Pittsburgh

I have had the opportunity to visit the Steel City twice in the past year, and while I can't say I care for the town itself, especially when trying to get somewhere on the terrible road system, I did find some rather nice spots to grab a bite.

Thai Tom Tum Kung - Over the years I have learned one very important thing about dining: The axiom of "Don't judge a book by its cover" applies to restaurants every bit as much as it does to people. Good thing, because I might otherwise have passed this place up. That's one of the things I love though - finding little holes-in-the-wall with killer food. So, adventerous palettes in tow, Dad and I pulled up to a tiny little strip mall that would be very easy to mis to the casual passerby. We stepped inside the smallest sit-down restaurant I have ever been to in my life. There are two tables (for two), a take-out counter, and a shelf with some magazines and newspaper reviews. That's it. Except for the kitchen, which was partially visible through a beaded doorway behind which sat a little old Thai lady casually stirring a pot with some seductive smells escaping.
Who should step out of the doorway but a dead-ringer for David Carradine, if David Carradine were dressed as a leftover hippie from the 60s! This guy was great! Soft-spoken and lovingly descriptive of his food, he acted like all he wanted to do was impress us with his little restaurant that could. Kind of like a kid looking for approval for one of his futile but well-intentioned exploits. I half expected a dissertation on peace, love, and flowers to follow, but thankfully he stuck to the food. THE FOOD. OMG!!! If you have read other parts of this blog, you know what I am about to say is a huge statement. This is the BEST Thai food I have ever had. Who would have thunk it?
We began with an appetizer of two different types of samosas. Samosas are an Indian dish but they looked good so we tried them. If you don't know what they are, they are basically pastries stuffed with veggies or meat. I cannot remember what was in them, but we had two different kinds of the meat filled ones and both were delicious. Better, in fact, than at some of the better Indian places I have been. Then, the curries. We had our usual favorite Panang, and then also opted to try the Pumpkin curry at out host's urging. The Panang was very excellent. Every bit as good as at my local favorite Thai Orchid, and it was soon devoured. The Pumpkin...quite simply the best curry I have ever had anywhere. Were we not afraid of offending the host, and were the space big enough, fisticuffs may well have ensued over who got the last helping. As it was, the big guy was kind enough to let me finish it off :) One of the top three dishes I have ever had anywhere. (Lightbulb moment! Coming soon, top dishes - any cuisine, any locale. I'm excited!) We also had Pad Thai which was also excellent. This was a different preparation on the familiar dish. Wide noodles instead of thin ones, and a little bit different sauce. Lots of nice chicken, shrimp, tamarind, and peanut flavors. Mmmmm. Requisite sweet sticky rice for dessert (did we have mangoes or custard? Wow, my memory is going) was outstanding. And the bill...$32!
If you are within a day's drive of Pittsburgh, find a way to get here! It is just east of the Squirrel Hill neighborhood. Magnificent find.

Sun Penang - Good Malaysian food in Squirrel hill area. Malaysian can best be described as a mix of Thai, Indian, and Chinese cuisines. How could you go wrong? The food pales a bit when compared to the above review, but was good enough that I went there on both trips. They have a nice selection of Dim Sum, and we opted for Shiu Mei (steamed shrimp and pork dumpling) and a steamed shrimp bun. Both were quality items. On the entree side of things, Beef Rendang had good flavor but the beef was uneven; tender the first visit, tough the next. Char Kway Teow, a Malaysian noodle dish, was tasty on both visits and Seafood combination delight was good but a hair overpriced. I would go back, but probably not too far out of my way.

Cozumel - Another Sqiurrel Hill eatery (this neighborhood is really neat too, kind of a hip and party atmosphere, but not "clubbish", the emphasis is more on the restaurants). Non-descript place but cozy nonetheless. Excellent mole, excellent fajitas, and everybody else seemed to enjoy their dishes also. Just an all-around good spot for Mexican food.

Tandoor Indian Grill - Probably the best Indian I have had outside of Palo Alto/Bay Area, CA. Little place, surrounded by all kinds of other Indian restaurants in the Oakland district right by the U. of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University. We opted for the buffet with a side of Chicken Makhani since we did not see it out there. The beauty of this place is that even dishes which would usually be an afterthought or filler on a buffet were very good, as was the Makhani. Not a bad dish on the whole spread, and that is saying something!

Plea for Utah: Can we please get the following restaurants here? Panera Bread and Buffalo Wild Wings (or BW3 as its called in the Great Lakes area). These are two chains definitely worth having, and they even have BW3 in Boise, ID and Billings, MT. WTF? While I'm at it, we could also use a Dave & Buster's and a Trader Joe's! If you have been to any of these above places you know what I am talking about.