Nied's Hotel

We were pretty lukewarm about going to Nied's Hotel. We literally put a hand on the door, saw a guitar and fiddle combo playing and were like, "Do we really want to do this?" We decided it is our job to put ourselves into harm’s way for our semi-loyal readers and that we would take one for the team.


Nied's Hotel is an old bar. They have a "famous fish sandwich" which we are sure had its peak of fame 30 years ago, but it looked pretty good. They have an old-school menu, which reminds A of his time in Brooklyn. It was sparsely populated, with a table full of some suspiciously young looking kids. However, we can't tell how old the youngsters are anymore. They just keep getting younger and younger.


We walked in and found two bar stools as far away from the musicians as possible. They were really going at it and the fiddle player was pretty fierce. After all our trepidation, they were actually good and just finishing up a quick set. It turned out that she is a violinist for the Pittsburgh Symphony, which was the first of many surprises we encountered at Nied's Hotel. She was playing with resident musician Slim Forsythe to let her hair down a little. The lighting was nice until the music act stopped, and they turned on some very bright hanging globes for some reason. We both recoiled from the bright light; yes, we are Mogwais.

The place probably hasn't changed in decades. It has some charm to it, but it is definitely from a by-gone era. Then there is Jim.


Jim is the owner of Nied's Hotel, and you couldn't find a nicer guy if you tried. We know his entire life story. We also now know Slim’s life story. He bought us beers. He is having a ska band come in and he had no clue what ska music sounded like, so he gave A $10 to go play some ska on the jukebox. He showed A his amphitheater and tried to convince A to have his band play at the bar (A did not think it would be a good fit.) Regardless, Jim went out of his way to give A a great contact and some info to help him along. We would go back just to hang out with Jim again. Jim is a great guy.


We usually stick to one drink per bar when we’re reviewing, but we liked Jim so much that we stuck around for a second just to shoot the shit with him. Then all of a sudden, there were plates of Doritos on the bar. We’re not sure if there’s much better in life than surprise junk food at a bar when you’re having fun.


This is a bar for your parents. As with most parents, they are really thrilled when their kids come over to hangout, and that is kind of how we felt here: loved.

Address:	5438 Butler St, 15201 http://niedshotel.myfastsite.net/	Games:	Poker
Façade:	Not Scary	Scene:	Fish sandwiches and nice people
Parking:	Easy	Patio/Outdoor:	Yes
Kitchen:	Bar Food	Cleanliness:	Normal
Smoking:	None	Jukebox:	Internet Crap
Hours:	7am-12am (closed Sun)	Cig Machine:	No
Drink Prices:	Average	# taps:	3
Bathrooms:	Sit	Specials:	Cheap Food
Live music:	Sometimes	Riley Factor:	$9.00
ATM:	No	Cash Only	No
TVs:	2	Size:	Normal