10 things I hate about Pittsburgh! (Smithfield, Lawrenceville: organic, to live, restaurants)

[jay5835]

Originally Posted by ferrarisnowday

WHAT?!

Nooooooo

They're moving to S. Craig Street, next door to Starbucks.

[nuwaver88]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

I'm just noting that these days, there are people doing stuff Downtown after work hours. Maybe its not your scene, but that is different from saying nothing is happening at all.

It is true that most decent places Downtown are geared towards the martini sipping crowd after work. I think "stuffy" is a good word. They are ready to kick you out by 8:30pm. "That guy's been here since 5:30" There just are not a lot of good affordable South Side or Lawrenceville type places. The opening of the Sharp Edge was a welcome addition, but why does he have to gouge people with his beer prices? A couple nuisance bars have closed in Market Square in the Circle Bar and Molly Maguires. This is a good thing. Downtown in it's after work bar and restaurant seen is geared mostly towards the high end. We need places like Fat Heads for the average Joe, Dee's for the musicians and art crowd, Towne Tavern for the meathead and flygirl crowd. There seems to be a push to have new housing priced low enough to have twenty somethings move in, but high enough to keep out a bad element. I hope the same strategy is true for the after hours scene. There is not enough diversity. People should not have to go to the South Side to go bar hopping.

[Drover]

I don't see what's wrong with having different scenes in different parts of town. If you want a south-side type experience, why not just go to the south side and have it instead of expecting the scene to come to you?

[Craziaskowboi]

Originally Posted by Drover

I don't see what's wrong with having different scenes in different parts of town. If you want a south-side type experience, why not just go to the south side and have it instead of expecting the scene to come to you?

'Cuz you have to cross a river!

[neurodistortion]

Originally Posted by Gnutella

'Cuz you have to cross a river!

It's not like the South Side is three miles away from Downtown, it's literally just a stone's throw away across the river. Just take a 10-15 minute walk across the Smithfield Street Bridge. Exercise is good. Otherwise, take the bus or the T.

[nuwaver88]

Originally Posted by neurodistortion

It's not like the South Side is three miles away from Downtown, it's literally just a stone's throw away across the river. Just take a 10-15 minute walk across the Smithfield Street Bridge. Exercise is good. Otherwise, take the bus or the T.

I work at a major hotel Downtown. We do send many people to Station Square and the South Side. BTW, South Side is about a thirty minute walk from the heart of Downtown. Station Square is fifteen minutes or a T ride. The South Side is more vibrant night in and night out because it is highly residential. It is not a quick walk and not everybody wants to fork over money for a cab. Sometimes people just want to walk around the corner for a drink or a diner on Saturday and Downtown does not offer these things in abundance because it highly geared to the 9-5 office worker. People always want to go to a place for breakfast on Saturday outside of the hotel. They do not want to take a cab. Pamelas and Delucas are a good haul and a good wait on Saturday. Where do I send them? The only place I know is Smithfield Cafe. People do not want to spend a lot of money in the hotel restaurant. Now if they want a bagel or a breakfast sandwich, Downtown has several Brueggers and Au bon pans to choose from. There just are not many diners open on Saturday to have a pancake breakfast Downtown.

[Craziaskowboi]

Originally Posted by neurodistortion

It's not like the South Side is three miles away from Downtown, it's literally just a stone's throw away across the river. Just take a 10-15 minute walk across the Smithfield Street Bridge. Exercise is good. Otherwise, take the bus or the T.

Still...a river runs through it!

[nuwaver88]

From the Macy's Clock at Fifth and Smithfield, it takes about thirty minutes to get to the heart of the East Carson bar scene. It takes about fifteen minutes give or take to get across the Smithfield Street Bridge. Then it is another fifteen minutes heading east on Carson through the somewhat desolate industrial stretch to Jack's at 12th and Carson.
Another way to go at the same starting point is to walk up Fifth to Grant, make a right on Grant to Forbes, left on Forbes to the Armstrong Tunnels, across the 10th Street Bridge to Carson. It is six of one, half a dozen of the other. It is thirty minutes mas o menos, trust me. That is not a hop skip and a jump. Station Square is obviously a lot easier, but more of a nightclub scene and just not as cool IMHO, but is pretty nice especially on a weekend summer night. I would like to see more added to Station Square. There is a ton of room.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by nuwaver88

It is true that most decent places Downtown are geared towards the martini sipping crowd after work. . . . There is not enough diversity. People should not have to go to the South Side to go bar hopping.

The Cultural District overall is definitely oriented toward a more mature, more upscale market. I think it makes some sense for it to offer something different from the South Side's Spring Break atmosphere, but I also agree it would be nice if Downtown's bar and restaurant scene diversified a bit. If Point Park continues to expand its student housing and more affordable apartments get packed into the areas around Market Square, I could see a younger and more affordable scene develop on that side of Downtown (approximately from Forbes down to the Mon

Edit: Oh, and I know the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership would like to see a 24/7 diner in that area, which makes sense to me.

[ferraris]

Originally Posted by Drover

I don't see what's wrong with having different scenes in different parts of town. If you want a south-side type experience, why not just go to the south side and have it instead of expecting the scene to come to you?

I agree for residents, but visitors to the city are often quickly turned off by the relative lack of night-life downtown. This is because in most cities, downtown is the be all end all of night life.