I Love America's Steel City

My parents are both from Pittsburgh,Pa. I was born there and lived in the North part of the city till I was about 5. The city was built by my great grandparents. I think everyone my age can say their elders had a hand in shaping Pittsburgh. The city is a true melting pot of different people and cultures. While my parents loved their steel city, they had one too many winters and decided it was time to hit the road and go South. Fortunately, my grandparents and cousins remained in Pittsburgh so I had the opportunity several times a year to go back and see them. My grandparents took great care of me and my younger brother Fritz when we came for the summer. My gram cooked 5 nights a week with Friday and Sunday's off. She was such a funny cook. She was a product of the great depression so we never bought anything without a coupon and she recycled every Ziploc bag 3-4 times before it was so gross looking I had to pitch it or fear being poisoned. Once when my gram was not feeling well she asked me to stop at the store and buy a few things. I came home and handed her the receipt and change. She told me I paid too much for the tuna and I bought the wrong mayo. So, we got in the car and headed back to the store and she returned these items. I was mortified. Absolutely mortified. I said, "gram, you are so cheap. It's less than a dollar that you will save buying the other brand." She fired back telling me a dollar is a dollar and we are getting it back. When I was 15 I didn't really appreciate this at all. 20 years later, I get it. I wouldn't do it but I understand:) I digress....

I recently went to my city of birth to see my cousins Liz and Rachel. Liz is a mom who has two kids, Jack and Sam, that I adore. I picked Halloween weekend on purpose as I wanted to trick-or-treat with all the kids. I also picked this weekend as it was my cousin Rachel's 39th birthday. In celebration of her big day, we went to a wonderful little bistro called the Point Brugge Cafe. Nestled in a little neighborhood on the East side of the city, Point Brugge serves up inventive fare in a cozy little brownstone. We started with pomme frites with a basil mayo that was to die for. Delicious with a capital D! We also ordered their crab cake to share that was paired with a spicy tartar. Also, awesome. I ordered the cuban sandwich as my entree. Can't say I was a fan. The sandwich was not pressed enough and I expected more garlic in the mayo. I was disappointed but relieved when my cousin Liz gave me a piece of bread to soak in her mussel pot. She made the best order of us all with the red curry and cilantro mussels. The sauce for the mussels was dynamite. I would go back there just for it! The birthday girl had a grilled cheese with red pepper that was tasty and my cousin Noel had a pesto shrimp sandwich that was lovely. I think I had bad order luck. But....we toasted Rachel with some champers so all was just peachy.

Bottom line: Check out Point Brugge for their good beer list and yummy pomme frites. Stay away from the cuban sandwich my friends. Go for the mussels and ask for extra bread!!

www.pointbrugge.com