Home & Lifestyle Archives - Pittsburgh Quarterly

Where It All Began Read More »

What better place to celebrate our nation’s 250th anniversary than Philadelphia? And, just as Pittsburgh beautified for the NFL Draft, our eastern neighbor did the same to prepare for its influx of visitors. Given all the sites and activities surrounding our country’s founding, weekends are sure to be busy, so consider a midweek visit, including …

A Long Distance Romance

A Long Distance Romance Read More »

It’s somewhat unusual to buy a house without ever seeing it, as christy redican and her husband, cardiologist Fran Redican, did when they purchased their historic home in Fox Chapel 16 years ago. They were moving to Pittsburgh for his new position at Allegheny General Hospital and shopping long-distance from New Hampshire. “We were used …

Travel

AI vs. Me

I have always loved to travel. Whether a grand tour of Europe, an exotic safari or simply a weekend away, I embrace it. And, I actually enjoy the planning — selecting destinations, flights, lodgings, itineraries, activities, restaurants, and tailoring each trip to our interests. As a child, I pored over each spiral-bound AAA TripTik and …

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Food & Wine

Create Happiness in Your Holiday Shopping

Create Happiness in Your Holiday Shopping Read More »

As holiday shoppers buy candy, coffee, baked goods or ice cream this year, they’ll be able to purchase with purpose, working with stores and staffs with special needs. Just 34 percent of working-age adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are employed, compared with 83 percent in the overall population. While larger stores such as …

Food & Wine Travel

Flour, Fire, and Friendship: The Heart of Bread Furst Bakery

by Scott Goldsmith

A swirl of flour dust hangs in the air, caught in golden morning light as an artisan baker shapes a baguette. Through the expansive windows of Bread Furst, Washington, D.C.’s beloved neighborhood bakery, passersby pause, mesmerized by the rhythmic ballet of bread making. This is no ordinary bakery. It is the realization of a dream …

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A View for All Seasons

A View for All Seasons Read More »

Pittsburgh is known for many things, but a wealth of contemporary residential architecture is not one of them. That’s especially true in the city’s older neighborhoods, where houses were built to last and still do. Such sturdy stock makes it difficult to find something modern, though one empty-nester couple wasn’t specifically looking for modern. “We …

Travel

North Side Museum Shows the Fascinating Evolution of Photography

North Side Museum Shows the Fascinating Evolution of Photography Read More »

“I have discovered photography. now i can kill myself. I have nothing else to learn.” These dramatic words by artist Pablo Picasso convey the impact of photography. Imagine how that process, which captures unique moments in time, changed history. The Photo Antiquities Museum of Photographic History, tucked into a tiny second-floor space on East Ohio …

Nature Travel

First Cruise, Last Continent: A Voyage to Antarctica

by Tracy Certo

There is a language for ice. Tabulas are broad, flat-topped icebergs, and growlers are smaller bergs under three feet tall. Brash ice is a collection of floating discs that form mesmerizing patterns in the water. Then there are the bergy bits, a name that sounds like an offering from a fast-food outlet but denotes chunks …

First Cruise, Last Continent: A Voyage to Antarctica Read More »

Architecture & Neighborhoods History Homes

Gilded Not Golden

by Aakanksha Agarwal

By noon, the sky should have been bright. Instead, smoke turned it the color of tarnished brass. The smoke pressed into brick, clung to the damp wool of work shirts, and settled deeply into the lungs of the men leaving the mills. Many were immigrants, drawn by the promise of steady wages. Instead, they found …

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The Feminine Mystique

The Feminine Mystique Read More »

Not every client gives an interior designer carte blanche and a generous budget to create the home of their dreams. In fact, it’s a rare client indeed who displays that level of trust and assurance. But Amanda Walton asked Alisha Gwen to do just that, beginning with the plans for her new home being built …

Travel

Go West (to Cleveland) and Rock the Night Away

Go West (to Cleveland) and Rock the Night Away Read More »

As the Rolling Stones sang, “I know, it’s only rock and roll, but I like it.” In fact, LOTS of people love it. 2025 marks the 30th anniversary of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, which attracts over a half-million visitors annually who come to reminisce, learn and share their love of music with the …

Home & Lifestyle Travel

The Amazing (and Unforgettable) Bayernhof

The Amazing (and Unforgettable) Bayernhof Read More »

Tucked away on a cul-de-sac in residential O’Hara Township is a museum you’ve likely never visited. The Bayernhof Museum is the culmination of the vision of Charles “Charlie” Boyd Brown, III (1934-1999), a quirky eccentric who left a legacy for generations to enjoy. Brown obtained his wealth by founding and running Gas-Lite Manufacturing, which made …

Homes

Calm and Collected

Calm and Collected Read More »

Then designer Betsy Deiseroth walked into her Fox Chapel home 24 years ago, she faced a daunting challenge. Though situated on a quiet road surrounded by a leafy lot, the house itself cried out for renovation. An 1870s cottage married to a 1950s ranch, it was charmless at best. “I walked in, saw the living room …

Regional News Travel

New Airport Accentuates Pittsburgh’s Key Attributes

by Evan Pattak

If you’re an old-time Pittsburgher who’s resistant to change, you fondly recall Forbes Field, even with its tiny seats and occluded views of the field. You long to shop in Jenkins Arcade one more time. You cherish the memories of your trips to Greater Pittsburgh International Airport, with its inviting observation decks and concession stands …

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Homes

Prints Charming

Prints Charming Read More »

‘‘I’m not the biggest fan of neutrals,” notes interior designer Molly Singer. That turns out to be a major understatement. The newly renovated home in Fox Chapel she shares with her husband and two children is the definition of exuberance. Color abounds, as does texture and wallpaper. Lots of wallpaper. “I’m a firm believer that you …

Home & Lifestyle Shopping

Buying a Suit: A Primer

by Clayton Trutor

Long before Covid came along to decimate commercial real estate, there was something called “Casual Fridays.” That one day a week of switching to khakis and polos had tentacles that spread to other days. Suddenly suits were not required attire in many businesses, just as office attendance has widely transitioned to remote work. But there …

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Home & Lifestyle Shopping

Buying a Suit: A Primer

by Clayton Trutor

Buying a Suit: A Primer Read More »

Food & Wine Travel

Seasons Saltings

Seasons Saltings Read More »

John Tarallo is a happy person. And he seems to infuse his infectious enthusiasm and passion into everything he touches. Raised in Lawrenceville and Bloomfield, he started working at the legendary Groceria Italiana at 13. There, and in his Italian mother’s and grandmother’s kitchens, he watched and learned about food, flavors and cooking. He went …

Food & Wine Pittsburgh Immigration Pittsburgh Tomorrow

Novo Asian Food Hall

by Aakanksha Agarwal

This story is part of “The New Americans” series, a project of Pittsburgh Tomorrow. While food halls were having a moment in Pittsburgh, Asian food halls were having a moment elsewhere. “In bigger cities like New York, they have food halls just focused on Asian food,” says Alex Tang, who started Mola restaurant in East …

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Starting Fresh

Starting Fresh Read More »

Most young couples embarking on a life together might buy a starter home, combine the furniture that survived their single days, and dream about a dream house. But not Alison and Matthew Weiss. They became engaged, bought a plot of land in Upper St. Clair, got married, built a house, and had a baby almost …

Food & Wine Travel

Pass the Pasta