New (Great!) Mexican in Pittsburgh: Round Corner Cantina

They do serve beer. I counted about 20 bottles on their menu, although almost half of them are lager-style Mexican beers in the Corono/Sol/Dos XX vein which aren't necessarily so interesting.

They have a few offerings for more serious beer drinkers like Victory Hop Devil, and a few seasonal drafts to complement the ubiquitous Pittsburgh Yuengling.

It's not a beer Mecca like Sharp Edge or even quite as interesting as someplace like Harris Grill from a beer standpoint, but there should be something for everyone.

http://hungrycanuck.blogspot.com

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Sharp Edge Restaurants
288 W Steuben St, Pittsburgh, PA 15205

Harris Grill
5747 Ellsworth Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15232

hungrycanuck in Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh Catering

Congratulations on your upcoming nuptuals!

I'm getting married this January in Pittsburgh. We're using Coca Cafe for our rehearsal dinner and flying biscotti catering (http://flyingbiscotticatering.com/, based out of Enrico's Cafe in the Strip district) for the big day. We have high hopes for the latter as I've enjoyed their chef's cooking on several other occasions, although they are definitely a smaller operation than Big Burrito and don't know if they do anything comparable to the stations option.

Fun and casual are definitely two things we're hoping for our event as well. We've been working pretty closely with the flying biscotti chef to create a menu that's really simple, rustic, and warm and homey for our winter wedding with touches like loaves of freshly baked bread on each table.

If you're interested, I can give you more detailed reviews after the wedding.

http://hungrycanuck.blogspot.com/

hungrycanuck in Pennsylvania

New (Great!) Mexican in Pittsburgh: Round Corner Cantina

It's hard to believe, but for the first time since I've moved here five years ago, there's a Mexican joint in the city that I'm really excited about (aside from the taco vendor outside Reyna in the Strip).

The Round Corner Cantina on Butler Street in Lawrenceville is in the old Round Corner Hotel building. They're primarily a bar but have been serving up about 20 different small plates of Mexican street food at really reasonable prices. Choices range from great tacos (carnitas, asada, pollo, and uh, seitan), pickled vegetables (escabeche), ceviche, elote (grilled corn on the cob), queso fundido con chorizo, and more. Service was pretty spotty my first few visits, but they seem to have worked out the new restaurant kinks and things were humming nicely last week when I stopped in. The food is really straightforward, but of consistently high quality in a really fun atmosphere (if you enjoy dark interiors and a really interesting drink list).

I wrote a lengthier review on my blog at http://hungrycanuck.blogspot.com/2009/11/round-corner-cantina-pittsburgh-pa.html and would definitely recommend that local hounds check this place out.

Has anyone else been there yet and had a similar rave reaction?

http://hungrycanuck.blogspot.com

hungrycanuck in Pennsylvania

Samphire! Who uses it and how?

I'm in England on vacation and have been coming across the vegetable samphire in Farmer's Markets and on menus as a pairing for seafood.

I'd never heard of this vegetable before this trip, so I bought some and cooked it up with salmon. It was delicious! It looks almost like miniature asparagus, but has a briny ocean flavor, a bit of bitterness, and when well-cooked, maintains a nice crunchy bite.

(A more detailed recipe is posted at: http://hungrycanuck.blogspot.com/2009/08/samphire.html)

I wonder if this will catch on in North America any time soon. I'd love to experiment with it more when I get back from my holiday. Anyone else use this regularly at home? Any suggested recipes?

hungrycanuck in Home Cooking

Top Cheap Eats of Montreal?

My favorites, in order:

#1 Boustan (Crescent near de Maisonneuve - Guy Concordia Metro) - Don't overthink it. Get the chicken shawarma sandwich. Actually, get two. Or three. One of the best cheap eats anywhere.

#2 Chalet BBQ (Sherbrooke St W near Decarie - Vendome Metro) Their lunch special (chicken, fries, slaw, soda, coffee) used to run about $7 and was exceptional. The blue-haired waitresses and their lifelong customers have been flirting with each other since well before I was born.

#3 La Banquise (994 Rachel E - Mt Royal Metro) - Best poutine within the city limits. Decent microbrew beer selection too.

#4 Montreal bagels (various locations)- not a meal in themselves, but get a tub of cream cheese, a half dozen bagels and maybe some smoked salmon, and you have yourself a great breakfast of lunch for a crowd. St Viateur and REAL are my favorites (I never enjoyed Fairmont as much).

#5 Pushap's (5195, rue Paré - Namur metro) - Great vegetarian Indian thalis and extensive dessert selection. I survived my years at McGill on their fantastic samosas, which were often sold on campus to raise money for student organizations.

I have some pictures and detailed writeups of Boustan and La Banquise on my blog. Every time I get back to visit my family, I try to hit up a few of my favorite places.

http://hungrycanuck.blogspot.com/search/label/quebec

hungrycanuck in Quebec (including Montreal)

Outer Limits Space Age Restaurant, Gila Bend, AZ

I recently had a great lunch at Sofia's in Gila Bend when I was in the area to check out the Sonoran Desert, and I second the recommendation for the carnitas. They were excellent, and the asada was pretty good too. The service was good, and the dining room was bustling.

I took some pictures and included a detailed report on my blog at http://hungrycanuck.blogspot.com if you're interested.

hungrycanuck in Southwest

Heading to Gatlinburg TN any advice

This is a few miles from Gatlinburg, but if you're into Mexican food, I came across a hole in the wall that was cheap and excellent. It's called El Primo Productos Hispanos (located on the Smoky Mountain Parkway in Sevierville), and it's more of a grocery store/butcher than restaurant, but it has a few tables on one side for serving customers. Judging from the clientele, it basically seems to serve the migrant community in the area, and not much else.

My Spanish isn't great, but if you can speak enough to get by, you can tell the waiter what you want, and they'll basically prepare it for you with products off the shelf of the store (there is no written menu, as far as I can tell, and nobody there spoke English, so it's not for the unilingual).

When I was there, they fried up some chorizo and served in on fresh tortillas with avocado and lime, and only charged us a few bucks for a plate. I bet if you are more adventurous or spoke fluently, you could get a really fantastic meal.

It certainly beats out McDonald's or any of the surrounding chain restaurant nightmares.

I have some pictures of the place up on my blog:

http://hungrycanuck.blogspot.com/2009/03/el-primo-productos-hispanos-sevierville.html

If anyone makes it out there, I'd be interested in hearing a follow-up report!

hungrycanuck in General South Archive

Road Trip Eats suggestions? Cincy to Memphis to Nashville to Gatlinburg to Pittsburgh

Thanks to everyone for the feedback, and forgive this delayed response. It's taken me a little while to digest everything I ate and process it.

Highlights included the ribs n three at Carl's Perfect Pig in White Bluff, TN, chicken at Gus' and the dry rack at BBQ Shop in Memphis, Monell's for Sunday Breakfast in Nashville, and a tiny Mexican grocery and restaurant (El Primo Productos Hispanicos) which was cooking food to order from their merchandise in a strip mall near Pigeon Forge, TN .

Letdowns included Skyline Chili (worth it for the experience and the carbs, but not for taste) in Cincy and Thanksgiving dinner at the Inn at Hunt Phelan in Memphis (which probably cost as much as the rest of the week's meals combined, for nothing special).

Unfortunately I missed out on Payne's in Memphis and any of the Western KY BBQ that you guys recommended. I'll have to catch them on my next trip down there (I'm hoping to make it to New Orleans sometime soon).

If interested, I wrote some pretty detailed reviews on my food blog at http://hungrycanuck.blogspot.com/

hungrycanuck in General South Archive

Road Trip Eats suggestions? Cincy to Memphis to Nashville to Gatlinburg to Pittsburgh

After a bit more digging, I will definitely try to hit Carl's Perfect Pig driving into Nashville, and a few meals between Swett's, Monell's, and Arnold's in the Music City.

Gatlinburg seems like a lost cause. I should just make my last meal in Nashville extra hearty, get take out, or load up on food from a grocery store to detox my system after a few days of fried food and barbecue.

I'm still looking for any suggestions in Western/Southwestern Kentucky, or along I-79 in West Virginia.

hungrycanuck in General South Archive