Summer Wine Games, WQED sweets, hot chicken tendies, and more Pittsburgh food news | Food | Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh City Paper

Summer Wine Games, WQED sweets, hot chicken tendies, and more Pittsburgh food news

click to enlarge Summer Wine Games, WQED sweets, hot chicken tendies, and more Pittsburgh food news
Photo: Courtesy of Biergarten at Hotel Monaco
Rooftop beach party at the Biergarten at Hotel Monaco with Maggie’s Farm

Biergarten Hotel Monaco x Maggie’s Farm Rum Distillery
620 William Penn Pl., Downtown. thecommonerpgh.com/pittsburgh-biergarten

Soak up some sun and surf Downtown, when, on Thu., Aug. 15 from 5-9 p.m., the Biergarten at Hotel Monaco hosts its second annual rooftop beach party. Pittsburghers are invited to “escape the grind and embrace an evening full of summer bliss” at the “weekday pick-me-up” event, which features beach cocktails and summer-themed bites.

This year, in celebration of National Rum Day (Aug. 16), the Biergarten partners with Maggie’s Farm to serve a raft of new craft cocktails, including the Put it in Reverse Sherry (featuring Maggie’s Sherry Cask Rum, strawberry sherry, and egg white sour), and Hooked on a Feeling, crafted with Maggie’s Spiced & Dark Rum, rum liqueur, avocado orgeat, orange, and lime. Live entertainment includes a DJ, beach blanket bingo for prizes (including a night at Kimpton Hotel Monaco Pittsburgh), a sandcastle-building contest, and “life-size” Jenga and Connect Four. No event reservations are required.

Braddock Carnegie Library Association
609 Sixth St., North Braddock. braddockcarnegielibrary.org

The end of summer is in sight, and the Braddock Carnegie Library Association is saying goodbye with an ice cream party. Taking place on Fri., Aug. 16 from 1-3 p.m. at Braddock’s Battlefield History Center, youth of all ages can help bid the season farewell with a final scoop. Check the event page for details.

WQED
wqed.org

WQED is whipping up desserts with America’s Home Cooking: Sweets, a new cooking show hosted by Chris Fennimore of the award-winning QED Cooks series. Premiering on Sat., Aug. 17, Sweets promises to take “viewers on a culinary journey through some of [Fennimore's] most cherished dessert recipes,” according to a WQED press release, with Fennimore and guests offering step-by-step instructions to make Kentucky Derby Pie, Loaded Chocolate Biscotti, and Nana's Italian Love Cake, based on a family tradition. Viewers can catch Sweets as it airs on WQED-TV or through livestream.
click to enlarge Summer Wine Games, WQED sweets, hot chicken tendies, and more Pittsburgh food news
Photo: Courtesy of WQED
America’s Home Cooking: Sweets with Chris Fennimore

City Winery Pittsburgh
1627 Smallman St., Strip District. citywinery.com/pittsburgh

On the heels of the Olympickle Games and hot dog eating contests, it’s a great time for food-based sports. On Mon., Aug. 19 at 7 p.m., City Winery presents the finale to its Summer Wine Games, which pit selections of wine from around the world against each other in head-to-head tastings. The fifth and final Sparkling edition sees French Champagne and Prosecco face Brut rosé and Italian sparkling reds. A sommelier from Dreadnought Wines will guide guests through the event. Tickets cost $30 and can be purchased online.

Made In PGH
Multiple locations. madeinpgh.com

Best Bites, a restaurant and drink-tasting tour that explores Pittsburgh’s neighborhoods, heads to East Liberty. Organized by Made in PGH, what's touted as the biggest-ever Best Bites tour will take place on Sat., Aug. 24 from 12-4 p.m. with 22 curated tasting spots from Shadyside to Bakery Square. Guests embark on a self-guided walking tour and “foodie experience” sampling food and summer cocktails and can vote for their favorite bites afterward in a People’s Choice Awards. The East Liberty tasting tour offerings range from Mexican food to milkshakes to sushi, and stops include Alta Via Pizzeria, Blue Sky Kitchen & Bar, Jeni’s, Lorelei, The Urban Tap, and Yinzer Dogs food truck. Tickets cost $70 and can be purchased online.

Revel x Wigle Whiskey
242 Forbes Ave., Downtown. revelpgh.com

Revel, billed as Downtown’s “refined American restaurant,” showcases Wigle Whiskey for its Chef’s Pairing Series this month. Join them on Thu., Aug. 29 at 6 p.m. for a curated four-course menu of fine dining selections paired with Wigle Whiskey drinks. The menu includes a bacon and white chocolate ganache-dusted popcorn starter paired with Wigle’s bourbon or an espresso martini, an arugula salad course with Wigle’s Honey Bourbon, and basil fettuccine and pan-seared duck breast entrees with Wigle’s Madiera or Single Barrel Bourbon. View the complete menu and purchase tickets ($90 per person) on the event page.
click to enlarge Summer Wine Games, WQED sweets, hot chicken tendies, and more Pittsburgh food news
CP Photo: Jared Wickerham
Wigle Whiskey Distillery

Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church
985 Providence Blvd., McCandless. holytrinitypgh.org/festival

Pittsburgh’s season of Greek food festivals wraps with Taste of Greece at North Hills’ Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church. Running Thu., Aug. 29 – Sun., Sept. 1, the festival celebrates its 52nd year with Greek food and pastries, music, dancing, and vendors. Foodies can peruse the festival's menu in advance, with featured dishes including braised lamb shank, souvlaki (pork skewer), moussaka (beef and eggplant casserole), Greek meatballs, spanakopita, and traditional gyros and desserts. Tours of the church and its iconography and artisanal woodworking are also offered daily throughout the festival. Entry is free.

Kickoff and Rib Festival
100 Art Rooney Ave., North Side. acrisurestadium.com/ribfest

Also from Thu., Aug. 29-Sun., Sept. 1, the Kickoff and Rib Festival returns to Acrisure Stadium to mark the start of football season. Launched in 1990 at Three Rivers Stadium, the annual festival celebrates Western Pennsylvania’s “rich football history” with concerts, fair food (think funnel cakes), games, vendors, appearances by elusive Pittsburgh Steelers mascot Steely McBeam, and, of course, ribs. Twelve restaurants and caterers will be on-site, including Jim's Smokin’ Que from Homestead and Bad Azz BBQ in the South Side, both of whom claim to make Pittsburgh’s best barbecue. Visit the Rib Festival website for a full schedule and event updates.
click to enlarge Summer Wine Games, WQED sweets, hot chicken tendies, and more Pittsburgh food news
Photo: Courtesy of Dave’s Hot Chicken
Dave’s Hot Chicken

Dave’s Hot Chicken
daveshotchicken.com

Pittsburgh will soon up its status as a chicken tendie hotspot with a slew of incoming Dave’s Hot Chicken restaurants. The Los Angeles-based fast-casual chain — which began in 2017 as a parking lot pop-up — announced that it signed a deal to open ten new locations in the Pittsburgh region over the next five years. Dave’s specializes in Nashville-style hot chicken, offering tenders and sliders with spice levels ranging from “No Spice” to “Reaper,” along with sides of house-made kale slaw, mac and cheese, and crispy or cheese fries.

The 2024 Olympickle Games
23 images

The 2024 Olympickle Games

By Mars Johnson