Ever since arriving in Pittsburgh, I have been told to make my way to Root 174 in Regent Square. It took me a while, but that wait ended recently when the mother-in-law paid a visit to the ‘Burgh. The menu was nothing short of beautiful, but we started out with a little something called Devils on Horseback. This is, of course, dates stuffed with chorizo and manchego topped with a port wine reduction. It was a solid, if not spectacular start, but it whet my appetite for what was to come.
Pittsburgh isn’t exactly known for having a wide breadth of ethnic food. Nonetheless, the place continues to surprise in terms of variety. Take, for example, the Smiling Banana Leaf in Highland Park. In case you couldn’t tell by the name, the place is Thai and has a surprisingly interesting menu. I say surprising because while it’s relatively sizable like many Thai spots, some things I had never seen before.
Remember a time when Benihana-esque teppanyaki places were just the coolest damn things ever? Yes, it seems like a long time ago, but that time was very real. Well, the excitement has certainly passed, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t fun to get a group together to hit up a teppanyaki place every few years. Well, we did just that in Pittsburgh’s South Side at spot called Nakama (which weirdly translates to “fellow”).
BBQ seems to be a pretty big deal in the South, and this is just as true in New Orleans despite the French influence. Supposedly the best place for it is The Joint, but for some stupid reason The Joint has chosen to not be open on Sundays. As a current business school student I can’t comprehend this, but we had a backup plan and made our way to VooDoo BBQ in the Garden District/Uptown.
When my cousin suggested grabbing breakfast at Satsuma in Uptown New Orleans, I was a little surprised. You see, “satsuma” is a Japanese word and it definitely doesn’t mean breakfast. But even if it did, Japan isn’t exactly known for great morning food (unless you like fermented beans). As it turned out, there was nothing Japanese about Satsuma at all, and it turned out to be a breakfast/brunch place that also served some fancy smoothies.
Back in the days when our nation was in the grips of civil war, a little French doughnut and coffee shop opened in the French Quarter of New Orleans. The year was 1862 and the shop was Cafe du Monde, which is still standing in the same place and seemingly serving the same doughnuts and coffee it was serving 150 years ago. Of course, being French the dougnuts are actually beignets and the coffee is cafe au lait, which are much more than just a translation.
While out on Frenchman Street in New Orleans, eventually the alcohol consumption began to get to me and I realized I had to eat something. That something turned out to be Dat Dog, an “encased meats” spot with plenty of tube steaks to choose from, beer on the menu and toppings galore to choose from.
One of the things New Orleans is known for is the Muffaletta. And perhaps no place is known more for their Muffaletta than Cochon Butcher in the Lower Garden District. The place is pretty much an unvegan paradise, evidenced by the fact that the word “cochon” quite literally means “pig” in French. It’s also an offshoot of the more famous Cochon (without the Butcher) that it shares a wall with.
New Orleans is, without a doubt, a city that defies the rest of the United States. From the French influence to the third world-esque devastation of Hurricane Katrina to the fact that women are willing to take their tops off for beads (okay maybe that one’s not so different), it is unquestionably a unique city. Yet, as a first time visitor with a meat blog, I was far more interested in the culinary aspects of NOLA than anything else, beginning with The Ruby Slipper Cafe.
Down in The South there is a bit of a growing burger joint called Bad Daddy’s. It’s managed to make its way into the Charlotte Airport and I managed to find it. As the name would attempt to imply, Bad Daddy’s had a pretty good variety of unique burgers, which even included a Pittsburgher (topped with fries of course).