Pigsburgh Squealers Rescue
130 Lampus Ln., Tarentum. pigsburghsquealers.com
As Halloween season winds down, it’s the best time of the year for the pigs at Pigsburgh Squealers Rescue. On Sat., Nov. 2 from 3-6 p.m., Pigsburgh Squealers hosts its fifth annual vegan crock pot cook-off and pumpkin drop-off for the resident pigs. The rescue’s year-end fundraiser invites locals to bring a favorite vegan dish and leftover Halloween pumpkins (unpainted and uncut) for pigs to chow down on. Attendees will vote on their favorite vegan dish and the winner will receive a trophy. Admission is $20 per person (pay at the door), with a $5 discount if you bring a dish to compete.
Inner Groove Brewing
751 E. Railroad Ave., Verona and 827 E. Warrington Ave., Allentown. innergroovebrewing.com
Inner Grove debuted a “howling new collaboration” — a beer crafted with Pittsburgh rock band Gene the Werewolf. The new limited-release brew, Raised By Wolves, shares a name with the band’s latest single. The beer is a blood orange 6.5% IPA that “features balanced bitterness with sweet blood orange and vibrant citrus notes,” according to a press release. Released Oct. 26, Raised By Wolves is available in commemorative cans and on draft at Inner Groove’s Verona and Allentown locations while supplies last.
Aruba Island Bowls
1601 Penn Ave., Strip District. islandbowls.us
Aruba Island Bowls is now bringing “eternal summer” to the Strip District. The smoothie and acai food truck — previously known as Island Bowls and parked seasonally at Penn Ave. and 16th St. — recently celebrated the “grand reopening” of its permanent brick-and-mortar space at the former Soluna coffee shop.
According to Pittsburgh Magazine, owners and husband-and-wife team Julian and Rachel de Jong met in Aruba, where they began “making smoothies and experimenting with other [health-inspired] foods.” The new Aruba Island Bowls will offer poke bowls, coffee, and waffles in addition to smoothies and bowls, and is now open Mon.-Thu. from 8 a.m.-4 p.m., and Fri.-Sun. from 8 a.m.- 5 p.m.
Fairmont Pittsburgh x Make-A-Wish Foundation
510 Market St., Downtown. fairmont.com/pittsburgh/dining/floor-2
Diners at fl.2 inside the Fairmont Pittsburgh can now try a dish created through a special collaboration with a nine-year-old chef. Make-A-Wish partnered with the Downtown hotel and restaurant to pair Prince Wise, a young North Sider and recent heart transplant recipient, with fl.2 executive chef Fernando Canales. Wise, an aspiring chef, was invited to work with Canales and co-created Prince’s Crab Cake Sandwich & Fries, now served at the hotel. The meal is now available on fl.2’s lunch, brunch, and dinner menus through Sat., Dec. 21. Ten percent of all sales benefit Make-A-Wish Greater Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
Butler Street Derby
4207 Butler St., Lawrenceville. butlerstreetderby.com
Butler Street Derby, a bar, restaurant, and self-described nightlife “experience,” opened on Oct. 25 in the former Hambone’s in Lawrenceville. The new space will host music and DJ sets and promises “a party vibe,” as well as a menu of signature cocktails, draft and bottled beer, and small bites including smash burgers, wings, and salads.
According to the Pittsburgh Business Times, Hazel Green LLC acquired Hambone’s in 2022 and renovated the space extensively, creating new dining areas and entertainment spaces, and installing an outdoor patio, DJ booths, and new sound and lighting systems. The building had been vacant after neighborhood landmark Hambone’s permanently closed in 2020, following the death of longtime owner Jeff Holt.
Trace Brewing x Film Pittsburgh
4312 Main St., Bloomfield. tracebloomfield.com
A new Pittsburgh beer celebrates the silver screen. Film Pittsburgh and Trace Brewing teamed up to create Director’s Cut ahead of the Three Rivers Film Festival. The 7% West Coast IPA combines Chinook, Simcoe, Nectaron, and Columbus Cryo hops and “delivers a crisp, hop-forward experience that’s as unforgettable as a great film,” according to Trace. (The brewery also noted on its Instagram that it’s “exceptionally rare” for them to make a West Coast IPA.) As part of the collaboration, Film Pittsburgh debuted a collection of glassware for purchase. Buy a glass and try the beer on draft and in cans at Trace’s Bloomfield taproom.
Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams
173 Bakery Square Blvd., East Liberty and 447 Cinema Dr., South Side. jenis.com
For those enjoying ice cream in a jacket, Jeni’s dropped a new lineup of holiday flavors. The chain released five limited-edition flavors inspired by “the nostalgia of cookie swaps.” Iced Molasses Gingerbread swirls the cookies with white icing, while Lemon Crinkle combines “bright, buttery lemon cream with a ribbon of sweet cream.” A new Seven-Layer Bar mixes pockets of bittersweet chocolate and brown sugar crumble into a coconut-scented cream. Favorite flavors of holidays past including White Chocolate Peppermint and Pistachio Macaron — promising a “honey nougat-like texture” — also return. Try the new scoops at Jeni’s locations or online.
Onion Maiden
639 E. Warrington Ave., Allentown. onionmaiden.square.site
It’s last call at Onion Maiden — for now. The popular vegetarian/vegan restaurant, which opened in 2017, announced on its Instagram that its space in Allentown will “undergo some structural and mechanical renovations that will render the building unusable for a time.”
The final day of service at Onion Maiden “in its current form” will be Sun., Nov. 24. Ahead of the planned closure, the restaurant said they will be bringing back “some classics” and patrons’ “long lost favorite[s]” in addition to their current menu. It is unclear if Onion Maiden will reopen after the renovations.
Park Bruges
5801 Bryant St., Highland Park. pointbrugge.com/park-bruges
Park Bruges announced its closure and handover after 15 years in business. In an Oct. 28 Facebook post, the owners of the Belgian restaurant wrote that “with a bittersweet heart,” its space on Bryant St. will be taken over by Angela Eatery “in a few months.” The incoming owners, who also co-own Penn Avenue Fish Company in the Strip District, will develop “a restaurant concept that shares [Park Bruges’] philosophy of dining that is friendly and casual enough to drop by anytime while also special enough to celebrate an important occasion.”
Park Bruges thanked its customers and Highland Park neighborhood residents and noted it will continue planning 20th-anniversary celebrations for sister business Point Brugge Cafe, set for January 2025.
This article appears in Oct 23-29, 2024.
