Pittsburgh Favorites

Last weekend, I made a pilgrimage back to my Alma Mater to join in the 2010 Spring Carnival festivities. Basically, it's four solid days of seeing old friends and eating good food. After being away from Pittsburgh for several years, I had grown nostalgic for my collegiate cravings. Thus, I opted to revisit some old favorite hang out / eat out spots. Here's what I was able to check off given amount of time:

Oyster Lovers Meet Up

Last Wednesday I decided to meet up with some fellow New York oyster lovers for an oyster feast at the Grand Central Oyster Bar. It was the first meet up for this group (and my first-ever meet up), and the turn out was surprisingly large. The group was as diverse as the NYC; there were other food bloggers, folks from the food industry, lawyers, artists and entrepreneurs there. Nellie, our fearless bivalve-loving leader is actually an oyster distributor for W&T Seafood. That was probably how she was able to hook us up with this sweet deal: 10 oysters (5 West Coast, 5 East Coast) and a glass of champagne for $20.

Boqueria SoHo

My friend CT and I love to treat ourselves well, so it only felt appropriate to have dinner at Boqueria SoHo. We were about to be escorted to a two-person table sandwiched between other parties, but I suggested to sit at the kitchen bar (good call). While we looked on at the chefs working their magic, we tried the Pink Grapefruit sangria, Leonora cheese, Jamón ibérico (a.k.a. pata negra), marinated octopus on crostini, and special seafood paella. Everything was amazing, but I seriously have daydreams about the pata negra.

Isabella's

Every weekend, there's always a line outside of Isabella's on 77th and Columbus. The outside seating is usually packed with people chowing down on pancakes and sipping mimosas. On Sunday, B and I decided to see what the commotion was all about. Our wait was a substantial 35 minutes long (we were told that it would be closer to 20 minutes), but ultimately proved to be worth it. We were given homemade banana bread and sweet olive/raisin bread to start. I ordered the Crab Benedict that came with a side of salad, a slice of cantaloupe and also a bellini. B ordered a burger that came with spicy fries, pickles, and a bloody mary. Our total bill came to $30, which we found to be quite awesome. My Crab Benedict tasted fantastic: the eggs were perfectly poached and the came at just the right temperature. Also at $15 per person, I will definitely be returning.

Bouchon Bakery Macarons

As a reward for completing a two-day Hunter Education course (prerequisite for a hunting license), I bought myself a trio of heavenly macarons from Bouchon Bakery at Columbus Circle. After being stuck in a room with over 70 macho guys in the middle of the Bronx for many, many hours, I was in desperate need of some girly comfort. I purchased two chocolate macarons and a pistachio one at $3 each. I quite enjoyed the chocolate ones, but the pistachio was the showstopper. Unlike most macarons, which are delicately petite in size, Bouchon blows theirs up to triple the size. Each bite was a duet of crisp chewiness and luscious cream; also well-balanced in sweetness and texture. If you're willing to share, each would make a good snack for two.

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