Bocktown Beer and Grill (Robinson)

Being a non-beer drinker, Bocktown isn't a place I would normally frequent, but a lot of my beer-drinking friends love the place, so when I was looking for a non-chain restaurant near the airport that would be open on a Sunday to celebrate my birthday way back in January, I figured Bocktown would be a good bet.  To my disappointment, my first experience there wasn't superb.  (Maybe the kitchen had an off day??)

But all my friends can't be wrong, right?  I know, I know, they like Bocktown for the beer, but I felt like there's gotta be something redeeming about the food, right?  Especially when foodie friend Foodburgh Mike, who happened to be one of my birthday dinner guests, had given the place a positive review on his blog.

I was more than willing to go back to Bocktown and give it another try.  My chance finally came two weeks ago when fellow foodie blogger Suburghia Foodie invited me and another foodie tweep Leogurl out to Localfest 2011 at Bocktown (more on Localfest on my next post) and we decided to meet inside the restaurant beforehand for dinner.  I ordered the Port Authority, a portabella mushroom sandwich with coleslaw, pickles, onion crisps, topped with Bocktown's "Untouchable Sauce," which was actually quite tasty.  At my dining companions' suggestion, I also ordered the Flat Belly Fries for the table and chose the Beer Cheese and Peppered Bacon toppings.  The fries were fabulous and yes, I even enjoyed the beer cheese.

The Port Authority ($7.99)

Flat Belly Fries with Beer Cheese and Peppered Bacon ($3.99)

The second time was definitely the charm, and I was a happy camper this time around.  I also enjoy the fun atmosphere there.  My impression of Bocktown improved even more after Localfest, so read on...

Restaurant info:
Bocktown Beer and Grill
690 Chauvet Dr, North Fayette Twp, PA 152725
(412)788-2333
On the web: http://www.bocktown.com
On twitter: http://www.twitter.com/bocktown
On Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/bocktown

Loving Hut (Robinson)

R. and I stopped by Loving Hut Saturday night for a quick dinner on our way from the airport to the south side area.  Actually, I was the one who needed a some solid food in my stomach in preparation for some St. Paddy's Day alcohol consumption.  Anyway, Loving Hut is a vegan restaurant that just opened in December and had been on my wish list for a little while.  What I didn't realize until recently is that it is actually an international chain, with locations in Brazil, Hong Kong, Australia, Spain, Mongolia, and many other countries, just to give you a sense of its global reach.  What's interesting, however, is that every restaurant has its own unique menu.  Just for fun (and because I didn't quite buy the "unique menu" spiel at first), I checked out the menus at their Palo Alto location, their Russia location, one of the Toronto locations, and two of the locations in Hong Kong.  And I can verify that the menus are indeed completely different - yes, even the two in Hong Kong are different from one another.  So, while Loving Hut is run by an international group, I don't think of it as a chain at all.

Loving Hut Special Rolls ($4.95)
I had heard good things about the Loving Hut Special Rolls from the Binge! Eating in Pittsburgh blog so I had to try it.  And I'd have to agree with Jake who authors the Binge! blog.  These rolls, made with vermicelli, mint, and tofu with a soybean, pineapple, and peanut dipping sauce, were really well done.  I tend to think that one important aspect of a good roll is the texture.  These rolls have a nice, creative combination of flavors with the right amount of crunchiness.  Everything tasted fresh.

As for my main dish, I was going to order something else until I spotted the Guru Curry on the specials menu, which came with a choice of soy protein, potatoes, or taro.  Taro?!  YES, PLEASE!  But when I placed my order, the waitress informed me that they did not have taro.  I was probably a little more visibly and vocally disappointed than I meant to be - well, taro was the only reason I wanted the Guru Curry after all - but guess what?  The waitress said she'd check with the kitchen and - surprise, surprise! - taro magically appeared.  OK, I don't mean to be cynical, but anytime a restaurant tells me they're out of something, I tend to be a bit skeptical (maybe it's because I've read this recently - see #4).

Guru Curry ($9.95)
They ended up putting both taro and potatoes into the Guru Curry for me.  I have a feeling they gave me 1/2 taro and 1/2 potatoes rather than a full serving of each, but whatever, I didn't question it.  I was hungry! The Guru Curry did make up for its limited taro with its tastiness.  R., who didn't order anything for himself but nibbled at my food (that's OK, I gave him permission), said he thought the special rolls were great until he tried the Guru Curry.  He couldn't stop eating it!  As a side note, the Palo Alto location also serves an item called the Guru Curry, but it costs $1 less and is made with a different combination of ingredients.

Loving Hut was fantastic, and I'm really glad to see a healthy, vegan option in a city known for its not-so-healthy options, in a part of town that's heavily populated with the usual chain restaurants.  Their website for the Pittsburgh location identifies it as "pittsburgh_01," and I hope this means they're planning for locations 02, 03, etc., in da Burgh!  (A girl can dream, can't she?) ;)

Random: I know I've been writing a lot more than I mean to lately.  Now that work has picked up again, and with many upcoming dining out opportunities, I may have to scale back on the amount of text I write in each post and put the focus back on the photos, like I originally intended.  Thanks for reading!


Restaurant info:
Loving Hut Pittsburgh
5474 Campbells Run Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15205
(412) 787-2727
Website: http://lovinghut.us/pittsburgh_01/

Fuji Sushi (McKees Rocks/Robinson)

I had plans to have dinner with a friend in the Robinson area and then head to IKEA afterwards to pick up some organizational items for the house.  Well, dinner plans got canceled, but I was going to head out to IKEA anyway, so I decided to knock off a Robinson-area restaurant on my wishlist.  The choice came down to Loving Hut or Fuji Sushi, and because I sorely needed a sushi fix, I decided to go with Fuji Sushi.  Loving Hut will have to wait another day.

I'd have to say, Fuji Sushi looks extremely unassuming on the outside, off the beaten path about a mile off the main drag of Robinson, in a tiny strip mall on Steubenville Pike next to a Midas service center.  I mean, if you were to judge a restaurant by its facade, you wouldn't think this place was any good.  But the avid reader of my blog (yes, all two of you!) would know that I only blog about what I like, so clearly, I enjoyed this place a lot.

Here are some pictures of my meal, accompanied by quite a bit more text than I normally write.  Yes, this is going to be one of my longer blog posts, and it even includes a discussion of the terms "teppanyaki" vs. "hibachi" (read on for more).  Are you ready for the ride? :)

Chef's Choice
I ordered the Chef's Choice ($23), which comes with a specialty roll of my choice plus seven pieces of sushi of the chef's choice.

For my specialty roll, I went with the "O" Roll, which consists of tempura shrimp, spicy crab meat, and seared tuna and salmon on top.  I liked it quite a bit.

The owner/chef, Tommy, brought me my meal personally, and pointed out two special fish he had that night.  This one is a flying fish fresh from Japan.  Tommy explains that these fish actually do fly above water.  I had never heard of flying fish before let alone eat them, so being the nerd that I am, I had to look it up when I got home.  They do seem like a pretty cool breed of fish.  Delicious, too!

The other straight-from-Japan fish is this one right here, for which there was no name given, but I was told it belongs to the grouper family.  Tommy claims to be the only show in town that offers fresh fish from Japan.  All I can say is I've never had such unique sushi before!

It's too bad I didn't get a picture of the salmon (although you can see it quite well in the first photo above).  I will fully admit that I base my judgment of a sushi restaurant heavily on the quality of the salmon.  Salmon is my favorite fish, and 9 times out of 10 when I have sushi I save it for last.  There is nothing more disappointing than bland salmon; it makes me a little angry when I waste that last bite that is meant to be savored on a piece of tasteless orangey blob.  Not the case at Fuji Sushi!  It was one of the more tasty salmons I've ever had thanks to its freshness.  I always appreciate a meal that ends on such a high note as this one did.

Aside from the food, my meal at Fuji Sushi was made particularly enjoyable thanks to the awesome staff, Sook (the waitress) and Tommy (the owner/chef).  Tommy, in particular, is a total hoot.  He noticed I was taking pictures of my food, and struck up a conversation about photography, and even had me fix a problem with his camera.  Then he showed me pictures he had taken with some Steelers players who had visited his restaurant, as well as a picture of a large, intact flying fish.  We also bonded over our mutual preference for the term "teppanyaki" over "hibachi." According to Tommy, "teppanyaki" is the correct term because "teppan" means iron board and "yaki" means cooking, and so it accurately describes the style of cooking that is done on a metal griddle. (Ahhh...you learn something every day.)  So what's "hibachi," you ask?  To quote Tommy, "You know on 4th of July the kids play with sparklers?  THAT'S 'hibachi.'"  (FWIW, I went nerdy again and did a search on Wikipedia, which does at least corroborate the notion that "teppanyaki" is the proper term.)  Anyway, I can tell from my very long conversation with Tommy that he's passionate about his business and his customers.  I've never had any restaurant owner show this much interest in me.  Granted, on this very rainy night I was nearly his only customer, but he sounds like the type of guy who strives to make your visit a pleasant one no matter how busy his restaurant gets.  There is just something about his sincerity and goofiness that makes it impossible to dislike him.

From my conversation with Tommy, it was also clear to me that he wants to distinguish his restaurant from others by doing things differently.  (This can also be seen from his serving of Japanese fish and unique rolls that you can't get anywhere else.)  Speaking of being unique, one thing I would love to try is the Oh My God! Roll that apparently comes lit on fire!  Kinda bummed I missed out on this one this time around.

What looks like a specials menu but all items on here are available at all times and will eventually make it to the regular menu.

And just when you think Fuji Sushi couldn't possibly BE any more awesome, I was putting on my jacket and getting ready to leave when Sook came out with a dessert for me, on the house:

Mango Mochi
OK, I'm officially a fan.

Conclusion:  Fuji Sushi rocks!

Restaurant Info:

Fuji Sushi
6091 Steubenville Pike
Pittsburgh, PA 15205

(412) 494-5544 

Website:  None for now, but possibly in the future  
N.B.: They're BYOB, no charge!