A long time ago in a state far, far away, I fell in love with a little something called Umami Burger. As “umami” is a Japanese word and not exactly trademark-able, it was inevitable that I would run across a restaurant using the same name at some point, but was still surprised to find a place called Umami in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. Why was I in such a place? Oh, to please my wife who likes a little something called Jeni’s Ice Cream. But that is neither here nor there. What really matters is Umami.
Lettuce Entertain You is kind of a juggernaut of restaurant groups in Chicago. It’s hard to throw a stone in the city without hitting one of their many successful restaurants, and their empire goes beyond just the Second City. Yet, while in that city my sister booked us a table at RPM Italian, which I can only assume stands for Rotations Per Minute Italian. Oh and the super skinny lady from E! News is somehow involved, but I’m guessing she doesn’t eat much of the food.
William Penn Tavern in Shadyside is the quintessential college bar. Drink specials line the walls and an outdoor tented area makes you feel both beautiful and dirty at the same time. And they have a food menu to go with that, filled with all the usual bar food suspects. You know, the things that take up just enough stomach space and soak up enough alcohol to keep you drinking all night.
In need of breakfast in Chicago, we took a walk to Elly’s Pancake House in Old Town. It turned out that Elly’s was a lot more than a pancake house and was actually a lot like a greasy spoon diner given its plethora of choices. Nonetheless, something caught my eye immediately and didn’t let go despite my perusing of the entire menu. It was the Breakfast Burrito and I intended to see if this pancake house could handle it.
Recently I was enlightened to the existence of the greatest wings in Pennsylvania. Surely, this is quite the claim, but Dino’s in Latrobe has no issue with making the claim on their site. Plus, a buddy of mine gave them a glowing review, having grown up in Latrobe. Their specialty isn’t actually buffalo wings, but something called Sweet and Hot.
Some cities have restaurants that have been around since the beginning of forever. In Washington, D.C., that place is Ben’s Chili Bowl, which I believe has been serving up chili since the Lincoln presidency. No? Well Eisenhower is close enough. Our current POTUS has paid the place a visit at least once and according to a sign is one of only two people (aside from his family) that eats free. The other, obviously, is Bill Cosby.
My trip to Ben’s Chili Bowl started out ominously. After waiting in line for more than 30 minutes and marveling at the inefficiency (perhaps some spillover from congress?), I had to run to a show down the street before ordering. Upon my return, however, I snagged a spot at the counter and was (at least in Ben’s Chili Bowl time) quickly waited upon.
It’s no secret that Squirrel Hill is the heart of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community. Typically such a place would be froth with delis, bagel shops and falafel, but not Squirrel Hill. Sure, some of those places exist, but not like one might expect. Luckily, though, this has left room for a new type of Jewish restaurant, called Nu. Calling itself a “Modern Jewish Bistro,” Nu means “well…?” in Yiddish and came into town at the end of last year from the people who brought the world Pamela’s. Since then, it has set about redefining Jewish food. After all, it’s time for a creative take on tradition.
I’m not sure a soul in the world exists that doesn’t like Mac and Cheese. Sure, some might not be able to eat it for lactose, gluten or (shudder) vegan reasons, but I am sure those people all still wish they could eat it. After all, it is quite possibly the ultimate comfort food. So when Pop City called out Kelly’s Bar & Lounge as Pittsburgh’s best mac and cheese (apparently a very poorly-kept secret), I made my way there as quickly as possible.
Just outside of Allentown, Pennsylvania is a minor league baseball team called the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. Of course, being named after an animal that is seemingly delicious and good for blood-flow does not make a team Unvegan Heroes, but what they have done with that name surely does.
The first time I laid my eyes on natto was while studying abroad in Japan. To me it was nothing short of disgusting. Fermented soybeans? A raw egg? A simple stir with the chopsticks that made strands that looked like spiderwebs? For breakfast? It was not a pleasant experience, but it was certainly an experience to be remembered.