Stop #19; Arlington

Date: July 28
Neighborhood: Arlington
Pitt Stoppers: Mindy, Dave, Jimmy D., Richard, Bobby D., Todd, Benoddi, Bruce
Bar: Down the Road Saloon

Pluses: Big, nicely decorated space; friendly staff; equisitely clean grill; outdoor deck.
Weirdness: The clocks for Beaver Falls and Punxy (Nod to Bish); The ladies room "occupied" light.




Yes, the time in Beaver Falls is different from Arlington or Punxy.










Mindy as guest bartender.

Occupied-Empty

The outside shot.

Stop #18; Hays

Date: July 28

Neighborhood: Hays

Pitt Stoppers: Bobby D., Jimmy D., Mindy, Benoddi, Bruce, Richard, Dave, Todd

Bar: Groucho's

Pluses: Nicely frosted beer mugs, juke box containing "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk" and "Ode to Titty"
Weirdness: The wooden parrots.

The band is back together.

Stop #17 and a half; Brookline

Date: July 20
Neighborhood: Brookline
Pitt Stoppers: Jimmy D., Richard, Big Al, Bobby D., Pteri, Noreen, Mindy, Todd.
Bar: None.

Pizza: Fiori's.

Plus: The pizza.

This wasn't actually a Stop since Fiori's isn't a bar. We thought it did derserve a public mention for putting out some great pizza. I may get publicly chastised, but I think it's different from and better than Mineo's in Squirrel Hill...

Stop #17; Beechview

Date: July 20
Neighborhood: Beechview
Pitt Stoppers: Richard, Todd, Carol, Pteri, Kelly AKA Babs, Carlo AKA George Sr., Big Al, Jimmy D., Mindy, Bobby D., Dave, Noreen.
Bar: The Huddle
Memento: A popcorn bucket.

Pluses: Free popcorn - the perfect salty treat. The wait and bar staff were friendly and enthusiastic about the Stops.
Weirdness: The "No Bozos" sign. Did anyone get a picture?


Not everyone was kung fu fighting. Just Todd.

Stop #16; Banksville

Date: July 20
Neighborhood: Banksville
Pitt Stoppers: Dave, Babs AKA Kelly, Noreen, Pteri, Bobby D., Carol, Richard, Mindy, Jimmy D., Todd, Big Al.
Bar: Whiskey Hollow Grill
Memento: Menu.

Pluses: Good menu. Cool bar area.
Weirdness: Big Salads. See below.

Big Salads. In neon. Oh yes.

Stop #15; Oakwood

Date: July 20
Neighborhood: Oakwood
Pitt Stoppers: Big Al, Mindy, Carol, Kelly AKA Babs, Richard, Josh, Bobby D., Jimmy D., Jonathan, Todd, Dave
Bar: Blinky's
Memento: Menu and T-shirt. A personal gift from the owner Audrey.

Pluses: Getting to know the owners Audrey and Blinky. They were great hosts and told us plenty about the history of the area and of the bar itself. They also claim to have the cleanest ladies room in Pittsburgh; Mindy agrees.
Weirdness: Saying hello to the cooks during a full tour of the bar and restaurant.

Jimmy D. with the owners. Notice Blinky blinking.

Let's hit up Vanilla and mack on some cupcakes.

Stop #14; West End

After a break for vacation and scheduling, we're back!

Date: July 20
Neighborhood: The West End
Pitt Stoppers: Mindy, Big Al, Kelly AKA Babs, Josh, Todd, Jimmy D., Bob D., Jonathon
Bar: The West End Cafe
Memento: Cupcakes.

Pluses: The West End Cafe is right next door to the Vanilla Pastry Studio who graciously opened their doors to us after closing time. We cleaned out their cupcake reserves. They were amazing - especially the carrot cake cupcake.
Weirdness: The beer cooler at the West End Cafe also houses pop, pickles, hard-boiled eggs, and candy bars at the same time as supporting an AlkaSelzer dispenser.

Al.

Bold in marigold.

The cooler with the goods.