Pittsburgh (September 2018)

My spouse and I spent the weekend in Pittsburgh in mid-September 2018. We stayed at the Hampton Inn (room 301) as we have many times before. Because we arrived on a beautiful Friday afternoon, we tried to find a bar with outdoor seating. First, we went to Level 7 (at the new AC Hotel in the Strip), but their deck was little more than a small narrow balcony with a bar rail overlooking Smallman Street. Next, we tried The Biergarten (at the Kimpton Monaco), but there were no seats available on the rooftop. So we went downstairs to The Commoner, which always serves fantastic drinks; that night was no exception. My first drink called “Free Smoke” (with mezcal, tequila, watermelon, ginger root, key lime  sea salt, and chili) was awesome, but my next drink called “I Should Be Floating, but I’m Weighted by Thinking” (with tequila, Grand Marnier, allspice-infused coconut milk, bourbon vanilla bean reduction, pineapple, grapefruit, and mole bitters) just could not compare. Afterwards, it was on to dinner somewhere new-to-us called Vallozzi. In fact, we tried two more new restaurants that weekend: The Foundry on the North Shore (before the football game), and Stagioni on the South Side (dinner afterwards). The weather was hot and humid, the polar opposite of what we encountered in Pittsburgh the prior weekend when it was rainy and cold. Not only was the weather better, but the Panthers also won! Great visit!

Hotel:

• Hampton Inn Downtown (Link to our past review here)

 Restaurants:

• The Commoner (Link to our review in September 2017 here)
• Vallozzi Link to my review
• The Foundry Link to my review
• Steel Cactus Mexican Cantina Link to my review
• Stagioni Link to my review
• Ten Penny (Link to our review in September 2017 here)