Scared that eating out could ruin your health goals for 2024? No need to worry, a variety of restaurants throughout Pittsburgh have updated their January menu to include wellness meal options and specialty mocktails. Of course you can still indulge in all the cozy, familiar meals you know and love, with a glass of wine at your elbow, but how will you discover what you enjoy most if you never try something new?
The Parlor Dim Sum
Lawrenceville
Liven up your freezing January with new Cantonese cuisine and notable cocktails to match. This month you can stop by to try Ho Fun, a stir fry of flank steak, wok-fried housemade rice noodles, onions, bean sprouts, and scallions. Or if you’re looking for smaller bites, taste their Siu Mai open faced pork and shrimp dumplings and Lava Bao sweetened duck egg yolk custard. Don’t forget to drink it all down with a Tiger Uppercut cocktail featuring Toki whisky, homemade allspice dram, anise, and lime all in a tiger shaped glass.
Ritual House
Downtown
Start your New Year off on a lucky foot with dumpling recipes at the Ritual House. These little representations of prosperity begin your dinner with positivity and big flavors. Choose from a variety of dumplings, including Pork Street with chili honey sauce, shaved scallions, and sweet peppers; Vegan Spinach Edamame with house kimchi and Thai basil; and Shrimp with rainbow carrot and cucumber. Plus, if you’re taking part in Dry or Damp January, you can enjoy a Coral Coolada mocktail mixed from cream of coconut, dragon fruit syrup, pineapple, pomegranate grenadine, and oat milk. Or ask your bartender for a custom mocktail based on your favorite flavors.
Khalil’s
Bloomfield
Indulge in your fill of spicy, sweet, and tangy Syrian dishes, each with a homely touch. Their authentic new additions include Mowzat, a fall-off-the-bone lamb shank in a savory spiced tomato sauce served over Khalil’s signature rice; a selection of traditional kebabs; and the Falafel Dinner, served with tahini, sumac onions, Syrian pickles, Persian cucumbers, and handmade lifit. Since no visit to Khalil’s is complete without Arabic Coffee, get your Dry January fill with the Damascus Winter Nights, crafted with fresh Arabic coffee, cardamom, french vanilla, rose, and almond milk.
DiAnoia’s Eatery
Strip District
The handmade pasta at DiAnoia’s Eatery is an excellent foundation for a fresh bowl filled with locally grown ingredients and slathered in their signature sauces. It’s a meal of Italian goodness but it isn’t the only item the restaurant offers. In fact, their cocktails take from Italian flavors just as much as their meals do. Their Ciao Bella is a seasonal cosmopolitan with an Italian twist. With Tito’s vodka, limoncello, lemon, cranberry, maple ginger tea syrup, a splash of prosecco, and garnished with a dehydrated lemon and star anise, the subtle aroma adds to every sip of this light, crisp cocktail. Plus the mocktail counterpart, the Ciao Cara, is available with a splash of soda to open all of its ingredients and make sure every person at the table has a special drink.
Gaucho
Downtown
Serving up wood-fired meats just like they do in Argentina, Gaucho is a fantastic spot for a delicious steak fresh off the grill. This month you can get a sample of all the amazing entrees they have to offer with the Parrillada Mixta, a wood-fire mix of Vacio Steak, Pollo a la Parrilla with fresh garlic and lemon, and one of each Chorizo and Morcilla Sausages all served with a round of Los Chimmis and Tostados. Wash it down with a Cafe Gaucho made from Tito’s vodka, Maggie’s Farm coffee liquor, Disaronno, espresso, cinnamon simple, served with a homemade Alfajor or their signature Espresso Martini made from a secret recipe.
The PA Market
Strip District
Mocktails are the main focus this January of the two-story European-style market filled with counter-style restaurants and bars throughout. Choose to relax on either the Market Tavern or Top Floor Bar and order up a round of mocktails mixed with housemade syrups. For the moms and dads out there, grab the Bluey and Bingo Bounce! featuring dark berries and bright sparkling citrus. Or if you’re still stuck on warm seasonal flavors, the You Are Going to Sleigh Home Tonight has fluffy traces of cream, cinnamon, and spices.
Square Cafe
East Liberty
While this cafe is known for their pancakes, you can still grab a healthy bite on their new January menu. The Hoppin’ John starts with black-eyed peas for good luck and health. It’s layered with bacon, jasmine rice, garlic, shallots, onions, peppers, and Cajun seasoning, then topped with an over-easy egg. On the side: green onion garnish and honey cornbread for dipping. Keep the healthy meal going with a No-perol Spritz featuring Wilfred’s Non Alcoholic Aperitif with bittersweet orange and rosemary, topped with tonic water and fresh orange juice. Talk about a great meal to start the day.
Monterey Bay Fish Grotto
Mount Washington
Local ingredients and mocktails options, what could be better? Beverage manager Anthony Scaramouche curates a cocktail and mocktail menu perfect for the nipping cold outside. The Ginz N Juice cocktail starts with a base of Ginzer Gin courtesy of Lawrenceville Distilling. Fresh pomegranate juice, lemon juice, and a homemade white pepper & rosemary syrup complete the drink. It has the perfect amount of herbaceousness to warm you up during the cold months. If you’re staying away from alcohol, you can have an equally refreshing Peach Please made from fresh- brewed peach ginger tea mixed with lime and blackberry and topped with locally made Natrona Heights Peach Ginger Beer. It is sweet, a tad spicy, and tart all at the same time, leading to a beautifully balanced drink.
The Commoner
Downtown
The Commoner is ready to bring you a selection of resolution-worthy mocktails and elevated comfort fare. Chef Dave Racicot embraces the colder months with Roasted Tomato Soup with fried garlic and Spanish olive oil. Follow that with Salmon with Winter Vegetables and a yuzu kosho butter sauce. Pair these dishes with the bar’s creative mocktails for the perfect, health-conscious combination. You might try the Fussin, made from non-alcoholic bourbon, maple syrup orange oleo, and hickory smoke. Or perhaps the I Spritz You Not! crafted with a non-alcoholic orange aperitif, fig shrub, and club soda.
Station
Bloomfield
Grab a group of friends and taste a wide array of small plates by Chef Curtis Gamble at Station. New this month are Crispy Wings with Calabrian chili, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and extra virgin olive oil. You could also try their new Charred Broccolini with cheddar, garlic royale, chermoula, and brown butter breadcrumb. But be careful to leave room for the Miso Thyme Pound Cake served with corn ice cream and caramelized fig. It’s a great accompaniment to the restaurant’s Features mocktail, which is a mix of abstinence epilogue, orange, molè, and Demerara.
Story by Kylie Thomas
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