Brewery, Bits and Bites Tour

Did the Strip tour on a Friday afternoon with Gabe. He was an awesome guide and we went to places in Pittsburgh and got to try food we would never had tried had we not went on this tour. Totally recommend. Wear comfortable shoes and carry a light jacket just in case. Really worth it to check it out and see some Pittsburgh firsthand. Make sure to get your tickets online at least a day or two ahead because they have to account for the food supplies they will need and won’t take walk ins (saw four guys get politely turned away, but fortunately we had tickets).

I just don’t spend enough time in Bloomfield. And as if I didn’t know it, leave it to Rachel C to put together another great Unilocal event to remind me of just how awesome this city is.
I find myself forgetting how special some of Pittsburgh neighborhoods are and how many hidden gems can be found in each. Places like Groceria Italia, Angelo’s Pizza, Donatelli’s and Maria Merante’s were shown to us (among other things like architecture and historic buildings) by our guides Richard and Sylvia of Burgh, Bits and Bites Tours. Special Pittsburgh places shown to us by amazing Pittsburgh folks? Yes, please! Groceria Italia is off the main drag in Bloomfield, but that’s no excuse as to why I’ve never been there. Meeting the owner and hearing her story was almost as good as her pasta and meatballs. Angelo’s may be «famous for being famous» but their thin crust pizza speaks for itself. Maria Merante’s offers unique items along with some lovely pastries but upstairs is where Maria herself offers cooking classes and dinners in a cozy apartment. I wouldn’t mind spending an evening with Maria in the future! I’ve actually been to Donatelli’s before for some pasta and deli items but it’s always a pleasure to see a face behind the store name.
The second part of our day was a trip to Church Brew Works with Jake from PA Brew Tours. I am somewhat jealous that Jake not only had this idea but actually made it a reality. I often plan trips around breweries and the thought of having a designated driver and an organized tour is a genius idea. Church Brew Works was very generous with the beer but we were unable to meet the brewers or get a tour which was kind of a bummer… and then the van that dropped us off abandoned us. In the meantime it was nice to sit and chat with fellow Unilocalers over a few beers.
Overall I had a great time and discovered many places where I will return in the Bloomfield neighborhood. Seeing what Burgh, Bits and Bites and PA Brew Tours have to offer was great. Another win for Rachel!

This was such a cool event. I’ll be going on a few other tours with the Burgh Bits & Bites crew and also frequenting the establishments we visited! LOVED learning the history of the neighborhood. All of the food we sampled was delicious.
CBW — always a favorite. Although we didn’t get to meet the brewer, our tour guide was great and gave us a really interesting history of Pittsburgh brewing.
Amazing event, Rachel, thank you so much!!!

This was a great event… one of my favorites. I fell in love with some of the little shops (particularly Rosemary) and I learned a lot about a neighborhood I frequent rather often.
The brewery was great and Jake was clearly passionate, although not everything seemed to be very organized. Such is life. Thanks to Rachel, Sylvia, and Jake for an awesome Saturday afternoon!

This event was, by far, my favorite Unilocal event to date. Being new to Pittsburgh, I am still fairly unfamiliar with the charm of the individual neighborhoods and all that they had to offer. Bloomfield did not disappoint! I enjoyed learning about the origins of the name and the history of the area.
After a quick review of the character of the neighborhood, our first stop was Angelo’s Pizzeria. Richard talked about the history of pizza in the US and the proper way to eat a slice. The pizza was tasty and fresh. I’ll likely be back for more.
Our next stop was Groceria Italiana where we met the shop owner. It was impressive hearning about how all the pasta and other items are fresh made in the downstairs kitchen. So impressive that at the conclusion of the tour, I stopped back in to buy some pasta, meatballs and a few other items. Having just returned from a trip to Italy, it was nice to find food similar in taste and quality to what we experienced there.
Our third stop was to Maria Merante’s. After a quick visit to her shop, we were escorted upstairs to try some iced expresso and to learn more about her shop. She offers cooking classes and group dinners. I can’t wait to check out the schedule and see when I can return!
Our last stop was Donatelli’s where we sampled a biscotti. It was interesting to see the contrast between the commercial kitchen of Donatelli’s and the small mom and pop feel of Groceria Italiana. We learned about the machinery and process they use to make their pasta.
The tour was great and I plan to check out other options for different neighborhoods to bring friends and family to when they visit Pittsburgh.
The day concluded with a trip via bus to the Church Brewworks. The setting was stunning and the brews fantastic. There were a few issues such as no brewer and a late bus, but with an ample supply of tasty beer, those issues didn’t matter much.
A fantastic experience all around!

This event was broken into two parts. The first was a walking tour of Bloomfield courtesy of Burgh Bits & Bites and the second was a beer tasting at Church Brew Works courtesy of Jake of PA Brew Tours.
Richard and Sylvia from Burgh, Bits and Bites Tours were absolutely great! I never knew Bloomfield was so interesting and had so much history and I’ve lived in the Pittsburgh area my whole life. LOL! The walking tour consisted of the following stops, Angelo’s Pizzeria, Groceria Italia, Merante’s Gifts and Donateli’s. While on the tour we learned about the different architecture of the area including dental crown molding and the beautiful St. Joseph’s Church.
The first stop, Angelo’s Pizzeria served us some delicious cheese pizza. (I will be back soon!)
The second stop, Groceria Italia a cute little Italian grocery store that has been in the neighborhood for decades was my favorite stop. The fact that they make all of their pasta, sausages and meats by hand is a plus during a time when most things are made by machines. While there we got to meet «Momma» and sample some homemade meatballs and pasta, outstanding!
The third stop, Merante’s Gifts is a cozy little store that sells Italian among other home décor items. It’s the perfect store to find trinkets for your Nana. Maria, the owner who also does cooking classes in the apartment upstairs served us some tasty iced coffee in the kitchen where she does her classes. We also each got a amazing dessert while back in the gift shop.
The fourth and final stop of the walking tour was Donateli’s, a Italian grocery store similar to Groceria Italia. The main difference between the two is that Donateli’s pasta is not homemade and is supplied from another company. While there we got to try a orange and chocolate biscotti and see the «back of house» machines.
The Brewery portion was nice also. We got to sample three different beers. I don’t drink beer so I can’t really say they were all that good. Jake really knows the history of beer in Pittsburgh. The only bad thing that happened was the shuttle bus that dropped us off at Church Brew Works left us stranded and we had to wait for him to come back. Not Jake’s fault.
Thanks Rachel for another great event.

Thanks to Richard, Sylvia, Jake, and (as always) Rachel for making this my favorite Unilocal event so far!
I had been to Bloomfield several times previously for dinner and for Little Italy Days, but this Unilocal Event really helped me to learn a lot more about this borough! Our ‘Burgh Bits and Bites owner and tour guide Sylvia took us to four different stops — Groceria Italiana, Maria Merante’s, Donatelli’s, and Angelo’s Pizzeria — with a couple brief architectural stops along the way. The tour was a nice length of time, and I was definitely full by the end! I really enjoyed our Italian food — pasta and meatballs, pizza, espresso, pizzelle, and biscotti.
I also really enjoyed our second portion of the event with PA Brew Tours. Church Brew Works served up a large amount of beer for our tasting. Though Jake (the owner of PA Brew Tours) was a victim of some unfortunate events, he made the best of the situations, and I learned a lot from him about not only Church Brew Works but also about the history of breweries in the Pittsburgh area. I had a great time!
After the event was over, my husband and I picked up ravioli, sauce, and biscotti from Donatelli’s and fresh bread from Groceria Italiana. I loved all of the local businesses that I was introduced to today and definitely plan on shopping with them again in the near future! I also plan on looking into both tours in the future when friends are in town!

Such an awesome experience!
Even though we live in Polish Hill and Bloomfield is right across the way, we do not get over this way to explore nearly enough. We are so glad that we had the opportunity to do so today with the tour today.
The spots that were visited were perfect… really gave us a piece of the neighborhood. Angelo’s Pizzeria, Groceria Italia, Merante’s, and Donateli’s are all awesome little places to visit that will make you want to come back. My personal fave stop is Groceria Italia. So good, we had to stop back later in the day to pick up items to make for dinner. The meatballs and marinara sauce are AMAZING. A taste of Italy indeed. They had so much good food, we had a hard time deciding what we wanted to buy. We got their marinara, Eggplant Lasagne, gnocchi, ravioli (sausage), tiramisu, and a pepperoni roll. We will not be eating this all in one night, but I am sure we will be having several Italian themed dinners soon :)
The Brewery portion was fun– nice to get to chat to some of the other Unilocalers that were on the tour. It was surprising to see how generous the Church was with the beer too. The owner of the Brewery tour company seemed to know his stuff and had a passion for what he started. Sylvia from Burgh Bits and Bites was awesome too.
What a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon! I highly recommend enjoying these tours!