Strip District Field Trip

The best part of Pittsburgh, especially for foodies, is the Strip District. If I could spend everyday down there, I would. I love that the many cultures of Pittsburgh come together on these few blocks and are brought together by food. As a field trip for class, we had a mini tour of the Strip District.

La Prima Espresso
My favorite coffee for two years has been La Prima Espresso. We were given the opportunity to visit the roasting facility and learn about the roasting process. Sam showed us where all the coffee beans are stored (the organic beans are stored in their own location).

The difference between different roasts is only a few seconds in the roaster. Sam showed us a glass container with layers of beans ranging from unroasted green beans to the darkest roast.

Reyna's
I usually buy my salsa and tortilla's here when I can, but I have never been around when they were making the tortillas. The contraption that they moved along looked like something from Willy Wonka. I couldn't believe how soft these tortillas were. They were delicious!

Enrico's
I have never eaten at Enrico's and was sad that I couldn't stay and have lunch. Here we learned about how they fire their oven to bake pizzas and bread. We learned that the ashes are so hot even when there is no fire that you can put a jar of beans and greens in the ashes and they will cook. I can't imagine standing in front of that heat all day!

Lotus Foods
My favorite thing in Lotus is Pocky, but I am curious to buy frozen dumplings and their homemade tofu. I have tried a few other things there too. Hopefully I will be able to learn how to cook Asian food, because it is one of my favorite kinds of food! I love the variety of produce that is available. Gregg pointed out that here in America, the Asian food stores must accommodate for many different regions and countries of Asian cuisine, so that explains the many varieties of things like chili paste.

Street Food
I sampled chicken tacos outside of Reyna's that were amazing! The corn tortilla reminded me of my time in Belize and Guatemala. I'm glad to know I can go here for that familiar flavor. I also tried a vegetable egg roll from an Asian food stand. It was very large and had a nice, crispy shell. The cabbage inside had a sweet flavor. I'm ready to go back and sample some more!

Penn Mac
Penn Mac is my favorite store in the strip because it is where I can find the Italian foods that I grew up on. I am known for buying containers of olives and fresh mozzarella and sometimes crunchy bread and eating it all day long. This store and the whole strip remind me of the traditions of my family.