Good Eats, Better Memories

As much as I love good old Lebo, there’s no denying that it gets boring. So, on weeknights when looking for something to do, I quickly learned that you have to venture to the city. The Southside is probably my favorite place to go.  It’s a really cool part of the city that has recently been built up over the past couple of years. Although it’s more of a place for "young adults" and those in their twenties, there are definitely places for adults as well.

South Side Works

Restaurants, clubs, cafés and great shopping are just a few of the things that define South Side.  It’s the best place to go on a calm summer night when nothing else is going on…and everything else is closed in Mt. Lebanon.  It’s also not a bad place to go for a piercing or tattoo if you’re into that kind of thing.  South Side Works is the nicest part of the area, as it was recently built up. It has a ton of really great places to eat, like Cheesecake Factory, this cool Irish Pub, and even authentic German food at the Hofbrӓuhaus. Pittsburgh is one of the few Hofbrӓuhaus locations outside of Germany, which is pretty impressive.

I can remember many summer nights when we had nothing better to do than to drive down to South Side to grab a bite to eat and do some shopping. No night in South Side is completed without a few things:

1. A trip to the Double Wide Grill, they honestly have the BEST hamburgers (well I don’t eat hamburgers, but hey, their turkey burgers are good too!). Plus it’s cheap food, there isn’t anything better.

2. Some quick shopping at Urban Outfitters, H&M, and Forever 21 (along with a lot of other stores).  It’s like a hipster dream come true. Just come with your wallets full if you actually want to be able to afford something at Urban. 

3. The Milkshake Factory. I don’t even think that needs explaining. Who doesn’t love a good milkshake? You can make all sorts of flavors and they all taste amazing. My personal favorite is the Cajun chocolate shake. 

I spent at least one night a week grabbing milkshakes, stopping by the Rex Theatre to see my best friends play a gig (The Numbered Feathers, check them out), or just walking around aimlessly, taking in the summer night. One of my favorite parts of the summer were spent driving to the city, windows down and country music blasting. We always promised ourselves we wouldn’t end up back on the same bench outside of the Milkshake Factory, slurping down another 500 hundred liquid calories (every single one of them was totally worth it though), but we usually did. Nights with my best friends at Double Wide, Nakama, a Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Bar that is consistently rated as one of the best restaurants in Pittsburgh, looking for a Steeler or Penguin, and spending every last cent of your sad looking paycheck from Panera Bread expensive dresses from Urban pretty much defined a typical week for me.

East Carson Street, the main drag of Southside

It isn’t just about my friends though; I've had plenty of awesome experiences there with my family. I remember moving my brother into his first house in the South Side, or the dinner at Cheesecake Factory with all of my siblings that still sticks in my mind as one of my favorite times with them, especially now that two of us are in college, even though it was years ago or that time I begged my step dad to take me to South Side to get my nose pierced. 

Each and every memory sticks out to me and I’m sure when May comes, I’ll be spending many nights doing the same thing as last year, reminiscing about how much different things were then.  Freshly out of high school, ready for some change, but not realizing how hard it would actually be. New school, new surroundings, new everything.

And it's true, things changed a lot this year, but it’s nice to know that my favorite things never will.