Burgh'ers: Take Two (Harmony)

I have always been a fan of Burgh'ers up in Harmony.  Even though I have only written about them once on my blog, I have actually visited on several occasions.  Recently, I finally made it to their "new" location - actually not that new, as I think it is now close to a year since the move - and it is not that far from the "old" location because it is the space directly next door that used to house an Indian restaurant.

I like the new location.  The atmosphere is completely different - more elegant with its dark orange walls and dim lighting, and less fluorescent-light-and-fast-foody.  Along with being a larger space, there is a bar in the back. The restaurant was packed on this Friday evening, but since I was flying solo I just grabbed a seat at the bar.

Which prompted me to order a drink.  Well, the special of the evening, Apple-Berry Sangria, sounded just about perfect for a fall night, and it was delicious.

Apple-Berry Sangria

I also decided to go with the evening's special burger: the Beet Burger, with cream cheese and beet slaw topping the local grass-fed beef patty.  I love beets, and I like burgers and cream cheese quite a bit as well, so that was a winning combination for me!  It tasted great!

Beet Burger

Aside from being so far north, I love this little neighborhood joint.  Hope to be back again before too long!

Restaurant info:
Burgh'ers
100 Perry Highway, Harmony, PA 16037
(724) 473-0710
On the web: http://www.burghersinc.com
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Burghers-Restaurant/143287332355378
On Twitter: https://twitter.com/Burghersorganic


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Coffee Buddha (West View)

When Mike Witherel said he was "trying to sell atmosphere" with his new coffee joint, he wasn't joking around.

Many people don't know this about me, but I consider myself a Buddhist.  So when I found out about the impending opening of a coffee shop named Coffee Buddha, I was naturally intrigued.  I closely followed the news of Coffee Buddha's progress on Twitter and Facebook, and when it finally opened the week after 4th of July, I promptly added it to my to-do list.

Somehow, it took me nearly two months before I finally made my first trip there, though it has quickly become my office away from my office.  And it's not just because of the Buddha theme (or the free wifi).  Sure, there are statues and wall paintings of Buddha.  There is even a Buddha bust inside the fish aquarium in the the front room.  But there is so much more than that that I like about Coffee Buddha.  Let me count the ways...

First, the beverages.  Another thing that many people find surprising about me is that I don't typically drink coffee, espresso, or espresso drinks (e.g., lattes).  Long story boiled down to a nutshell, I simply don't like the bitter taste.  (Same reason I don't drink beer.)  My only source of caffeine comes from a morning cup of tea, and after 2 pm or so, any further caffeine intake would keep me up at night.  My first visit to Coffee Buddha occurred after 2 pm on a Wednesday afternoon so I played it safe and got a caffeine-free Tangerine Ginger herbal tea, which was delicious.  But I was intrigued by the Four Noble Truths - four lattes known as Dalai Latte, Peanut Buddha Latte, Enlighten-Mint, and Mexi-Mocha - and vowed to come back in the morning someday to try them, especially after owner Mike so nicely offered me samples of the delicious homemade Vietnamese Spice and Peanut Curry Caramel that are mixed into the Dalai Latte and the Peanut Buddha Latte, respectively. As I mentioned earlier, I don't normally drink lattes, but I'm a woman of my word and have since returned to try both the Dalai Latte and the Peanut Buddha Latte.  Of the two, I personally prefer the Peanut Buddha, because I absolutely love the peanut + curry + caramel combo, but I found the Dalai Latte interesting and tasty as well, with the tangy Vietnamese spice that's just a little bit spicy.  I plan to complete all Four Noble Truths soon.  I want to achieve nirvana.

Dalai Latte

Tangerine Ginger Tea

Of course, being a coffee shop, Coffee Buddha sells a variety of coffee.  Owner Mike is very passionate about his Trifecta single-serving coffee machine.  I don't know enough about coffee brewing to comment, but I did try a coffee sample which I had black - shocking, I know; R. couldn't believe it when I told him! - and I can see why coffee drinkers would like it.  I might even go for a full cup someday.  But, baby steps...

The second reason I like Coffee Buddha is the munchies.  Coffee Buddha serves a limited selection of salads and wraps from Pure Cafe and pastries from Lincoln Bakery.  I was initially a little concerned about the freshness of the wraps - after all, you have no idea how long they've been sitting in the refrigerated display case, but my Thai Chicken Wrap, with free range chicken, lettuce, cucumber, carrots, and spicy peanut sauce was pretty fresh and the flavor combo did not disappoint.  I had been to Pure Cafe before and had the Veggie Lovers Wrap there, and both times I've found the wraps to be simple and healthy.  Just what you'd expect from a neighborhood cafe housed inside a gym.

Thai Chicken Wrap from Pure Cafe

Lincoln Bakery, on the other hand, I had never been before, but I thoroughly enjoyed the Coconut Cream Pie, Pumpkin Muffin, and the Walnut Square I've partaken in at Coffee Buddha.  Owner Mike spoke of bringing in a microwave to warm up some of the baked goods, which I think would be a great idea.  The cold muffin was a little odd, even if tasty.

Coconut Cream Pie from Lincoln Bakery

Pumpkin Muffin from Lincoln Bakery

Walnut Square from Lincoln Bakery

The third reason I like Coffee Buddha: good service.  Owner Mike and the rest of the staff are always friendly, not just to people but to dogs as well - as evidenced by the pooch-friendly front porch and the gourmet dog treats available for sale.  Not that I've ever felt unwelcomed at any coffee shop, but when I walk into Coffee Buddha, I feel like I'm visiting a friend's house and not a business, which leads me to the fourth reason why I like - no, LOVE - Coffee Buddha:

Atmosphere.

Coffee Buddha's exterior

Coffee Buddha is essentially an old house converted into a coffee shop, and thus feels very cozy.  The inside is full of brightly colored walls which is totally my style - you're talking about someone who painted her kitchen red and her powder room orange after all.  Coffee Buddha's decor is exactly how I would decorate my coffee shop if I owned one.  Despite the intense colors, it is also a place that feels relaxing - probably because it has the layout of a house.  The second floor has rooms slated for different purposes - a couple of rooms with sofas and armchairs, one with a table in the middle suitable for doing work, and one featuring a foosball table in the middle.  There's even a meditation room and talks of using it for massages.  Most of the rooms also feature large flat-screen TVs.  There's not a single inch of this place that's not been carefully designed and decorated.

The front room you see as soon as you walk into Coffee Buddha

The counter
(LOVE the red walls!)

One of the rooms upstairs

Another room upstairs, with posters from Venice

Yet another room upstairs

Connected to the other "green room" is a room featuring a foosball table

The Meditation Room

Even the bathroom decor is well thought-out

In addition to the warm interior design, owner Mike clearly has a good, quirky sense of humor that I appreciate.  Almost everywhere you go inside and outside the shop, you'll find something goofy that'll make you laugh:

Sign by the window inside the front entrance

Parking sign. I guess I'd better become a coffee drinker.

The only minor inconvenience for me is that if I'm trying to get work done at Coffee Buddha, I do try to go when I know there would likely not be many people around.  Unlike your typical coffee shop, there is only a handful of tables at Coffee Buddha where you can really lay out your stuff (as I do when I work) and be productive.  Also, even though you are separated by walls, conversations from one room do carry to other rooms in the "house."  When I'm trying to concentrate, I don't need to be eavesdropping on a lively conversation between two clearly very bright high school students about the universities they're looking into, which incidentally included my own alma mater IN CANADA - ha! (Boy these kids think global - good for them!)  But really, I didn't need to hear all that.  It wasn't a problem my iPod and some jazz clarinet music couldn't fix, but it is something I have to consider depending on what I'm trying to accomplish when I pay Coffee Buddha a visit. Coffee Buddha was clearly designed with the goal to make it a place to hang out rather than to do serious work, and I think that is totally fine.  It just means it may not always be a good time for me to be there.

Overall, I do love Coffee Buddha.  I am definitely sold on the atmosphere.  And then some.

Restaurant info:
Coffee Buddha
964 Perry Highway, Pittsburgh, PA 15237
(412)559-4352
Bonus: Free wifi
On the web: http://www.thecoffeebuddha.com
On twitter: http://www.twitter.com/thecoffeebuddha
On Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/coffeebuddha


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Zuppa's Deli (Wexford): Take Two

This is a long overdue second post on Zuppa's Deli in Wexford.  I had raved about Zuppa's Veggie Sammy in one of my early blog posts and have since visited Zuppa's several more times (even turning a few friends into Zuppa's fans in the process).  R. had the Veggie Sammy himself when I took him there a few weeks ago and concurred with my assessment, and my sister tried a bite of my Veggie Sammy on another visit and gave it a two-thumbs up.  Nonetheless, in my more recent visits, I have ventured beyond my favorite sandwich of all time and tried some of the other items on Zuppa's menu, one of which was the meatabulous Meat Loaf Panini, with applewood smoked bacon, asiago cheese, housemade meatloaf and mashed potatoes, topped with Zuppa's own BBQ sauce and fried onion straws:

Meat Loaf Panini

The Meat Loaf Panini, opened

On another visit I checked out their Tomato Basil Panini, with oven roasted tomatoes, housemade basil pesto, and fresh mozzarella:

Tomato Basil Panini

Both sandwiches were fantastic and highly recommended, though the Tomato Bisque really takes the cake.  This slow-roasted tomato soup with a touch of cream and sherry made me sad when I finished my last bite:

Tomato Bisque

If you haven't checked out Zuppa's yet, you most definitely should!

Restaurant Info:
Zuppa's Delicatessen
10850 Perry Highway
Wexford, PA 15090
Phone: (724)934-4700
Website: http://www.zuppasdeli.com

Franktuary (Downtown)

Franktuary is one of those places that had been on my radar for a while, but because I don't work downtown (they are only open Mondays to Fridays from 10 am-3 pm), I never got a chance to check it out until about three weeks ago when I had a downtown appointment in the morning and decided it would be the perfect opportunity to come by for lunch afterwards.  Franktuary is located in the basement of a church on Oliver Street but it's pretty spacious and comfortable, and for a bonus, there is also free wifi.  (I am actually writing part of this blog right here at the shop!)

On my first visit I had wanted to try the Mexico, but was told that the avocados they got that morning were subpar so they weren't able to serve guacamole that day.  I had been really excited about the Mexico, but I was glad that at least they cared about the ingredients they used.  So instead I decided to go with the New Yorker, with sauerkraut, vidalia onion sauce, and brown mustard, paired with Franktuary's locavore frank - organic, grass-fed, all-beef frank from a farm just an hour north of Pittsburgh in Volant, PA.

Locavore Frank, New Yorker Style ($5.50)

The frank was really, really delicious: Thick, juicy, and full of flavor.  I'll admit I'm actually not normally a huge fan of hotdogs, but the locavore was the bomb.  I have also never had sauerkraut on a hotdog before and I liked it a lot more than I thought I would.  The hotdog itself is not very large, so for a more fulfilling meal, most people would probably want to get two franks or at least a side to go with one frank.

A couple weeks later I once again found myself in downtown Pittsburgh right around lunch time, and I knew I just had to go back to Franktuary.  This time, I ordered two Gourmet Franks:  1) The Mexico with cheddar cheese, mango pineapple salsa, and guacamole on top of a Vegan Tofu Frank - because I really had to have the Mexico this time and I was also curious about tofu frank, and 2) The Pittsburgh with smooshed pierogie, cole slaw on top of a Locavore frank - because I had to have the locavore again and because I just had to try the Pittsburgh style at least once.

Veggie Frank, Mexico Style ($4.00)

Locavore Frank, Pittsburgh Style ($6.00)

I liked the guacamole and the salsa toppings on the Mexico.  The vegan tofu frank itself was...interesting.  It actually had the texture and color of a regular dog you might find commercially packaged at your local supermarket, but only with a slight tofu taste instead of a meat flavor.  I think it could be great with a little seasoning.  But if you're not restricted by a vegetarian diet, the tofu frank is really no competition for the locavore.  Once again, I was impressed by how flavorful it was.  The Pittsburgh toppings were pretty good - better than I had expected, for someone who's not really a huge fan of pierogies and cole slaw (shhh!).

The one thing that I feel I should mention, despite the fact that I hate saying anything negative, is that it's a shame the buns they use at Franktuary really don't support the awesomeness that is the locavore frank.  It's funny, because during my second visit here I overheard another patron asking the staff about their buns, and their response was that because of space limitations they couldn't steam them in-house.  (Sorry to eavesdrop, but I was kinda right there!)  I really look forward to the day they find better buns because I really can't say enough good things about the locavore frank, and I think higher quality buns would complete the divine experience that is Franktuary.

Update (5/26/2011):  Franktuary responded to me via Twitter and said they have been trying out different bun suppliers and hope to find a fix soon.

Update (5/27/2011):  See Franktuary's blog post regarding their quest for the right bun.

Restaurant info:
Franktuary
325 Oliver Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15222
(412)288-0322
On the web: http://www.franktuary.com
Bonus: Free wifi 

Burgh'ers (Harmony)

Last weekend I had a sudden burger craving (probably fueled by China Millman's Post-Gazette article featuring the new burger bars in town).  I wasn't craving just any burger though - I wanted a big, fat, juicy beef burger.  You see, I hadn't had a beef burger since my first (and last) visit to Five Guys in DC in July 2009.  Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the burger, but quite literally while my body was still digesting that meal, I went to see the Oscar-nominated documentary Food, Inc. and my life hasn't been the same since.  Without going into too much of the gory detail, I pretty much swore off ground beef right then and there unless I was sure that the restaurant ground their own beef or that the beef was grass-fed instead of grain-fed.

And just like that, no more beef burgers for me.

So you can imagine my excitement a little while ago when I found out about the new burger joint, Burgh'ers, in Harmony through a news article about it having been deemed the best burger in Pittsburgh.  I was excited because Burgh'ers uses ingredients from local farms and their beef is local, organic, and grass-fed.  In other words: ground beef I CAN eat!  So Burgh'ers came to mind immediately when the I felt like my tummy could use a long-overdue beef burger.

I hopped into my car and drove up to Harmony, which is a quaint little area about a 15-minute drive north of Cranberry Township.  The restaurant is located in Creekside Plaza on Perry Highway, although you can't see the restaurant from the road as the strip mall doesn't face the street, so it's good to keep the name of the plaza in mind while searching for the restaurant.  The atmosphere at Burgh'ers is casual and low-key but pleasant at the same time, with its walls painted bright green and its menu scrawled on a gigantic chalkboard behind the cashier.  Most of the burgers are named after Pittsburgh's neighborhoods (like the Shadyside, the Bloomfield, or the Polish Hill), but I decided to go with the Mexican War, which is a fiery burger with roasted green chillies, avocado, tomato, chedder cheese, and cilantro:

The Mexican War ($9.99)

And this thing was hot alright!  But more importantly, tasty.  What an interesting combination of flavors!  Everything was cooked just right.  The patty was juicy but not too greasy, the buns were soft and warm, and even the fries were great.  I cleaned up the entire plate, and if you know how petite I am, you'd know this is quite a lot of food for me.  But I ate it all because it was so good!

The restaurant was pretty busy when I got there, and it was absolutely packed by the time my burger was served.  I was actually hoping to take advantage of Burgh'er's free wifi and get some work done, but decided against it because I didn't want to take up a seat if I wasn't eating.  As I was close to being done with my meal, the little boy sitting at the table behind me came up and asked if I was a reporter, which I thought was so cute.  I got into a conversation with the nice parents and turns out they decided to try Burgh'ers after reading China Millman's article (and Mr. and Mrs. Nice Parents, if you're reading this: Hello!).  I didn't stick around long enough to find out if they liked their burgers, but I'm really glad that this little local joint located way beyond the North Hills is getting so much attention.  It is also BYOB, which is another plus.

I had thought that my visit to Burgh'ers would satisfy my burger craving, but if anything, it seemed to have intensified it!  If they had been open the following day on Sunday, I just might have made a repeat trip up there.  I guess it was probably best for my waistline that they weren't open! :)  I definitely see more burgers/Burgh'ers in my near future, and I'm very happy to have found another restaurant in town that is committed to supporting local agriculture.

Restaurant info:
Burgh'ers
100 Perry Highway, Harmony, PA 16037
(724) 473-0710
On the web: http://www.burghersinc.com

Zuppa's Deli (Wexford)

Well, I'd have to say this is a first -- blogging live from the restaurant where I'm eating right now!  But Zuppa's low-key atmosphere and free wifi has made this possible.  I had driven by Zuppa's a few times in the past and had been curious, but never got around to venturing in until my friend FoodBurgh Mike wrote a raving review of the unassuming little deli in a tiny strip mall in Wexford, in the North Hills suburb of Pittsburgh.  I have since been here several times, and there's good reason it is one of my favorite spots in the area.

I'll admit, I've only ever had the Veggie Sammy here.  I ordered it on my first visit, and it was so freakishly delicious that I actually crave it every once in a while, so whenever I get around to visiting Zuppa's, I always get this same sandwich.  It really is a perfect marriage of portabella mushrooms, zucchini, red peppers, and spinach, topped with fresh mozzarella and a slightly spicy chipotlé aioli sauce.  One of these days I'd really like to try something different here, like the soup.  "Zuppa," after all, means "soup" in Italian!  They also serve a selection of yummy-sounding salads.  Until then, I leave you with a picture of tonight's dinner:

Veggie Sammy
Ahhh...that hit the spot!

Update 6/15/2011:  See new post here with thoughts and photos of other menu items I've since tried (and they're all delicious!).


Restaurant Info:
Zuppa's Delicatessen
10850 Perry Highway
Wexford, PA 15090
Phone: (724)934-4700
Website: http://www.zuppasdeli.com