This week, I had the opportunity to visit Pittsburgh. I drove about 4 1/2 hours to get to my destination. I had done a little research and had decided on a few things that I wanted to do and see while I was over there. I knew that I wanted to try a sandwich at Primanti Bros. I also wanted to visit Market Square and wanted to see the Fred Rogers Statue. I was able to accomplish all of those goals. The drive was nice and scenic. I had to make one stop along the way and it was pretty cold and there was a definite wind chill factor. When I arrived at my hotel, it was cold. Mid 20s with a wind chill in the upper teens to low 20s. There were a few flakes flying around, but nothing really sticking.

I made my way over to Market Square and started my afternoon with a sandwich at Primanti Bros. They are known for having French fries and Cole slaw in their sandwiches. The corned beef sandwich was recommended, so that is what I went with. I took a picture, but there was a green light that distorted the view, unfortunately. The sandwich itself was very good. I tried the fries on their own, and they were really good. But biting into the sandwich, the combination of flavors was great. The thing that stood out the most for me was the bread. I was expecting either toasted bread, or a bread that might have a tougher bite through to it. But the bread was nice and soft, with good flavor. It held together well, even though it was an overloaded sandwich. It didn’t get soggy from the Cole slaw and fall apart. It was definitely a good first experience with Primanti Bros. and I hope to have the opportunity to try them again (and again).

Market Square had a Christmas Village, so there were wooden houses everywhere. Right now, Market Square is an open public space, but it was apparently home to the first newspaper, first courthouse and first jail (all in the 1700s). So I was standing in the place of history, which is always pretty cool.

This is a picture that I took that cuts through the Market Square. It was overcast and mid-afternoon, so the picture is unfortunately a bit dark.

This was a few hundred yards away from the Market Square. There was an ice rink in the middle of these buildings and a nice looking tree (which you can barely see in the picture through the Market Square).

There is a lot of history in the city, so it was nice walking through and seeing some of them. Since the weather was so cold, I didn’t walk as far as I had originally intended. I was hoping to get in about 15 miles or so, but only ended up getting in 11 miles of walking around.

I was making my way across to cross the 6th Street Bridge, and PNC Park was right there for a nice photo opportunity.

Heinz Field

Pittsburgh used to have a sports stadium called Three Rivers Stadium. This picture isn’t the greatest, but I tried to get the point where the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio rivers meet.

I made my way over to the Fred Rogers statue (Tribute to Children). The first shot is taken from behind, so you can see him looking out over the water. There is audio playing, so you can hear Mr. Rogers while you are sitting there. A really nice, touching moment to hear his voice.

The first two pictures are of the Fort Pitt Block House, which was built in 1764 and is the last remaining structure of Fort Pitt. The third picture is of the museum, which is a recreated bastion of Fort Pitt.

I took a bunch more pictures while walking around, but then made my way back to the Downtown area and walked by a Gloria Jean’s Coffee.

I had not been to Gloria Jean’s Coffee in a very long time, and it was good to go back. I ordered their Winter Wonderland Holiday Chiller. This is a frozen coffee drink that has flavors of sugar cookie, Madagascar vanilla, Hawaiian salted caramel and cinnamon. This had a good consistency and really nice flavor.

I made my way from Downtown to the South Side, and I was able to scope out a couple of places to go for dinner and for coffee in the morning.

I decided on The Pub Chip Shop for dinner. I was contemplating getting the Scotch Egg, but decided on getting a Scotch Pie instead. A Scotch Egg is a hard-boiled wrapped in sausage, breaded and fried. The Scotch Pie is lamb wrapped in a pastry shell with gravy on the side. This was very good. Not too heavy, the right amount of food for me. I would come back to this restaurant again if I had the opportunity.

I finished off my evening with a Peppermint Fudge Brownie Milk Shake from The Milk Shake Factory. This was a very heavy milk shake. Nice and thick with a good ice cream flavor, but there were also the bits of brownie and peppermint in there. I enjoyed the milk shake and would probably be getting at least one a week if I lived or worked close by.

I stayed in a Holiday Inn Express. They had an automatic pancake maker, which I had to try. The pancakes were good. You can’t see them being made. You push a button, wait about a minute, and then see them coming out and onto the plate.

Before I was going to head out, I decided to go to Delanie’s Coffee for a drink. I ordered the Turtle Blended Latte. It was a frozen coffee drink with peanut butter, caramel and chocolate. Triple yum!

Since it was a long drive home (more traffic than on the way in), I decided to make a stop for a late lunch/early dinner.

I stopped at the South Midway Travel Plaza and went to Steak ‘n Shake. I didn’t get a shake, but did get some food. I ordered The Original Double Cheese ‘n Fries. The burger had nice flavor and the skinny fries were also good. It was a nice finale to a couple of days of some good eating.

I thought I’d end this with a picture of the Clock in Market Square. You can see some of the buildings from the Christmas Market. This was my first visit to Pittsburgh. I was able to see some modern and some historical places. I was able to eat some good food. It was a great experience and I hope to have the opportunity to go back, do some more exploring, and eat some more great food!