The Internet kind of blew up yesterday and today.  Zagat released its list of the top five Pittsburgh restaurants.  Without ever being here.

They instead, took the five highest rated national chains that have restaurants here.  Which led to the Cheesecake Factory as being ranked one of the best Pittsburgh restaurants.

Justifiably, the Internet went apeshit.

They have since promised to come to Pittsburgh and actually eat at the amazing restaurants that we have, so hopefully we’ll get a new ranking soon.  This will also mean that Pittsburgh will be pinging on the radar of foodies around the country.

The PG’s City Walkabout covers it here:

The take-away is that Zagat’s, if it ever was credible, is absolutely not now. This is corporate chamber of commerce drivel, like the tourist magazines in hotels that tell people about Pittsburgh attractions that you wouldn’t take even your least cool friends to in a million years.

If Zagats were staffed by reporters, they’d be fired for that failure.

When most people think Turners, they think iced tea (and also lemonade, of which I have a t-shirt).  I drive past the Turner’s plant quite a bit, and even though they are mainly a dairy, if there is a chance I can get some iced tea, I’m going for it (see: four years at Saint Vincent College picnics, events and socials).

However, big congratulations to Turners from winning top honors for their skim milk at the world dairy expo.

Lindsay over at i heart pittsburgh has the story, check it out!

The Brew Gentlemen have teamed up with Tapped, the pop-up beer garden, for the season finale:

The Brew Gentlemen have also teased some upcoming promo materials which will be part of their Kickstarter campaign.

Sadly, I’ll be out of town that weekend, or else I’d head out to Braddock, but I hope it s a great event!

Now available for purchase (starting today, actually), Target will be selling special-edition cans of Campbell’s tomato soup in iconic Warhol colors and with quotes from the artist.  Check out the article from High Snob here.

h/t to Man Made DIY

The Stone House in Farmington (Fayette County) is hosting a special night with beer pairings by Stone Brewery.  Stone is wildly popular in the craft beer scene, although I tend to only see the IPAs, so I stay away.  I have recently had the smoked porter with vanilla bean, and it quickly has become an absolute favorite of mine (there is also a pepper version, also very tasty).

I’ve only eaten at the Stone House once, but I liked it a lot, although the parking still confuses me, there is plenty of it, but I never see anyone park on the one side.

If your’e up for a scenic and pretty drive, head on up the mountain and check it out.

The Brew Gentlemen announced that a new restraurant, Magarac, will occupy the rest of the space of their building in Braddock.  What has impressed me the most is that Chef Kevin Sousa (who also owns other establishments such as Salt of the Earth), will move to Braddock as a sign of his dedication to the revitalization of the neighborhood.  Pretty amazing stuff:

“It’s not, ‘Let’s create this awesome restaurant where Kevin can stretch his legs,’” Mr. Fetterman said. “The bottom line is, he’s taking on the region’s most persistent and difficult food deserts.”

To that end, Glance & Associates will include in its design a small take-out window for Mr. Sousa’s barbecued chicken and ribs and gourmet hot dogs.

The site also should appeal to beer-lovers. Two men calling themselves The Brew Gentlemen will brew at least four craft beers, including a chai-spiced white ale, on a small system in the basement.

The third leg of the complex will be Springboard Kitchen, whose staff will share the restaurant’s kitchen to prepare meals for Meals on Wheels.

I’m very excited for this project, and can’t wait for it all to open.  I have a friend working on a restaurant opening in Shadyside, and between the two, I’m afraid people will begin to mistake me for some kind of foodie.  That’s probably a ways off, but until then, I’m excited for the prospect for Braddock.

Check out the full story at the P-G.

Mitt Romney visited Pittsburgh last week, and had this to say:

“I’m not sure about these cookies. They don’t look like you made them,” Romney said to the woman sitting next to him. “No, no.They came from the local 7-eleven, bakery, or whatever.”

The cookies came from Bethel Bakery.

Here’s the deal, I’m probably going to start some sort of flame war, but maybe it’s because I live out east, so the only times I have Bethel Bakery is when someone brings it into the office, but I think Oakmont is better.

I know, I know, flame away in the comments, but I guess either way, we can just be proud of the fantastic baked goods coming out of the local Pittsburgh bakeries.

Oh yeah, and Bethel Bakery is taking advantage of the gaffe and started a “Cookie-gate” promotion, pretty awesome.

I haven’t had anything from Oakmont in what seems like forever, but we’re celebrating today, even if it isn’t king cake.

You may remember, a few weeks ago, there was a water main break at the Civic Arena that I posted about.  We had to close early since we had no water.  I ran down the hill and into the USX Tower so I could use a bathroom, since we had been without for hours, and it was still another hour and a half until the first bus came I could grab.

So, having relieved myself, I had some time to kill and decided to wander around downtown a bit before heading to my bus stop.  I never had a chance to go to Dozen, but have been intrigued by the new storefront, Go Pretzel.

I made my way to Liberty Avenue and into the store, which is just a small counter and glass display.  I decided on a regular pretzel, although they all looked awesome.  And a side note to the management, the woman behind the counter was super friendly and very kind, not sure if she always works Friday afternoons, but she was awesome!

I went back onto the street and began a slow wander killing time, and I have to say, the pretzel was awesome.  Warm and delicious and just the right amount of salt.  If you’re downtown, make sure to check them out!

So, a week or so ago, a friend and I headed to Sammy’s Kebab House in Monroeville, and it was awesome.  To be fair, it looks kind of shady from the outside, and is attached to the very, very shady Sunrise Motel (next to where Willie’s moved to, the old Shakeford and Maxwell’s).  Ignore those facts and go eat there.

The decor is a mix of Egyptian and Palestinian (it was former a Palestinian restaurant I believe), but quite surprisingly, our waitress was a totally Yinzer (said in only the nicest way).  We got an appetizer, two loaves of bread, which was almost exactly like my grandmother makes, just a little thinner, and then two different entrees to share.

The food was a great mix of middle eastern food, and for one entree we stayed safe and ordered the chicken kebabs.  The chicken was juicy and really tender, so highly recommended.

And then we adventured a little bit, and ordered the goat.  Honestly, I expected it to be a bit gamey, but it was tender and delicious.  It came out in a stew-like presentation, pieces of what I think were vertebra in a spicy sauce, along with other chunks of meat.  It was a little spicier than I expected, but I don’t deal well with spice to begin with, so I’m not the best judge.

While we were paying, I asked where someone even gets goat, thinking maybe there was a butcher somewhere in the East End I was unaware of, as it turns out, they are able to get some of their more exotic cuts of meat from Restaurant Depot.

The entrees were big, and we ended up taking a lot of food home, if you get a chance, check it out, it’s worth the trip.  I’m going to go again so I can get some pics of the food.