Bloomfield area of Pittsburgh was not one I explored much when I lived there many years ago. But…read morethere was one place I went to there that I had to return to when I returned for a visit. Apteka. This was perfect for my wife, who is vegan. An all vegan Eastern-European eatery. Great weather added to the ambience. Plenty of plants in the background. We had a foursome with my friend and his husband. Apteka offers a service where you place your orders at the bar, and they come bring the food to you when it's ready. We started off with Hungarian fried bread (Langos) and then followed it with Salatka ziemniaczana. Potato salad with greens. Entree we had the pierogis. I mean, we Had to, back in Pittsburgh. Only thing missing was the cookie table but the dessert was great as well. Everything was comforting and filling. Plenty for us two. They had a special collab beer with 2 Frays, a brewery that is really solid. Was just starting off when I was leaving Pittsburgh 5 years ago and now has been pretty popular in Bloomfield. Overall, Apteka offers fine dining, inspired dishes with a vegan twist, and is a must. Reservations are a must as dining is limited to the weekend.

Food was super tasty, but that's about the only good thing about this restaurant…read more You order at the bar, get a number, and your food comes out to your table. This resulted in a chaotic atmosphere at the two places where you could order food and constantly having to get up from your table every time you needed something. The staff essentially became food runners and they were not very pleasant. We were told that we could not have an appetizer followed by our main course as "food comes out as it's ready." With the bar being backed up, this meant we received some apparently pre-made food even before our drinks arrived. Again, it felt chaotic. The final proverbial "straw" was that they sat strangers right next to us at the same table which was extremely awkward and uncomfortable. All in all, it was hands-down one of the worst dining experiences I've ever had. :(

This spot has been consistent every time we have shown up. If you love bread, the coconut bake is a…read moremust try. You can order it with avocado or sun dried tomato, and it is topped with fried mushrooms that add texture and flavor. You also get a choice between spicy vegetables or plantains. I always choose the vegetables. We have tried the roti as well, which can be filled with your choice of ingredients. The curry chickpeas with potato were excellent and full of flavor. The banana bread is made without eggs (right?) and still has a sweet glaze that makes it hard to pass up. They also offer vegan chocolate chip cookies for anyone with a sweet tooth. A great option when you want a flavorful meal without cooking after a long day.

One of the most unexpected meals I had in Pittsburgh was at this unique eatery. I was spending the…read moreafternoon strolling the North Side from the Andy Warhol Museum to the Mattress Factory. I noticed this spot on Google Maps because the idea of Trinidadian vegan fare appealed to me after gorging at Primanti Bros. the day before. It was a cute, bright space and fortunately not crowded. The menu looked tempting with unique dishes like Buss Up Shut (pull-apart bread with fillings) and Coconut Bake (traditional Trini bread). I decided to order the $15 Bowl of Coconut Rice with the choice of three toppings and a sauce. I went with okra, pumpkin, and stir-fried mushrooms.with a side of mango chutney (Photo 9). It was a delightfully housemade melange of Caribbean-style flavors. I've had similar West Indian food before, and this was definitely one of the fresher executions. Although intrigued by the Tamarind Ginger Drink, I decided to order the $4 Iced Coffee to wet my whistle (Photo 6). This led to my quick indulgence of the $3 Key Lime Cookie (Photo 8). If I lived in Pittsburgh, I'd be coming here often. Making Caribbean food vegan and delicious is no small feat. FOOD - 5 stars...really fresh tasting Caribbean food that happens to be vegan AMBIANCE - 4 stars...a small spot but comfy with Trinidadian art SERVICE - 4.5 stars...attentive TOTAL - 5 stars...uniquely unexpected find in Pittsburgh RELATED - Exploring Pittsburgh? Here's a collection of places I've visited and reviewed: https://yelp.to/qN_tq21lnL

This Illy Philly is out on a dinner date in the Southside, and I've always wanted to experience…read moreEssence for their vegan and Caribbean fare. It was a Saturday and the restaurant had a nice ambiance. They don't have their liquor license yet, so it is BYOB! I wish I'd known because I would have definitely brought a bottle of wine! The server greeted me with a smile and knew the menu. She made the suggestions of the Fried Dumplings ( you can get them steamed) with spinach and tofu, and it was sooo good!!! Delicous!!! My date ordered the Buffalo Cauliflower, and it was definitely hot, but good. For dinner, I ordered the Black Bean Bowl, which was a rice bowl packed with black beans, grilled veggies, and corn with a cream sauce, but that is not quite what I got. It was rice and beans, mixed, corn with no cream sauce, broccoli, and two plantains. The rice was not too savory, the broccoli was a bit bland and there was no cream sauce on the corn....sad face. I will definitely give this place another go to try their other dishes because the Dumplings were so good. There is off street parking, the service was really good and next time I'm bringing some friends. A couple bottles of wine and a palate ready for some Caribbean vegan goodness!!!!

I went to Essence for Mother's day brunch during Chef Earl's popup and even though it didn't have…read moregreat ambience due to the restaurant being completely empty, it had great food and service! We got the fresh juices, pineapple ginger apple and the mango one and both were super fresh and tasty. For appetizers we got the spinach sambosa and the no crab cake. The sambosa was great with the sauce and the no-crab cake was tasty but didn't hold its shape together. I really loved the jollof rice, falafel burger, and the ful madammas. Everything was vegan and really good. Even my mom loved it! Would recommend coming here and trying out some of everything! The waitress was really attentive and gave lots of recommendations and tips on what to get!

I had a delicious chili soup and Curry Chickpea burrito! The portion size was amazing; I had enough…read morefor leftovers the next day! The owners were so friendly as well. The store itself is eclectic with some cool looking vintage clothes and trinkets! I'd definitely come back, especially for the breakfast!

Amazing, just good home cooking, the seitan is the best. had the Thanksgiving feast, stuffing to…read moredie for &:the other sides delicious, Sunday buffet makes me happy to be hungry

It takes a lot for me post a review about a restaurant, The Forge was absolutely phenomenal! My…read morewife is a vegetarian and myself, let's just say I'm not. We had several items, Israeli salad, whipped feta, old world falafel, pierogie peppers, cauliflower steak, and pizza. Israeli Salad---5 stars Whipped Feta---5 stars Pierogies Peppers---my favorite of all we had Cauliflower Stake-5 Stars--so yummy! Old World Falafel--I didn't like falafel until I had this tonight. The Pizza was so good, the crust light a fluffy, had 4 slices. This will not be the last time we go here. My wife said this will definitely be her birthday restaurant. If you want a place that servers great food with great service and a fantastic vibe, do yourself a huge favor and go, you won't regret it.

The service was great and I love the food! Especially the feta feta bang bang pizza. I miss their…read morewhipped herb ricotta. The drinks are always so creative. I think the seating isn't ideal for dinner but great for drinks!

A quick, delicious gluten free lunch!! Stopped on our way to…read morehotel & grabbed some empanadas for lunch Ordering was quick, we found a table & they quickly brought us our food The empanadas were HOT, crispy and the flavor was so intense - I wanted to try all the flavors because they were so good but I held off until next time!

Tired the shrimp empanada and thoroughly impressed by the filling. Very crispy fried breading…read more Empanada is served with some green sauce. At least five tables inside as a mom n pop like shop.

Pretty good pizza at an affordable price!! Not to mention it's wood fired!!! I was hesitant, but…read moreafter a bit a COAXING, it was really good.

Seriously some of the best pizza around. The service is amazing and the atmosphere is perfect…read moreespecially in a hospital. It gives you a sense of normalcy. Even the gluten free crust is unbelievable.

Love this place!! Hidden gem in downtown pittsburgh. Only thing is I feel like their hours are a…read morebit all over the place

We've been meaning to try Bae Bae's for a very long time and I'm bummed that we didn't try it…read morebefore it's latest reinvention under the Bar and Supper Club banner. I wouldn't really call this a supper club to be honest but the place definitely carries a house music bar vibe and the back bar area and seating is very dimly lit, perfect for cozying up and enjoying a drink late night. The ladies' room was so dark, I mistook it for a storage area because I could only make out a white ladder in the corner that was being used as cute shelving. The place is seat yourself. Our waiter was not super friendly and didn't offer to give us napkins or anything when our wobbly table caused our drinks to splash all over the place. The cook served our chicken with a big smile and happy interaction and we really loved his personality. The bartender also stopped by to bus our table and he was very pleasant as well. We enjoyed the perfectly fried small plate cauliflower with the plum sauce and the fried cheese/garlic wonton bites with the sriracha mayo spicy dipping sauce. The fried chicken breast on the large plate was slightly overcooked with a maple gochuchang sauce that was very bland. We were so thankful that the large plate fried chicken came with a side salad to offer some respite from the heaviness of the fried dishes. It would have been great to have some side acidic or fresh vegetable options like Kimchi or something. Maybe we tried the wrong dishes and there are other not fried things that are delicious? The dirty martini cocktail was just so-so, not really much flavor at all, but the mojito was very good and refreshing. It's probably a good late-night place for a bite and drink.

I was introduced to Veggies N'at at a Garfield Community Farm fundraiser. Their food is absolutely…read moreamazing. The chef changed his diet in 2017, on a path to eating more healthy foods. Everything on the menu is connected to mindful eating, loving and appreciating yourself, and improving your health and the way you feel about yourself. That sounds pretty heavy, but I recommend that you try it. It may not change your life, but at least you can appreciate how delicious it is, and how vibrant and healthy you feel after eating it. All the ingredients are fresh and healthy, you couldn't ask for anything more. Bottom line, it tastes fantastic.

I visited them last August while attending the VegFest and like many other places I've enjoyed over…read morethe years that I have yet to review I am just now getting around to leaving them one. So, actually a guy at the information booth was eating something from here and I asked him where he got it from because it looked very good and he recommended them to me. So we headed their way. Tbh: Every place that we wanted to eat at had a line 25-50 deep and we were super hungry and their line was only like 5-7 people deep which was a blessing. First off, the service in general was kind of crappy, but I understand as it was a hot and very busy day and from what they told my gf at the time they were getting low on food as well and only had a couple items that were left from the menu. After deciding what we wanted which was one of three things my gf at the time ordered us the Mac and Cheese and a container of ranch to take home while I looked for a place for us to eat. So after they handed her our food we headed over to an area with tables and chairs to eat the Mac and Cheese. I must say we both thoroughly enjoyed every single bit of it and my gf at the time isn't even vegan. So that says a lot! I highly recommended it :) FYI: The person who took her order also forgot to give her the container of ranch she paid for. I wasn't made aware that she purchased it until afterwards because my gf at the time wanted to surprise me but they didn't give her a receipt so she had no proof. Oh well, you live and learn, sadly! The vibe on this day was on point so we let the little things go in regards to the crappy service and the shorting us of an overpriced container of ranch fall to the wayside and continued on with our wonderful day, smiling and enjoying the amazing festival and area. If I decide to stop by your food trailer again this year at the festival or whenever I am somewhere you are posted up in front of, I hope you make up for your mistakes from last year because that's the right thing to do.

I was visiting Pittsburgh for the day and saw great things about this restaurant online! The food…read morewas very good! The Philly egg roll was my favorite! If I had time to go back I definitely would have to have that egg roll again! Everything was made fresh and the owners were welcoming and checked in on me during my visit! Will definitely be going back the next time I visit!

This is a pretty solid vegan spot, but you can definitely tell that the food is vegan if you are a…read moremeat eater. It just doesn't have quite a similar flavor and it's not as satisfying, with most of the food having some artificial flavor to it. I got to try their breakfast sandwich ("no egg" bagel), ranch, and peaches n cream egg roll. The egg just tasted strange. It was somewhat greasy and very artificial. The bagel itself was fine but just very standard. An okay price for the portion. The ranch it was served with was also watery and just didn't hit the spot. I will say though, I added a hashbrown and the hashbrown was very good. The egg roll was a bit better, but still had some artificial flavor to it. Portion was fine and the peaches tasted reasonably fresh for something like this. Not bad. All in all, it's an okay spot. The food looked better on the photos. The presentation is almost always good but the flavor is not so much.