The Unvegan

Recent Posts

10 Years of Unvegan
A Quick Bite at Burrito Express
Serendipity at Northern Waters Smokehaus
Twerks and Burritos at Casa Amigos

The Unvegan

1/10/2014 Pittsburgh

All in for All India

Maybe you can tell me what this is.
Maybe you can tell me what this is.

With a school like Carnegie Mellon around, you would expect Pittsburgh to have some good Indian food. It’s not racist, it’s just common sense. Yet, it took me until recently, when a white guy invited me to All India (I apologize in advance for the music that autoplays on this site) to see what kind of Indian the city could muster. And what a mustering it was “” with a menu as long as a case study, I had a hard time deciding what to order, but fortunately I was with a large group and I was going to get to try a lot of things.

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1/9/2014 Pittsburgh

Good to the Marrow at Meat & Potatoes

So much bone, so little time.
So much bone, so little time.

Essentially the day I arrived in Pittsburgh, a buddy of mine told me I had to get to Meat & Potatoes in downtown. With an unvegan name like that, I didn’t exactly need convincing. Yet, when I took a look at the menu and prices I quickly realized this was a destination for when parents came to town. After all, that whole being a student thing can make eating out tough. But the parents did come, and to Meat & Potatoes we went.

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1/8/2014 Pittsburgh

Up in Smoke BBQ Taqueria (RELOCATED)

Brisket + Mac and Cheese = Yum.
Brisket + Mac and Cheese = Yum.

EDIT: Smoke has since moved to Lawrenceville, and thus there are some updates below.

Outside of the Waterfront, Homestead isn’t exactly a destination in Pittsburgh. Yet, within that sketchy neighborhood lies a restaurant called Smoke. Such a vague name usually would lead someone to believe that it’s doors contain BBQ and that person would be right, but it’s not just regular BBQ, it is something like Mexican BBQ fusion. The menu mostly contains fascinating BBQ tacos, a random duck quesadilla and some interesting sides.

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1/7/2014 Pittsburgh

Like a Bus at Jerome Bettis’ Grille 36

Should be The Bus Burger.
Should be The Bus Burger.

Just like most towns, Pittsburgh has its fair share of sports legends. Roberto Clemente may be the biggest, but unfortunately he did not live long enough to start a Puerto Rican restaurant. Ben Roethlisberger is also pretty huge, but claims of molestation may stop him from opening up his very own burger joint. Then there’s Jerome Bettis. Also known as The Bus, Bettis found his way to Pittsburgh from Detroit and eventually got into the restaurant business with a spot just out of Heinz Field called Jerome Bettis’ Grille 36.

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1/6/2014 Homestead

Hitting Rock Bottom

Looks like I've hit bottom.
Looks like I’ve hit bottom.

Rock Bottom is a restaurant and brewery that seems to have made its way through much of the US since first opening up in Denver long before I was legally able to drink. Fortunately, one of these locations is in Pittsburgh’s Waterfront. I say fortunate because it gave me the chance to try out their food and beer. After all, I once considered myself fortunate to try BJ’s, until I actually ate their food and drank their beer. I hoped Rock Bottom would treat me better.

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1/3/2014

The Best of 2013

Trying to make the cut.
Trying to make the cut.

2014 is here, but my 2013 may have been the best year of eating in the history of the world, so it’s time for another Unvegan Best of. The past year included a honeymoon, an epic month-long road trip and a move from Los Angeles to Pittsburgh, so my list has broadened beyond LA and narrowing down the awesome was quite the process. Nonetheless, I encourage you all to go back through my Reviews section to see what didn’t quite make the cut. Remember that the list only includes places new to The Unvegan and bear in mind that Honorable Nods this year would probably be winners any other year. Without further ado:

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1/3/2014 Pittsburgh

Being Social

Pizza is a social food.
Pizza is a social food.

Wife won a gift card to Social at Bakery Square a while back and we finally got a chance to use it recently. In fact, we made it a social thing and invited out a couple to join us. As I learned during the meal, the feminine half of the couple has her own food blog, which focuses on nutrition, so I naturally thought we were very similar. That is, until she ordered a salad. Crazy, I know.

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1/2/2014 Pittsburgh

A Sausagefest at Legume

No legumes here.
No legumes here.

I first learned of Legume in Oakland shortly after arriving in Pittsburgh. At the time I was told that the name “Legume” didn’t exactly stand for any sort of vegetarian-ness and meats galore abounded there. In fact, Legume does its best to adhere to a whole-animal policy in which they will do their best to use every morsel of edible goodness in an animal in their dishes. Because of this, their menu often changes and they are prone to running out of dishes.

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1/1/2014 Pittsburgh

A Picturesque Burger at The Elbow Room (CLOSED)

A most perfect egg.
A most perfect egg.

Since 1947, The Elbow Room has been hanging in Shadyside, serving up food and drinks. It hasn’t always been in its current location on Walnut, but that was of little concern to me when it came to ordering up food there. Just about everything on the menu looked stellar, yet when it came down to it this was the first meal of my day and I felt the urge to get breakfast.

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12/31/2013 East Lansing

Just as Expected at Dublin Square

Oh, Irish bacon...
Oh, Irish bacon…

East Lansing, Michigan isn’t exactly known as a bastion of culture. Harboring the state’s foremost safety school is basically the city’s only claim to fame. Well, that and the fact that students of the school are known to riot whether their teams win or lose. Nonetheless, I found myself in that small agricultural village in need of food after a rough football game. This led me to Dublin Square, an Irish Pub with a sizable food menu.

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