Quick trips: Pittsburgh

I used Pittsburgh as my home base last week for a couple of university appearances, and I will preface this post with the truth: you could spend a lot more time in Pitt doing a lot more super cool things. But here's a little something to get you started while you're buying your opera tickets and looking up all your favorite galleries.

Lawrenceville neighborhood:
Coca Cafe has to-die-for egg sandwiches with kimchi, excellent coffee, and a chill, funky vibe just a few blocks off the Allegheny River. Afterwards, talk a short hilly stroll to enjoy the Art Deco architecture of Arsenal Middle School and the grandiose Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church, which kind of transports you back to Victorian Europe. Pints on Penn makes for a break across the street from 19th Century composer Stephen Foster's home, too.

 

Crafton neighborhood:
Authentic family-style Italian-American food is pretty easy to come by in Pittsburgh, but I loved Sarafino's for its raucous close-knit atmosphere, perfectly dressed pasta (the red clam sauce was delish), and a soaked almond creme cake which puts all other cakes to shame. They don't serve alcohol, so make like the locals and come prepared with your own bottle or two (or in one case, a martini shaker and various bottles of brightly-colored liquors). Big Daddy's Donuts is good, too, but be forewarned, they're not actually open 24/7 as some websites might say. They are super fresh.

Some other cools stuff to see:
Andy Warhol Museum
Heinz History Center, with a display of Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood
Nationality Rooms at University of Pittsburgh, honoring the various origins of Pittsburgh's melting pot

The best of this summer's drink, food, and travel, oh my!

Goodbye, Summer! It was great!

Utah

Collared wraps

Zoodles

Fort Collins, CO

Orange Beach, Alabama

Station 26 Brewing, Denver CO

A quick stop in Utah

I went to the Moab area and up to SLC this week.  It was pleasant, though I cant say they have anything on Colorado in terms of food or beer.  In Moab, I hiked in Arches (best) and Canyonlands (also nice) National Parks, and stayed in nearby Green River, which was a sad little town but way cheaper.  There was a darling taco stand set up at a brokedown gas station, and the barbacoa was delish.

In Moab, both the food and beer disappointed at Moab Brewery, but Sabaku Sushi was great, and the garden veggie roll was probably the best vegetarian sushi I have ever had. The poke was good, too.

Here's some of what I saw in Arches:

                                                          

And Canyonland:

In Salt Lake City, which I had visited briefly before, I hung out mostly in the Capitol (downtown) district, where I had great coffee at a little neighborhood cafe called Alchemy, OK beer and a funny pizza thing with corn and shrimp at Red Rock, and took a pleasant walk on the Capitol Building grounds, which are lovely.

The Great Salt Lake is indeed greatly salty, though there's really no place to walk unless you go to Antelope Island (Utah Lake in Provo is kind of a better park, though smaller and not tasty).

         

On the way out of town I hit the university neighborhood for some tasty Vietnamese rice noodle salad at Indochine (the chicken curry was nice, too).

Duluth in two days

I was touring Minnesota last week (yes, it was cold), and I visited several towns.  Yes, Minneapolis is a cool city, and I've already talked about what I like in the Fargo/Moorhead area, but today I want to tell you about an oft-overlooked little city called Duluth.  I think this place will probably suck in the winter, because the fog and icy wind coming off Lake Superior was already getting a little old after two days, but it's a lovely lakeside town with a charming downtown area and a friendly population. If you go,...

7 West Taphouse

We went here for lunch, and then came back for the huge beer list at night! Fried cheese curds, onion rings, creative burgers, and lots of local brews make this really worth visiting.

Lake Superior Bakehouse

This place was our savior on a cold, gray morning before teaching at 9am (and after post-concert drinks at 7 West). Great breakfast sandwiches, baked goods, coffee, and tea.









Tweed Museum, UMD  

Bent Paddle taproom

Right across the hall from where I was teaching flute class and performing a recital, there was a great little museum with modern pieces and classical European art, all presented in an educational, interactive setting.  What an inspiring setting in which to learn!




Beer

I was not in town long enough to enjoy some of Duluth's delicious local beer in their original homes, but there are a ton of breweries in the area: Bent Paddle (which is on tap all over the city, and it is delicious), Fitgers, Black List, Canal Park, and Lake Superior are all in Duluth, and surrounding towns have a few to contribute, as well.  Beer is so appropriately loved here that there is a "Beer Trail" that serves as a directory to them all.

Roasting and baking the garden leftovers, with weekend links

We had a couple of cold nights last weekend, which sent me scrambling to harvest what I could from the garden in case it would be last chance to eat fresh basil and tomatoes.  It was; although the temps are now back up near 90 during the day, those tomato, basil, and squash plants are deader that the proverbial doornail, and we have a hell of a lot of pesto in the freezer.  

I also grabbed a lot of kale and all the raspberries I could get my hands on.  Those little sugar bombs were the perfect amount for The Pioneer Woman's Raspberry Crisp, which was a fantastically simple recipe.  

With the kale, I did this...

Roasted Potato and Kale Salad

Serves 4

Olive oil
3 large baking potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1-inch chunks
8 cups loosely packed kale, washed and roughly chopped
½ yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
Zest and juice from ½ lemon
¼ cup Castelvetrano olives, pitted and chopped (could substitute canned black olives in a pinch)
2 chopped hard-boiled eggs
1 tablespoon chopped or slivered almonds
Salt and black pepper to taste

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.  Place the chopped potatoes in a large mixing bowl and drizzle about 1 tablespoon of olive oil on top.  Season with salt and stir to coat.  Spread potatoes into single layers on the baking sheets and place in the oven.  Bake at 425°F (no need to preheat) 20-25 minutes, or until they’re just starting to turn golden.



Meanwhile, place the chopped kale in the mixing bowl and season with salt.  Rub it around the edges of the bowl to pick up any residual olive oil (don’t worry if it’s not coated very much).  When the potatoes are at aforementioned state, spread the kale and sliced onion evenly over the potatoes on both baking sheets, give each a bit of a stir, and replace to oven.  Cook another 10-15 minutes, or until kale it crispy in spots and onions are soft.

Place roasted vegetables in a large serving bowl (or the mixing bowl I used in the steps above) and add the garlic, lemon zest and juice, olives, eggs, almonds, and black pepper to taste.  Stir to incorporate and taste for salt.  Serve piping hot.

Thinking of all things harvest-y, don't forget the fantastic Sustainable Living Fair in Fort Collins this weekend. While you're there, you can sample local brews to your heart's desire with this enormous Fort Collins Brewery Guide and enjoy the local Bike Library if you think you can keep your balance...

Western Wyoming sights, and my favorite travel links

Water rushing into the sink at Sinks Canyon State Park. 

Last weekend I spent three blissful days travelling around near-Western Wyoming. What I learned:

Casper has a new(ish) Vietnamese place called Pho Saigon, and it is delicious.  It's in a grubby little strip mall area in the middle of town and has that characteristic Asian immigrant restaurant look to it (so, not pretty inside), but the food is great, the portions are huge, and you will definitely not need another meal for at least 12 hours.  I got Bun Cha Gio (egg roll, vermicelli, vegetables, lime, chili, and fish sauce).  I thought I would explode.


Wonder Bar (also in Casper) is home of Wyoming State Brewery and has a great statewide tap takeover going on right now.  $5 gets you three 6 oz. samples of any Wyoming brew you want to try, which is a mad deal.  I loved Black Tooth Saddle Bronc Brown the most, but everything was worth drinking. (The current taps are to the left, and this menu was printed on the back of some recycled financial document.)


The only place to get shakes in Shoshoni now is at Fat Boy's.  You can't miss it, because I think it's the only restaurant open. I got a small chocolate marshmallow with extra malt and I still can't stop thinking about it.

Hot Springs State Park in Thermopolis can be completely free.  There is no entrance fee and the public pool, kept at a cozy 104 degrees, is free and unbelievably clean.  There are long hikes, short hikes, a bison viewing area, and a walk along the river.  I can't believe you could live in Thermopolis and this would be your city park. Here's a little photo I took of the trailhead of my morning hike on the outskirts of the park:

Jason has finally found his true home in Thermopolis.

Sinks Canyon State Park in Lander is also free and offers two long (4- and 6-mile) hikes along with a lot of gawking near water.  It is also a geologist's dream, so if you like rocks and stuff, you should go.

The Sink of Sinks Canyon State Park

NOLS is in Lander, too, and they'll rent you a room for $15/day if classes are not in session.  Last weekend classes were in session, and it was a no-go.  We didn't call ahead, but you could.  It was OK, though, because Lander Brewing Company was within walking distance to console us. Adjacent Gannett Grill has great burgers for lunch.


I found a couple of apps particularly useful on the road:

Gas Buddy locates all nearby gas stations with current prices so you can be as cheap as you want to be.

Hotels.com has an app that connects to your account to credit you nights toward a free stay when you spot a place and want to book it without missing out on the deal. And their prices are often lower.

And for your longer-term planning:

Smart Travel has great guides and tips, and I find this poster of classic American road trips so inspiring.  I want to do one every summer!