friend, BeezusKiddo! We both got the $20.13 lunch special; the beet salad, beef bourguignon, and the chocolate pudding. The salad was overtaken with beets and the salad dressing was very good. The pasta (beef bourguignon) was homemade and the beef was tender and well-seasoned. The setting was inside the marketplace and all the ingredients were fresh. Pricing wasn't too bad and the staff was very friendly. There was also a separate coffee bar. The one flaw for me was that there was no real pop/soda. Well, that could have also been a good thing!

Also, you can watch the chef's carve the meats and cheeses and if you need to grab something from the store, it's right there are your disposal. Fresh, organic food - a nice, little change from the surrounding fast food eateries.

Here are pictures of the pasta and the dessert. Marty's market is definitely worth checking out for a healthy, fresh lunch without breaking the budget.

Pittsburgh Restaurant Week

     January 14 - January 28 is Pittsburgh Restaurant Week!!!! 50 Restaurants are participating and have amazing fixed menu specials. I will be in and out of a few myself to try as much delicious food as possible and I will report back to all of you with my findings. Each day, whether lunch or dinner, I will blog my experience, so stay tuned to hear about one of your favorite restaurants. If there is a specific restaurant that you want me to try, then please comment on here or on my Facebook and let me know!

     Also, if anyone has tried a restaurant participating in Pittsburgh Restaurant Week, please share your thoughts about the restaurant and especially the food. Here is to your culinary journey, happy eating!!!!!

Website: http://pittsburghrestaurantweek.com/

Point Brugge Cafe

Point Brugge Cafe is one of my favorite places in the city to eat. It has a great atmosphere and most of all great food. I have had may of the items that are featured on the menu, including: Hop Devil Shrimp, Macaroni Gratin, Moules Frites with basil mayonnaise (all flavors), Chaud Chevre salad, Cafe Chicken sandwich and the Point Burger. There are alot of other amazing things on the menu but when I go to Point Brugge its for an appetizer and then the Mussles! I have had mussels at other restaurants but they have not compared to the mussles at Point Brugge. My friends, who have actually been to Brussels said that these mussels rival the ones they had in Belgium!

Now to discuss the food! Let's start at the beginning, shall we:

Mussels - the star of the show - there are two sizes, a pound and a half or a little smaller. There are also three different flavors: white wine, shallots, garlic and cream (My absolute favorite), curry, coconut milk, basil and cilantro, or tomato, fried brussel sprouts and parmesean. If you get the large portion, french fries with their wonderful basil mayonnaise is included. As I said the white wine sauce is my favorite but I did have them all and they are all very good. The mussels are cooked perfectly; however, there will be grit/sand in a couple of them - that is normal. Also, you get unlimited pieces of warm baguette bread to dip in the overflowing sauce of your choice!

Hop Devil Shrimp - 6 Large, succulent shrimp, cooked perfectly and beer battered in Hop Devil beer. The hop devil beer is very tangy and provides a nice flavor to the shrimp especially when dipping them into the slightly spicy, Asian dipping sauce. Perfect start to anyone's culinary experience at Point Brugge.

Macaroni Gratin - Macaroni baked in three cheeses; gruyere (one of my favorites), parmesean and cheddar. One of the best baked macaroni and cheese dishes that I have ever ate. Its not too heavy to start off your meal.

Chaud Chevre Salad - Crisp greens with asparagus and roasted red peppers with the acompaniement of soft, warm, creamy goat cheese. And the house dressing - very tasty! This is my favorite of all the salad options. But, I love goat cheese especially on a salad. There is an option to add salmon, chicken or portabella mushrooms. To me, there is nothing like warm, creamy goat cheese paired with perfectly cooked salmon.

Cafe Chicken sandwich - Grilled Chicken on a warm baguette with fresh mozzerella, roasted red peppers, romaine lettuce and basil mayonnaise. I love mayonnaise, its my favorite condiment. And their basil mayo is to die for. it lightens up the richness of the mayo and provides great flavor to this and any sandwich and french fries.

Point Burger - Fresh ground chuck topped with bacon, carmelized shallots, fontina cheese, arugula, and whole grain mustard aioli. Now, with this burger, I change mine up a bit. Really, I mean with the aioli and the basil mayonnaise. I dont like whole grain mustard so I switch the mustard out for the mayo. For those of you who may not know - shallots are in the onion family but there flavor is not as bold as the onion. And caremlized, they are perfect. Arugula, is a lettuce that usually goes on top of different sandwiches wtih a smoky, peppery flavor.

Please check out Point Brugge either for lunch, dinner or brunch and let me know what you think! I havent been there for brunch, but I heard it was amazing! Also, I would get there a little early because its not just one of my favorites, it does get crowded quickly and the wait can be quite long, especially with a large party. In the warmer months, they do provide outside seating but that is also limited. Stay and have a cocktail, beer or wine, they have quite the selection and not too pricey.

DELI on North Avenue

     So the other day I was thinking, where can I go on the North side that is also somewhere quite healthy. As I was driving along North Avenue, I saw the big DELI sign. As I read the menu, I realized that there were alot of options and all were made with fresh ingredients.

     Inside, there a few tables that were similair to a coffee shop and it was clean and very inviting. I ordered the Cobb wrap but I didnt stay, as I had to get back to work. Cobb Wrap: Roasted chicken breast, bleu cheese, bacon, egg, avocado, lettuce and tomato on a flour tortilla. However, I opted for the garlic herb tortilla. For $6.95, it was the size of a 12 in sub from Subway, but without the smell, ha! It was very good and filling but I would have liked some kind of dressing. The chicken was a little dry. They also have daily specials that aren't on the menu. You can your order as a salad, wrap or sandwich!

     So, if you are ever in the north side and need a quick healthy lunch or just a quiet atmosphere that won't put a dent in your budget; DELI is where to go. Let me know what you think!

Food of the Mediterranian

Mediterrano:

     A great friend of mine and I decided to meet for lunch one day. See, we used to work together and then he retired but every year when the Greek Church would have their annual Greek Food Festival he would get so excited and buy multiple orders of Pastitsio. Every time I would pass Mediterrano, located off of Babcock Boulevard, I knew that we had to go there.

     It was a Thursday afternoon around 3:00pm so in between lunch and dinner; there were the two of us and one other table. It was very cute and quiet and the atmosphere was awesome. Another perk, it's BYOB!! Its perfect for a great little date night spot; a bottle of wine, great food and a romantic atmosphere.

     Anyway, to the food! He knew right away what he was going to order but I looked over the the menu and decided to order the same, except I got rice as my side and he ordered the Greek fries. For dinner, you get two sides. The pastitsio was luscious and buttery. When you cut it with a fork, the béchamel sauce just oozed out. It was rich and just sooo good! The rice was perfectly cooked and was a great accompaniment. Don't count out the fries though. They were amazing! Feta cheese and oregano on the warm fries was delicious. It was a hearty helping that would not let you go hungry. If you have a day of just relaxation, it is perfect for lunch but make sure you take a good bottle of wine to complete the dish! The menu is priced just right for your wallets and will leave you satisifed with possible left overs.

     I love Greek Food Festivals, but for fresh, made to order authentic Mediterranean food, Check out Mediterrano! Let me know what you think.

Bluebird Kitchen

     Bluebird Kitchen located in downtown Pittsburgh at the beginning of Market Square. Decent food, and good location. They serve breakfast, lunch and desserts and its all hand-made and organic; however, it is quite expensive.

FOOD:

     Two sandwiches and a small pasta salad was nearly $20.00 but was light and refreshing. I decided that I was going to get the roast beef; OVEN DRIED TOMATO, CONFIT GARLIC, THYME ONIONS, ARUGULA, HORSERADISH AIOLI, CIABATTA. During the rush of lunch, the sandwich would have been pre-made, but since I don't like oven-dried tomatoes, mine was made fresh. The pasta salad had great flavors but the small, is exactly what it means, small. If you are going to get it as your meal, I would suggest getting the large, even for lunch. But if you are just ordering it as a side for your sandwich, then it is plenty. Overall, the food is based on tasteful, simple, French cuisine and is a lovely addition to the city of Pittsburgh.

LOCATION:

     The location is great! Right at the start of Market Square, you can and should take your food to go and sit at the many tables surrounding the entire Market Square area. There are only like 6 seats in the entire place all along the front windows - bar style seating and in the summer that isn't bad, because like I mentioned, you can find seating outside, but come winter it's going to be based on first come first serve basis or you will definitely have to take your food to go. The line gets long and if waiting is necessary for your order, it gets kind of cramped.

     Overall, the food is good and light. Location is iffy but if you don't mind a lot of people in your personal space then the space inside would be alright with you. For first-timers, go now, prior to drastic weather changes and see for yourself!!!

PRIME RIB SHOWDOWN

Hi everyone,

Recently, I had a follower ask me where she could find good prime rib. Then I knew, that was my next venture, to find the best prime rib in the city.

I did some research: 5 places - Pgh Steak Co. in South side, Getaway in Brookline, Grant Bar in Millvale, August Henry's downtown, and Damon's in Robinson....Surprisingly, Morton's was the only steakhouse in the city that offered Prime Rib on the menu. Due to my follower wanting to keep this dinner budget friendly but still have a nice romantic atmosphere, I opted between Pittsburgh Steak Company and August Henry's.

First up: Pittsburgh Steak Company. Now, I'm not really into any other cut of steak besides Filet, due to all the fat that comes with prime rib; however, after I cut all the fat away from the prime rib, it was pretty good. I got mashed potatoes, which could've been creamier and green beans, which were excellent. Good atmosphere and wine was fairly priced. It was only accompanied by Au Jus not a horseradish sauce but it was still tender and tasty.

Finally, August Henry's: The flavoring on the Prime Rib from August Henry's is insane. I got it to go and ate it cold and the flavor was still so so much better than Pgh Steak Co. Plus, nowhere near as fatty either. This is the place! Its $29 and you get a twice baked potato and a side or ceasar salad or cup of soup.

Although, Pittsburgh Steak Company has a Monday night special of all-you-can-eat prime rib. If you arent going on a Monday night, I would suggest August Henry's. It's $5 more and the taste and preparation far more out weigh the cost. But if you're not picky about your dinner out and want to get a good cut of meat for a good price, try Pittsburgh Steak Company on a Monday night! Stay tuned for the next posting.

The Modern Cafe

The North Side of Pittsburgh is really making a comeback.  The Modern Cafe re-opened in April 2010 and has been a local favorite to customers since. It's updated and provides a great escape from the outside stressors. From beers to a full food menu, its a great spot to just have lunch, a beer or catch any sporting game.

I just went there yesterday with my friends for lunch, now I have been there a few other times and have not been disappointed. Recently, The Modern Cafe won Runner-Up for the Best Sandwich in the North side - The Spartan.

Here are the details: Steak, Gyro meat, Provolone & Feta cheese, onions, tomato slices with our special steak seasoning & dressing topped with tzatziki sauce on a 6” hoagie. Now, my co-worker that got this sandwich, does not like the tzatziki sauce so he opted for balsamic vinegar. Still, very good. The balsamic was very flavorful and not too oily to make the bread soggy. However, my only complaint would be that the bread was toasted a little too long. I don't really like hard bread. Losing only to a grilled cheese sandwich from The Bistro to go, it is definitely a worthy contender in the sandwich world beating out sandwiches such as the Roethlisberger from Peppi's.

I decided to get the Turkey Extreme with egg; and, if you know me, I add egg to every sandwich. Here are the details for this great sandwich: Roast Turkey, Cheddar cheese, coleslaw, lettuce and tomato on Wheat (hot or cold). I opted for white bread.

Anything on the menu is tasty though. Even if your just going in for a drink, you will have a great experience. The owners are very friendly and love to talk to everyone and are very excited about their space. They truly want you to love your experience and will attempt to make that possible. The Modern Cafe should be your next stop for a great sandwich and experience.