Culinary WHIRLED / QUICK BITES

Drink Menu

This month, some of our favorite courses are the cocktails, wine, mojitos, margaritas, and even after-dinner teas. Here’s what to order in July — and what to drink with it.

By Victoria Bradley

Strawberries and basil: a mojito match made in heaven and Six Penn Kitchen.

My Drink n’ My Two Step

The only thing we like better than a rooftop deck is a rooftop garden, and Six Penn Kitchen’s got both — which means their Strawberry Basil Mojito is the best in town, surpassed only by their Pineapple Sage Margarita (it tastes like a bikini on ice). And, Bartender Jessica Sabo might be even hotter with her sunglasses on. Six Penn Kitchen, 146 Sixth St., Cultural District. 412.566.7366.


Fish gets its grill on at Joseph Tambellini Restaurant.

Grill, Interrupted

Joseph Tambellini’s trendy teach-you wine dinners are getting increasingly popular, burgeoning with foodies and wine-os who want a front-row seat to watch Pittsburgh’s resident Mario Batali demonstrate his authentic Italian style. On July 17, Tambellini will grill fish for the entire dining room to see. “When you’re grilling seafood. It should be kosher salt, cracked black pepper, and the grill,” Tambellini says. “Make love to it. The seafood should be the star.” We’re especially looking forward to trying his Copper River King Salmon over summer vegetables. The raspberry balsamic glaze goes great with straw-gold dry white — we like Bigi Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone 2007. Joseph Tambellini Restaurant, 5701 Bryant St., Highland Park. 412.665.9000.
For more on grilling, see “Good Grill.”


Love Letters

LeMont Restaurant is already gearing up for its 50th anniversary in June 2010. They’re asking all of us to send in our anniversary — birthday, wedding, proposal, graduation — stories for a special project surrounding the event. We’re even scribing about our fave LeMont meals, waiters, and bartenders. All the love letters go to LeMont50th@LeMontPittsburgh.com. LeMont Restaurant, 1114 Grandview Ave., Mt. Washington. 412.431.3100.

Farmers’ bounty!

Market Day

Chef Jessica Gibson is celebrating the season’s bounty with a farmers’ market tasting menu on July 18. She’ll be spotlighting — and even hosting a couple of cooking demos with — local farmers from whom she sources some of her favorite ingredients. And since we could eat her eggs for just about every meal of the day, we’re especially stoked for her smoked cheddar and roasted garlic omelet with gazpacho salsa. Bistro 19, 711 Washington Road, Mt. Lebanon. 412.306.1919.

 

Perfect Pairings

Girasole is featuring a new wine list with perfect pairings for some of our favorite plates. Vito, the Italian family’s handsome son, pours tableside and makes delicious recommendations: spinach spaghetti with buffalo mozzarella, corn, and tomato in an oil and garlic sauce paired with Cataldi Madonna Trebbiano d’ Abruzzo or osso bucco milanese served over saffron risotto with a basil gremolota paired with Bava Barbera d’Asti. Girasole, 733 Copeland St., Shadyside. 412.682.2130.


Lunch never looked so good.

What’s for lunch?

Charismatic Chef Sam Badalato is firing up his oven for $5 lunches, and they’re so good that we’re spoiled out of foot-long subs for life. For just five clams, we can saddle up to half of an Italian panini (with prosciutto pancetta) and a bowl of cold cantaloupe soup (with a dollop of crème fraîche in the middle). Bado’s Cucina, 3825 Washington Road, McMurray. 724. 942.3904.

 

Gluten-Free

Glenn and Lisa Hawley are developing a new gluten-free menu at Monterey Bay Fish Grotto, inspired by their daughter, who has celiac disease. “We’re parents, and we know how hard it is when the bread comes to the table, and your teenager can’t eat it,” Lisa says. Monterey Bay will not only offer gluten-free bread baskets but also a wheat-free version of their award-winning crab cakes, plus a sampling of other menu favorites. Monterey Bay Fish Grotto, 1141 Grandview Ave., Mt. Washington. 412.481.4414. 146 Mall Circle Drive, Monroeville. 412.374.8530.


Bottoms up!

Cheers!

We’ve got two summer loves at Willow this month: barbecue and bourbon. On July 18, Fred Noe, the great-grandson of Jim Beam, will visit to dish about his family’s distillery and small batch of world-famous bourbons. The crew at Willow will help us mellow out the body-warming shots with cool Kentucky barbecue. Willow Restaurant, 634 Camp Horne Road, North Hills. 412.847.1007.

 

More tea, please!

Tea Time

We spend a lot of time during the summer at Cammie Sin’s Tea Boutique, picking up all of the amazing seasonal flavors they have to offer. We love Cammie Sin’s Blood Orange Tea as an iced drink, and the Island Coconut Tea is the perfect blend of tropical flavors to get us in beach mode. From July 7-18, we’ll score up to 50 percent off of the cool teas and cute teaware at the Super Summer Spectacular — we completely plan to host our summer garden parties in high style. Cammie Sin’s Tea Boutique, 190 Castle Shannon Blvd., Mt. Lebanon. 412.571.9900. — Elizabeth Rekowski



To purchase the rights to reprint this article, please email Jennifer Diamond.