$14 for a great, HUGE, fish sandwich, coleslaw and fries or mac and cheese! Wholesome atmosphere…read moreand sweet volunteers. Reasonably priced desserts. Can't wait to go back.

---Fish fry review---…read more I stopped by the fish fry at Sacred Heart in Shadyside last Fri. with a friend. I'd originally planned to visit one in Polish Hill, but I had an appointment after 5 and they stop serving at 6, so we decided to try Sacred Heart, which runs until 7:30, instead. As usual, I called in my order ahead of time, and it was taken and fulfilled with no hassles. When we showed up at 6, our food awaited us, so we paid and grabbed a seat. Both of us ordered the fried fish dinner ($9 each). Both came with sides of cole slaw, and I ordered mac and cheese as my second side, whereas my friend ordered fries. Like the fish fry at St. Raphael, the fish dinners here come with a dinner roll, but not as a sandwich. In terms of quality, the fish here was a cut below the fish at the last fry I attended (at St. Maria Goretti in Bloomfield)--it just wasn't as fresh. My friend said that he found the fish moister than the fish at the last fry we attended together (at Epiphany Uptown), and while this may have been true, freshness is the most important factor to me when judging the quality of fish. As for the sides, the cole slaw was of the creamy variety and was rather sweet (disclaimer: I'm not much of a fan of cole slaw in general), and the fries and mac and cheese were of average quality and were a bit scant in quantity. The one major redeeming factor of this fish fry--believe it or not--was the desserts. Although they were no doubt pre-made, they were presented very nicely, and were a cut above the lousy desserts at St. Raphael's. I had a slice of lemon meringue pie and my friend had a slice of blueberry ($2 each), and we both enjoyed them. For me, this was the high point of the meal. The environment and clientele of this fish fry reminded me a lot of St. Raphael--it's held in an elementary school cafeteria, and most of the clientele consisted of families with young children who probably attend the school. The priest came around and greeted all of the diners, including us, which was a nice touch. For me, this fish fry was just A-OK. If it's convenient in terms of location, then it's worth a try--otherwise, I'd recommend skipping it to try a better one, such as Swissvale VFD's.

Falk School isn't a terrible place. I think there are a few cons, which I will start with, but it…read moredoes have its good traits, too. Also, I am a former student, having graduated in 2006, so hopefully having some inside knowledge will be helpful. The cons: 1) There was a "hiccup" (to put it lightly) about a recent performance that was not completely vetted before it was performed. It was called "Bread and Puppet" (or something like that) which caused a negative backlash among parents who currently have students there. 2) In specific regard to taking a foreign language class, the only language offered is Spanish. There's nothing wrong with learning it, but I think that the reason given, from what I have heard in the years since graduating Falk, was because there was not enough interest in adding another to the curriculum. Perhaps a good idea going forward would be to send out info prior to the start of the school year to see if the students would be interested in taking a language other than Spanish so that adequate planning can take place to accommodate it. All that being said, a few of the pros were: 1) Being that Falk is a small school, I know that it was easier for people to make friends and also to know where the strengths were in each subject. The teachers made it easier to understand what was being taught by not rushing through the materials and would make an effort to help by making sure to let students ask questions either in a group setting or one on one. 2) There were some fun events like the school carnival each spring and also going on the field trips throughout each year. Personally, I think having events like that were what made my time at Falk enjoyable.

Got kids? Wanna make them smarter? Sign them up for a great education at Falk. I went there from…read moregrades 1-8, and look at me! Well, maybe not at me, but at a lot of great kids who've make a lot of great friends at Falk. The students learn languages, music, arts and crafts, math, science, history and more... plus there are good sports and recreational activities. This all happens in an environment where the staff are encouraged by the very important relationship between Falk and University of Pittsburgh, and Pitt's excellent School of Education. Other schools have good teaching, but Falk's relationship to Pitt means that new methods are being tried and that teaching is being augmented and improved routinely. When I was a student there, I spent one period a day for several weeks experimenting with a "teaching machine", which was a forerunner to the more advanced technology common in schools today. I want to stress that Falk's teachers are not machine substitutes. They are there to teach, to create a great learning environment, and to support the kids in every way. I loved Falk and your kids will, too! Arrange a visit and see for yourself.

My three children have had excellent experiences from early childhood to 8th grade. Recently my…read moreoldest kiddo completed 8th grade at the Waldorf School of Pittsburgh, he had experienced thier full program from aged 2 - 15. I am very grateful for the experiences my children have had to connect with nature and discover thier own capabilities. Very Happy Waldorf Parent!!

It might be good for the children who go there but an absolute train wreck if you are trying to get…read moreyour child into the school. They are extremely difficult to communicate with. Each step of their process was filled with frustration. For a long time we kept doubling our efforts because we thought it might be the best place for our son! They took $150 of our money but never provided an acceptance or rejection letter, not for the school or their financial aid package. Now they won't reply to our emails. We aren't weirdos. We are two responsible adults trying to raise two children.

Fish Fry Time! I live in Bloomfield and come every year for the fish fry at least once. The women…read moreof the church making the food and running the fry are characters for sure. They make a mean fish sandwich and an even meaner Mac and Cheese. It's so creamy and the cheese sauce is like velvet to the lips. There's still time this year to check them out if you can.

---Fish fry review---…read more Given the frigidity of the weather in PGH today and the fact that my friend called off due to having a stomach bug, I opted to make the next stop on my tour of PGH fish fries somewhere relatively close to home. After checking out the infamous PGH fish fry map, I decided on St. Maria Goretti because it was slightly closer and more easily integrated into my normal Fri. evening errand run than Sacred Heart in Shadyside. *Note:* the fish fry is held at the school on Friendship instead of the church on Liberty--they're only two blocks apart, but there's no signage at the church mentioning this. As per usual, I phoned in my order ahead of time to avoid waiting in line and ensure efficient service. Upon arriving at the cafeteria and mentioning my advance order, the people working the food line looked at me and then each other with blank stares. Fortunately, they were good-humored and apologetic about the mix-up and served an order up for me pronto, so after paying for my fried fish dinner ($10), I was still able to beat a relatively hasty exit. Before describing the food, I should note that the packaging for my take out order could have been better. It was served in the standard foam carton and wasn't secured with tape or anything else, so it slid around somewhat in my subsequent travels. Additionally, unlike most other fish fries I've been to, the fish was just plopped on the bun instead of wrapped properly in foil. I realize that these oversights may have been due to the rushed fulfillment of my order, but they're more important to me than to most due to not having a convenient means of transportation at my disposal, so they're worth a mention. I was finally able to eat the food about an hour and a half afterward due to running errands--unsurprisingly, it required brief nuking to get it up to optimal temperature prior to consumption. Fortunately, I didn't feel that this took away from it at all. The fish was generous in portion, meaty, and had a nice crispy (cornmeal?) coating, and the bun stood up to it pretty well. The sides (mac and cheese and green beans) were better in quality than sides I've had at other local fish fries--the beans were well cooked and the mac was tender. My only criticism was that the mac was kind of dry at the time of consumption, but I noticed that a decent amount of the sauce leaked out of the takeout container, so I imagine it would have been a lot moister if I'd eaten it on the spot (it certainly looked that way at the time of serving). Overall, I found St. Maria Goretti's fish fry to be pretty good by PGH standards. The food was decent and reasonably priced, and although there was a decent crowd, it wasn't crazy busy like some others I've been to. As I mentioned, it's held at the school, so unsurprisingly, there were several young children there (though not as many as at St. Raphael's). For those seeking a child-free fish fry, I recommend Epiphany uptown, which seems to serve mainly a young professional clientele. Bon appetit!