(Beautiful pictures by Iva. Words by Sarah and Ray)

In order to bring you info on the best croissants in the city, the I Heart PGH gang went on a croissant tour, sampling four bakeries. (Eating delicious croissants all day was an enormous burden, but you’re welcome.) We chatted with the staff and rated each croissant by buttery-ness, flaky-ness and rip-ability.

La Gourmandine, Lawrenceville

This authentically French bakery has unique pastries and crazy buttery croissants. It’s owned and operated by a French couple who bring their recipes straight from the cafe of Paris. They make their own dough and bake each piece of buttery goodness fresh. They have a few different types of croissants, including a chocolate flavored morsel that perfectly blends cocoa, butter, and bread.

There’s a variety of pastries filled with the likes of pistachio and hazelnut cream and a basket of baguettes. But the real piece de resistance here is the croissants. Make sure the get there early if you want an almond croissant, they tend to sell out.

The space at La Gourmandine is also limited. There’s room to stand and eat your goodies at two tables, but if you’re with a big group, it’s maybe not the best hang-out space.

• Price: $1.90
• Buttery-ness: 8.5 (made with European butter)
• Flaky-ness: 6
• Rip-ability: 4

Crepes Parisiennes, Oakland

The croissants at Crepes Parisiennes are a delish, but a little more bread-y and dense. Their flaky and crisp outside are a nice contrast to some of the other croissants we tasted, especially when paired with a chocolate filing.

Crepes Parisiennes is a perfect place to meet a friend or two in Oakland. Its service was quite fast and its atmosphere was surprisingly relaxing for a busy cafe in the city. Anyone preparing for a French exam would be wise to study in Crepes Parisiennes for a few hours, so long as the delicious crepes don’t distract you.

• Price: $1.75
• Buttery-ness: 5
• Flaky-ness: 6.5
• Rip-ability: 6

Allegro Hearth Bakery, Squirrel Hill

Four words: bigger than your face. That’s how big these mega-croissants are at Allegro bakery. In addition to the lovely breads and pastries, there’s a small cheese case if you want to slap a savory topping onto your croissant.

Allegro is nicely situated in the heart of Squirrel Hill on Murray Ave next to the Pinskers Jewish book store. The staff is really friendly and the open space gives you a great view into the bakery. Anyone passing through Squirrel Hill should stop in to Allegro, even if its just to see the biggest Croissants in Pittsburgh.

Take your goodies to go though, this place doesn’t have anywhere to sit.

• Price: $1.89
• Buttery-ness: 8
• Flaky-ness: 9
• Rip-ability: 6

Paris 66, East Liberty

We all agreed that this was by far the best croissant that we tried all day. Although, we will admit, Paris 66 might have a slightly unfair advantage since they bake your croissants when your order them. Regardless, these babies are good. They’re aesthetically pleasing, in addition to having the most flaky crust and gooey inside we encountered all day.

Inside, the restaurant smells like heaven. Between the fresh bread baking filling the air, the authentic french cuisine, or the beautifully decorated walls, Paris 66 brings the full french cafe experience right to Shady side.  It’s more of a sit-down place, so it might be easier to plan on eating a meal rather than just a cup of coffee and croissant.

• Price: $2.00
• Buttery-ness: 7
• Flaky-ness: 10
• Rip-ability: 3 (it’s soo gooey)

Pittsburgh is a city of many things, bridges, French Fries on everything, some of the friendliest people in America, and now with the recent addition of YinzBurgh BBQ, Pittsburgh is the home of an authentic Southern Barbeque. Located right on Baum Boulevard in Bloomfield, YinzBurgh is owned and operated by Richard Coursey, a native of Southern Georgia. Richard came to Pittsburgh originally as an engineer and decided to open his own restaurant and says he is as happy as he’s ever been.

YinzBurgh has three equally unique sauces it serves with all of its dishes, all having distinct Southern origins. All of the meat and tofu (YinzBurgh is proudly vegetarian and vegan friendly) is properly rubbed and smoked, keeping true to its Southern Roots.

After a little I Heart PGH field trip, we recommend the BBQ sandwiches. Not only is the meat delicious, but the sauce is served on the side so you can mix it up and dictate just how messy your eating experience is. And all of the sides are to die for. The coleslaw is creamy and delightful with just the right amount of tang, the black-eyed peas have the perfect texture and don’t even get us started on the mac and cheese! Also, a cold beverage from Burgh-based soda company Red Ribbon makes the perfect complement.

Rich is a very friendly man and if he’s not too busy, he will let you taste each sauce and happily talk with you about his restaurant and the food he is so proud of.

Kevin Sousa, who opened Salt of the Earth last year and Station Street Hot Dogs a few weeks ago – officially opened Union Pig & Chicken this eve.  Union Pig & Chicken is Located on Highland Avenue a few blocks from the intersection of Highland and Penn.  There is indoor seating, the menu is available online at www.UnionPGH.com.  They offer a selection of meats, sides, whiskey & burbon cocktails and beer from East End brewing.

Thanks to a loyal reader we learned that YinzBurghBBQ opened recently on Baum Blvd. (it is across the street from the GetGo on Baum and Morewood). While there isn’t much available on the website www.YinzBurghBBQ.com, I drove past this evening and the place was packed.  It looks like it is mostly take out with one or two tables.

It’s a chance for people from the city, suburbs, and surrounding areas to eat out at some great local restaurants even if they’re on a budget. OpenTable has teamed up with Pittsburgh Restaurant Week to make your dinner plans even easier by letting you make reservations online for select restaurants.

The following is a list of restaurants that we are hoping to check out next week, the full list can be found here.

• Alma Pan-Latin Kitchen Regent Square $25 Fixed-price Three-Course Meal
• Bite Bistro Bellevue $15 Fixed-price Three-Course Meal
• Bocktown Beer and Grill Monaca and Robinson $20.12 Tapas-style Meal with Beer Pairings
• Braddock`s American Brasserie Downtown Pittsburgh $25 Fixed-price Three-Course Meal
• BRiX Northside $30 for Four-Course Dinner for Two
• Meat & Potatoes Downtown Pittsburgh $30 Fixed-price Three-Course Meal
• Mediterrano Millvale $30 Fixed-price Three-Course Meal
• Pino’s Contemporary Italian Restaurant and Wine Bar Point Breeze $30 Fixed-price Three Course Meal
• The Porch at Schenley Oakland $30 Fixed-price Three/Four-Course Meal
• Toast! kitchen & wine bar Bloomfield $30 Fixed-price Four-Course Meal
• Verde Mexican Kitchen & Cantina Garfield $25 Fixed-price Three-Course Meal

2012 is already looking like another great year for the Pittsburgh food scene as well.  Here are a few openings to look forward to…

Station Street Hot Dogs
Salt of the Earth’s Kevin Sousa and partners are reopening the hot dog shop that is located behind the new Target in East Liberty. Pittsburgh food blogger Cooking For My Dad has been tweeting with Station Street about their new menu.

Union Pig and Chicken
Kevin Sousa is also working on opening a BBQ place on Highland Ave in East Liberty. Discount gift cards are available online here.

Winghart’s Burger and Whiskey Bar to Open South Side Location
While we haven’t had a chance to visit the Market Square Location, we have been hearing rave reviews of this place.  The Post-Gazette’s Bill Toland is tweeting that they will be opening a South Side location soon.

Wild Purveyors to Open a Market in Lawrenceville
Brothers Tom and Cavan Patterson have been selling their Certified Organic and/or sustainable farm fresh produce, and meats at the public market and directly to restaurants since 2009.  With the help of a very successful Kickstarter campaign they will be opening their own storefront in Lawrenceville in the next month or so.

Walnut Grill to Open in Mt. Lebanon?
The Post-Gazette reported that Molly Brannigans in Mt. Lebanon closed in early December.  The building has been purchased by the owners of the Walnut Grill.

We have just learned from the Yelp Pittsburgh message board that Restaurant Impossible is taking over Del’s in Bloomfield today and tomorrow.  Del’s is a third generation Pittsburgh institution that we have long been a fan of, but honestly haven’t dined there in a few yeas.   But from the looks of the recent reviews of Del’s on Urbanspoon it seems things are struggling a bit at Del’s. Hopefully a visit from the Food Network will mean good things for this Bloomfield Establishment.

Here is a clip of Restaurant Impossible:

Also interesting is that a local chef and author of the blog Pittsburgh Hot Plate will be assisting with the Restaurant Impossible makeover.  The Forest Hills Patch is reporting that Chef Chuck Kerber  will be part of the show.  The Food Network contacted Kerber because of his not so great review of Del’s.  Kerber will be featured on the show and will write a new review after Del’s re-opens.

Related articles

• Restaurant Impossible (ourdinnertable.wordpress.com)
• ‘Restaurant: Impossible’ Gives a Mexican Sports Bar a Makeover (VIDEO) (aoltv.com)
• Restaurant? – Impossible? (k8edid.wordpress.com)

The Union Project is located at the corner of Stanton and Negly Avenues in East Liberty.  It is a great place to meet for a lunch or coffee meeting because there is a bus stop right out front and plenty of street parking.

Image by 18brumaire via Flickr

You can read more about the cafe on the Post-Gazette’s Walkabout blog here.

Cafe Ola Appetite Hours:

• Monday-Friday 8am-3pm
• Saturday 8am-5pm

Image via Wikipedia

“The waffles are that good” was a line from the email sent to me by my friend Lesley – she stopped into Waffalonia for a quick dinner and was delighted with the entire experience.  I suggested she write a little review of Waffalonia – here is her rave review of the place.

Waffalonia is located on Murray avenue near Forbes in Sq. Hill – this is the space where Dozen cupcakes used to be located.

You may not have noticed, but Squirrel Hill is home to another delicious new eatery.  Tucked in between Coldstone Creamery and Razzy Fresh, you could easily miss Wafflonia, the recently opened Belgian waffle shop on Murray Avenue.  I strongly caution against this.  I lived in Belgium for two years.  Over there waffles are street food, made fresh, served in wax paper, and eaten while strolling around town.  They are considered more for snacks or dessert than breakfast.  Folks, Wafflonia is the real deal: delicious, cheap, and easy-going.  I visited Wafflonia recently at the end of a long work day.  The waffles are crunchy on the outside, warm and sugary on the inside.  I quickly devoured mine, then licked my fingers clean. My spirits brightened instantly.  With its understated décor and warm lighting, Wafflonia is the perfect place to duck into on a chilly late winter evening.  When the weather warms up, we will simply adapt by ordering the waffle-ice cream combo.  Or maybe the waffle with nutella and bananas. Wafflonia deserves to be a huge success.  Go there.  Go there now.

Check out Lesley’s photo blog Plum for the Road with lots of Pittsburgh photos.

Here are some other related and humorous posts about waffles

• Food is Fashionable: Waffle Pants (thegloss.com)
• Stuffed waffle balls! (changme.wordpress.com)
• It’s International Waffle Day! Celebrate with this recipe (thestar.com)
• Double Chocolate Coconut Belgian Protein Waffles (fisilis.wordpress.com)
• Happy International Waffle Day! (blogher.com)

There are some delicious things happening in the Pittsburgh dining scene…

E2 is now open for dinner. The folks from Enrico Biscotti opened E2 last spring.  Located on Bryan Avenue in Highland Park – E2 was just serving brunch. They have now expanded to offer dinner on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings.  E2 is BYOB.

A Better Bird – from the latest BigBurrito email newsletter – MadMex is bringing you better chicken -

In our mission to get better ingredients, we’ve spent a lot of time thinking about chicken. We use tons of it. Most of you eat chicken.

When we looked more closely, we found that some chicken producers do things a little better than others. We found that birds that are fed an all vegetarian diet, are allowed to walk around and socialize, are minimally processed, and treated with decency and respect throughout taste better.

Imagine that. Chickens that are treated better eat better. Who’d of thought? We’re using this new source for all of our chicken, including wings. Come check it out and let us know what you think!

Happy Birthday Casbah – Casbah celebrates their 15th year.  Chef Bill Fuller offers a list of some memorable (and shocking) Casbah moments in this months BigBurrito newsletter here.

What’s New at the Waffle Shop- yes that fun looking place at the corner of Highland Ave and Baum Blvd really does serve waffles.  The Waffle Shop is a project of a Carnegie Mellon class – the hours are limited to Friday and Saturday late night and Saturday and Sunday brunch.

• The new featured waffle at the Waffle Shop is pumpkin with cream cheese icing
• Competitors WANTED – Food Fight! is a bracketed tournament where local eateries go head to head to win the coveted Waffle Shop Cup! Or at least it will be if we can find the right people! Food Fight is looking for staff, hosts, special guests and eateries willing to participate. Interested? Send an email to madmik3 at gmail.com

See Salt Pittsburgh’s newest establishment, Salt of the Earth, located on Penn Avenue, opened on September 13.  Salt of the Earth has been using their blog and twitter to post updates about the restaurant before it opened.  They have done a really nice job of using social media to tell the story of the restaurant. Check out this video of the kitchen from a seat at the bar.

Image via CrunchBase

Foodblogging the Burgh – Speaking of food and blogging…the First Pittsburgh Foodblogger Meet Up was  Thursday October 7, 2010 @ Bocktown Beer and Grill.   The blog Yum Yum has a post about the meet up here.   Mike from Foodburgh and Lauren from Burgilicious were there as well.  These bloggers have been doing an awesome job of writing about food and dining in Pittsburgh – we are looking forward to more great posts.  The next Foodblogger meet up has been scheduled for December 8, 2010 – location to be announced.  Additional details will be available on the MeetUp page here (you have to join the group to see the details).

Even More Elbow Room in Shadyside? – we saw a new liquor license application in the window and now word on the street is that the Elbow Room will be taking over the space that used to be Max and Erma’s on Walnut Street.

More Bacon Nights in Pittsburgh? – The Harris Grill will be expanding their offering when they reopen the old Shiloh inn on Mt. Washington as The Shiloh Grill this fall.  No word yet if that means that bacon night will be expanding to Mt. Washington as well.  Follow @shilohgrill on twitter for updates.

Even more coverage of Pittsburgh dining from outside of town…

• Eat’n Park to close its last Harrisburg-area restaurant (pennlive.com)
• Check In, Check Out: Hotel Review: The Fairmont Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh (travel.nytimes.com)
• Franktuary Gets Social, Goes Mobile (bueda.com)

Here are some delicious dining options if you are looking for a place to go out to eat for Easter brunch…

• Casbah – extended brunch hours for Easter 10am-4pm (Fixed price menu $22 for adults, $12 for children)
• Kaya – 11am-3pm
• E2 – The new dining space from Enrico’s biscotti, located on Bryant St. in Highland Park

The Big Buirrito newsletter also notes that Mad Mex, Soba and Umi are NOT open on Easter.  I guess the Easter Bunny doesn’t like margaritas.