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| - I don't know why there seems to be so much hate for this place. From how it was explained to me, Primanti Bros. isn't necessarily famous for the quality of the food, but rather for it's culinary place/purpose in the history of Pittsburgh. I know it's probably hard to separate one's own experience from expectations raised from the Food Network hype, but this place is, and always will be, just a place that serves over the top, greasy, heart attack inducing grill food. If you're coming here because you saw this place on a list, you're probably going to be disappointed.
Seeing the grill, the shabbiness of the establishment, and reading over the menu helped to manage my expectations pretty quickly. It's a greasy spoon restaurant, plain and simple. Thankfully I have a soft spot (probably several soft spots with the amount of times I visit places like this) for grilled and fried monstrosities. I think a mistake that people probably make is reading on the menu that the 'Pitts-burger' is the #2 seller (after #1, beer), and subsequently ordering it with the thought that #2 ='s 'best thing on menu'. This is probably a HUGE mistake Primanti Bros. makes by advertising it. Our waitress, who was certainly an incredibly friendly oversharer (read: brutally honest) said that she didn't really care for the Pitts-burger compared to other burgers around the city that she's eaten, despite it's popularity. She actually gave us her top 3 menu recommendations, and we ordered those instead. I ate the pastrami and cheese sandwich, which I thought was very tasty. I had never had fries and coleslaw IN a sandwich, and the flavor was different than what I was expecting. I washed it down with a Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA, which I was happy to see they had on tap. The prices for everything were all very reasonable for a 'tourist trap'.
Do I think this is the best food I've ever eaten? Not even close. But I do think it's near the top of the pecking order for greasy spoon dives.
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