Pittsburgh Eats: Eleven

Our last restaurant stop in Pittsburgh worth sharing is Sunday brunch at Eleven. A rehabilitated warehouse tucked next to the railway lines, this spot is elegant and polished.

For brunch, you can order a la carte, or do the Brunch Prix Fixe for $29. It includes an appetizer, entree, and choice of fresh juice or brunch cocktail.

It was our last meal in Pittsburgh, so we splurged and wanted to try more dishes through the Prix Fixe. We did a bit of sharing.

I ordered the Smoked Salmon with an everything bagel, egg, red onion, capers, and scallion cream cheese. A meal in itself! Reminded me of trips to NYC. I would have been happy with this dish alone.

Mr. H's sweet tooth kicked in, and he ordered the Grilled Sticky with a cinnamon swirl brioche, bacon butterscotch, and icing. Sweet, but decadent, and I saved a tiny bite for the end of the meal.

For his entree, Mr. H got the Smoked Lamb Huevos Rancheros with fried eggs, tomatillo salsa, goat cheese, and refried lentils.

While I preferred my Eggs Benedict with an English muffin, hollandaise, truffle vinaigrette, prosciutto cotto, arugula, and citrus, his dish was good too. Why isn't prosciutto an option with Benedict more often? 

This was a splurge-worthy brunch in Pittsburgh, and a very popular spot. Check it out if you're in the mood for an upscale brunch.

Eleven
1150 Smallman Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15222

Pittsburgh Eats: Smoke

Next up on our Pittsburgh Eats excursions was lunch at Smoke BBQ Taqueria.

The interior was bright and lively, with heavenly smokey smells coming from the kitchen and smoker.

I couldn't resist the pork taco special that day.

But, I also had to try their Brisket Taco with sauteed onions, hot peppers, and mustard BBQ sauce ($7.50).

Both tacos were bursting with flavor, and subtle heat that lingered. I really liked both of them!

Mr. H and I shared a side of their famous Mac & Cheese ($8.75).

It was outstanding. Only Lucky's Cafe in Tremont would rank higher, in my opinion.

This lunch was awesome, and I suggest that you check them out when in Pittsburgh.

Smoke BBQ Taqueria
4115 Butler Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15201

Ticket Giveaway: 2016 Cleveland Garlic Festival

One of the events that I really look forward to each summer is the Cleveland Garlic Festival.

The annual fundraiser for the North Union Farmers Market supports their weekly markets throughout the year in Greater Cleveland. This includes Food Stamp enhanced purchases/EBT-SNAP, Music at the Market, Chef at the Market, and the Mighty Locavores K-2 educational programming in Cleveland Municipal School District, just to name a few of the programs this event supports.

Mr. H and I try to get to it every year. Maybe it's because my dad HATES garlic and I love to taunt him with photos, or the great chef demos and new garlic-based products we find each time, but either way, we always enjoy ourselves.

This year's event is taking place on Saturday, August 27, 2016 from Noon to 9pm, and Sunday, August 28, 2016 from Noon to 6pm in Shaker Square. You can purchase tickets here.

Or, you can win two Weekend Passes right here. The giveaway will end on Friday.

a Rafflecopter giveaway The event includes all sorts of vendors, chef demonstrations, live music, parades, activities, and more. Get ready for some garlicky goodness!

Disclosure: I was provided with four weekend passes in exchange for this blog post. All opinions stated are 100% my own.

Pittsburgh Eats: Butcher and the Rye/Meat and Potatoes

I mentioned that I've been traveling for work a lot recently, and the first trip took me to Pittsburgh. Mr. H and I decided to make it a weekend getaway, and he went with me. Of course, that meant checking out some of Pittsburgh's fabulous eats. So, I wanted to share a few with you this week.

The most commonly suggested restaurants when I started asking around was Butcher and the Rye and Meat and Potatoes, owned by the same folks. Both happened to be walking distance from our hotel in Downtown, so we just had to make both happen...

We popped in to Meat and Potatoes for a cocktail and appetizers early on Friday evening. These bartenders sure know their craft cocktails!

We shared the Fried Pig Ears with sweet Thai chili sauce ($8) and the Buttermilk Fried Chicken Livers with chipotle remoulade ($7). Both were fantastic, and probably the best food I had in Pittsburgh. So good, that Mr. H went back there the next night for dinner on his own, while I attended a work function. This spot reminded me a lot of The Black Pig in Cleveland.

Then we headed a few blocks over to Butcher and the Rye. The atmosphere reminded me a lot of The Greenhouse Tavern in Cleveland.

We just couldn't resist trying the Dry Aged Tartare with Parmesan crusted bread, black garlic aioli, truffle egg, radish, and capers ($16).

I loved the presentation, and it was a tasty preparation of tartare.

For my entree, I ordered the Pan Seared Halibut with toasted almond gnocchi, artichoke, raisin and olive marmalade, and burnt lemon curd ($29).

It was good, but not great. The presentation was sloppy, and it didn't pack a lot of flavor. I also wished that there were more gnocchi on the plate.

Overall, these were two good restaurants, and ones that I'd recommend checking out in Pittsburgh.

Event Recap: Autism Speaks Chef Gala 2016

Hello, strangers! I know that it's been quiet over here lately. The last three weeks have included two work trips, and a long weekend getaway to Maine for Mr. H and I. It's been fun, but I'm exhausted, and ready to be home. 

Today, I have a guest post for you. While I was in Maine, my good buddy Crystal attended the bi-annual Chef Gala to benefit Autism Speaks for me. She's popping in today to tell you all about it.

2016 Autism Speaks Chef Gala Recap

Hello!
This is Crystal from Eat*Drink*Cleveland and I’m stopping by to tell you about a great event I went to recently. Because my dear friend Bite Buff was out of town eating all the lobster, and she knew I recently moved (and desperately needed a fun night out on the town!), she graciously offered me her tickets to the Autism Speaks Chef Gala. Let’s just say, it was just what I needed!

This is one of the best fundraisers in CLE hands down. Where else can you sample over the top delicious food from our very best local chefs AND also get up close in personal with Michael Symon and his out of town chef friends. This year, Chef Symon brought his friend Bobby Flay. What a fun combo they make!

VIP ticket holders were given access to the meet and greet ahead of time. We were able to mix and mingle and get a head start on the party. (Yes, I’m totally crushing out our dynamic duo if you can’t tell from my super cheesy smile!)

Afterwards we headed out to see what the Cleveland chefs had prepared for this special event. Here are some of my favorite bites:

We made it our mission to try everything and we actually succeeded. We were smart and shared samples at a lot of the stations. There was so much food and all of it was delicious! My favorite bite of the night was the Pork Rind Crispy Treats from Jonathan Sawyer. They sounded a little weird but they were amazing! Huge points for creativity too.

Then everyone headed to the ballroom for a seated chef demo. Bobby Flay and Michael Symon cooked up a storm and we were given family-style platters of food to try as well. We somehow managed to taste all of these dishes, but barely. We were completely stuffed. During the meal we learned a lot about Autism Speaks, they raffled off seats on stage and there was a live auction. They also included a very moving tribute to the late co-founder of the organization, Suzanne Wright.

The best part - $300,000 + was raised for Autism Speaks. In two years, this amazing event will be back – make sure you don’t miss it when it does. But you don’t have to wait until then to support this very worthwhile cause. Click here to donate and you can follow them on Facebook too.

Thanks again to Bite Buff for the opportunity to attend this event and share my thoughts with all her awesome readers.

This was one event that I hated to miss, but the Maine trip was worth it. I also enjoyed drooling over the Chef Gala posts on social media that evening. The event highlighted some of Cleveland's finest, and raised funds for an important cause. Thanks for stepping in for me, Crystal, and I'm glad that you enjoyed the much-deserved night out!

Disclosure: I was provided two VIP tickets in exchange for this post and a ticket giveaway, and two General Admission tickets for one lucky reader. All opinions stated are 100% Crystal's.