Casual dining and breweries continue to lead the charge of recent openings. This month’s highlights include a Honduran restaurant and a Chinese street food truck.
Five Stars Honduras
The first restaurant in the region entirely focused on Honduran cuisine opened in Coraopolis at the beginning of August. The establishment, owned by Ever Castillo and Elizabeth Bastillo, offers breakfast, lunch and dinner dishes signature to the Central American country.
For breakfast, try baleadas, a prototypical street food. Five Star Honduras prepares its flour tortillas in-house, and they are excellent, with a nice little tug and a bit of crisping on the edges. Most importantly, they do a good job holding in the fortifying filling of refried red beans, eggs, queso fresco, avocado and crema. The morning menu (served all day) also features breakfast plates with eggs, beans and sausages, chorizo or vegetables.
There are a bunch of larger plate dishes for lunch and dinner. Whole fried fish (a red snapper on opening day) ate like a day at the beach. The lightly seasoned fish was crispy on the outside and juicy within, and it came with flavorful al dente yellow rice, a nice little salad and green plantains. There are plenty of meat- and seafood-based platters such as pollo con tajadas (chicken with green plantains), carne asada tipica (grilled beef rib, beef fajitas and chorizo served with yellow rice and beans) and camarones en leche de coco, which is shrimp in coconut milk broth with rice and corn tortillas. Despite the scorching summer heat, big bowls of the three soups were flying out of the kitchen on opening day.
809 5th Ave, Coraopolis; fivestarhonduras.net
Hundred Miles Crepes
Oakland is studded with food trucks serving (primarily) the daytime hubbub of the neighborhood’s universities, and a new one just rolled onto the scene a few weeks ago. Hundred Miles Crepes, owned by Gloria Pei and Kevin Gao, is likely Pittsburgh’s first food truck focused on Chinese street food. The specialty of the house is jian bing, a savory breakfast crepe that was created nearly 2,000 years ago in Shandong, a province in northeastern China, and is now widespread throughout the country.
“We are hoping to introduce people who aren’t familiar with these dishes to a whole new style of fast food,” says Pei.
Ning Zhao is the food truck’s chef. He’s worked in Pittsburgh kitchens for more than 10 years, including stints at Chengdu Gourmet in Squirrel Hill and Hunan Bar in Oakland. The tasty crepes are made from a batter of several types of wheat and dried mung bean powder topped with a cracked egg, studded with black sesame seeds and cooked on a griddle. He rolls the crepe with crispy wonton crackers, lettuce and onion, and extra fillings including sausage, Spam, braised meat and shredded pig ear.
“What’s nice is that you can have something very simple or you can get it loaded with a bunch of things,” Pei says.
The menu also includes a handful of cold appetizers such as shredded potato salad and beef tendon with green onions along with Chinese lamb and pork sandwiches. The owners say they plan on adding a few more items, including meat skewers cooked on a hibachi grill, in the next few weeks.
Hundred Miles Crepes isn’t yet on social media (typically the easiest way to find a food truck’s location). However, its owners say they plan to keep a regular schedule in front of 4227 Fifth Ave. from 11:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. daily.
Imminent is the opening of Voodoo Brewing Co.’s Pittsburgh Pub, the stadiums-close taproom of Voodoo Brewing Co. at 337 North Shore Drive on the North Shore. People were invited to come for pop-up drinks the past three weekends. Already open in the Washington County town of Houston is Voodoo West Pike, another new taproom of the Meadville-based, now multi-town and -state brewery.
Also open and slinging the brews of other area breweries while it builds up its own supplies is Firewhistle Brewing at 107 N. 2nd Ave. in Elizabeth (15037).
This nanobrewery’s hours are starting out as 4-10 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 4 p.m.-midnight Friday, noon-midnight Saturday and noon-9 p.m. Sunday.
Owner Jason Berman says he brewed his first beer on Aug. 7, “a nice little California common to dial in the new brewhouse and process,” that he expected would be ready by next week or so. A machine to put it in crowlers is on his list. Firewhistle also serves Pennsylvania spirits and wines: www.firewhistlebrewing.com.
Also down that way, Jeffrey Bloom is working on a new taproom for his Bloom Brew, just a few doors away from his original location below a volunteer fire hall on the Youghiogheny River in West Newton, Westmoreland County. He hopes to open it this fall. Watch bloombrew.beer for updates.
Coming soon (really)
Parlor Dim Sum, Roger Li’s tribute to his family’s culinary roots, is finally close to opening. The Lawrenceville restaurant will feature dishes such as Cantonese-style barbecued meats, wok-fried whole fish, congee and hand-made dumplings. Li (Umami, nanban, Allegheny Wine Mixer) says the space is ready to go; he’s just waiting to get the staff up to speed, which should happen in the next couple of weeks.
In the meantime, he’s offering a series of takeaway pop-ups. The first one featured a trio of meat (char sui, crispy pork belly and roasted duck) and vegan mapo tofu. Look for more news on the pop-ups on Parlor’s Instagram page (theparlordimsumpgh).
Closings
2 Sisters 2 Sons, a well-loved Jamaican restaurant in Sharpsburg, is closing at the end of the month. Its owners say a combination of rising prices, an unfavorable location and the cut third-party apps take from food sales all contributed to the decision to close.
After a 34-year run in Washington, Pa., Solomon’s Seafood & Grille is closing for good at the end of August. Owners Mike and Georgetta “George” Williamson announced their retirement on social media and thanked their customers and their employees for the landmark’s success.
Also announcing its closing (Aug. 13) on Facebook, after six years, is Ambridge’s popular ODBQ barbecue. Owner James Odell noted, “The economy and product availability are making it difficult for the little guys. Please, support the local businesses as much as possible.”
Throwback
Remember when Kegg Brewing briefly opened in Donegal in the Laurel Highlands?
Frank Kegg posted on its Facebook page last week: “This is going to be our last post. The new brewery here in Dahlonega, GA is getting closer to opening and taking up more of our time. Follow the new brewery 52 West Brewing, I'm the head brewer! It's been an awesome trip and Tracy and I just want to say thanks for everything! Take care and if you find yourself in Northern GA, stop on by the brewery!”
CORRECTION: This story originally gave a wrong first name to Jason Berman.
Hal B. Klein: hklein@post-gazette.com, Twitter @halbklein and IG @halbklein; Bob Batz Jr: bbatz@post-gazette.com and on Twitter and Facebook @bobbatzjr.
First Published: August 16, 2022, 10:00 a.m.
Updated: August 17, 2022, 12:24 a.m.
