Brugge on North opens this week
Following a weekend soft-opening, Brugge on North will officially open on Wednesday in the former Casellula space at 40 W. North Ave. at Alphabet City in the City of Asylum.
It’s the third restaurant from Jesse and Amy Seager — this one in conjunction with CEO R. Henry Reese of City of Asylum.
Expect a similar menu to the Seagers’ Point Brugge Cafe in Point Breeze and Park Bruges in Highland Park, with favorites such as a heaping bowl of Prince Edward Island mussels ($14 to $20), confit sunchokes ($10), decadent macaroni and cheese ($10) and poutine ($12) on the menu, along with salads, burgers and steak frites.
Executive chef of the Point Brugge location, Susan Conroy, has transferred to the North Side location, while Kevin Hunninen will run the kitchen at the Point Breeze location. Shane Liebro will continue to run the kitchen at Park Bruges.
More Bakn, this time in the north
Look for breakfast, lunch, dinner and booze in Marshall at the next venue for Bakn — which opened its first location in Carnegie. The new spot is on track to open on 100 Fowler Road. The April 27 preview party is $50 per person.
Partner Susan McMahon and chef owner Randy Tozzie opened Bakn in 2015. It fulfilled a dream of Mr. Tozzie to open his own restaurant. He attended the now-closed Le Cordon Bleu, Downtown, worked at the Duquesne Club and had been a chef supervisor for Market District before opening the restaurant.
Outdoor drinks on the menu at The Vandal in May
Warm weather means patio drinks will debut soon at The Vandal in Lawrenceville. Owner Joe Hilty anticipates it will be ready at the end of May, about the same time he hopes his liquor license will come through.
Expect a wine list with Eastern European varietals and sparkling wines, aperitif-style cocktails, and brews from Millvale’s former Draai Laag, now Strange Roots, as well as other local brews — with a few outliers in the mix.
In June, Mr. Hilty will focus on his new venture at Smallman Galley in the Strip that’s going by the working title of Joey’s Snack Bar.
A restaurant from an established restaurateur is a change for Galley Group — behind Smallman, Federal Galley and one in Cleveland and another in Detroit, both on the way — in that Mr. Hilty’s stall will take residence on a semi-permanent basis, as opposed to the change-ups that have been the hallmark of the Smallman space so far.
“I want to create a menu that’s really fun,” Mr. Hilty says, noting that he’ll bring in guests from Pittsburgh and beyond, for events called “Friends with Benefits.”
Five natural wines for $50 from Slow Food Pittsburgh
One of the more unusual and more affordable wine events of the season might be Slow Food Pittsburgh’s raw wines event with Bar Marco’s Dom Fiore on April 25 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. It’s an introduction to five natural wines with five food pairings for $50 at the Strip District restaurant (2216 Penn Ave.). It’s $50 for Slow Food members, $55 for nonmembers.
Tastings will include an Italian prosecco and an orange pinot gris from Austria. The tasting comes with a promise: “Ever had the experience of losing your heart to a wine and then not being able to find it in our quixotic Pennsylvania PLCB system? Dom [Fiore] and Andrew [Heffner] promise to smooth the way as best they can, helping us find these mostly modestly priced gems.” You can register here.
Melissa McCart: mmccart@post-gazette.com; Instagram @postgazettefood; Facebook @postgazettefood
First Published: April 16, 2018, 9:44 p.m.
