Post by BDPost by chanceMy son started Pitt this fall. His mom and I plan to visit often and dine
with him in the Oakland/Shadyside/Bloomfield area. Can anyone recommend
some good Italian or American restaurants? Thank you.
D'Amico's on Liberty Ave. in Bloomfield is excellent. It looks like a
bar/restaurant, but the food is Wonderful!
Oakland: The Union Grill on S Craig St. All the restaurants on Craig St are
pretty good, but the Union Grill has good food at a good price.
Zarra's on Bigelow Blvd just before the Bloomfield Bridge. I don't go there
often because the service is indifferent. It's family owned and run and it's
more authentic Italian food than Bloomfield's restaurants. It's a bit pricey,
though not expensive. If you or your son care at all about popular music
history, the same owner had Pittsburgh's first punk club there, called The
Electric banana.
Joe Mama's at Forbes and Oakland Ave. It used to be a quirky Italian restaurant
and it seems to be going more mainstream. It's still decent Italian food near
the Pitt campus.
Shadyside: I prefer Ellsworth Ave to Walnut St. I'd recommend the Elbow Room on
Ellsworth. It's as much a neighborhood gathering place as a restaurant. It's
very comfortable and affordable. I'd also recommend the Harris Grill across the
street, but they had a fire last week (fire damage in the offices and water
damage in the restaurant) and they're not expected to reopen for a few months.
Buffalo Blues on S Highland Ave specializes in ribs and wings. It started as a
music club and is now trying to be a sports bar. It can be a bit loud for a
family dinner, but I still like to go there.
Bloomfield: Tessaro's on Liberty is well known for their hamburgers. It can be
tough to find parking and there's usually a line waiting for a table at peak hours.
The Italian restaurants I go to on Liberty are Alexander's at one end of
Bloomfield and Del's at the other end.
Tom W