One-10 Bar and Lounge

We are on bar number four out of six on our August 16^th bar crawl and are just on the edge on what would be considered “punchy,”  when we stumble into One-10 Bar and Lounge, a bar we have never been in, heard of, or even noticed. What do we find? Yet another empty downtown bar on a Friday night. It's hard to get a good feel for what a bar is like when there's no one in it, but we do our best. One-10 is definitely a bar, but the lounge part seems like it's reaching a bit.

One-10 is a bit bright for our tastes. They have daily specials and their drinks are average price. They've got a menu of bar food. There is nothing really wrong with the place, but it still seems pretty divey. Maybe it’s the out-of-order men's room, maybe it’s just the awkward emptiness of the bar, but it isn't a place to which we would return. We are starting to see why no one hangs out downtown at night.


Nothing bad or good happened to us here. It just was.

Address:	110 Smithfield St, 15219    http://one10pgh.com/	Games:	Don't think so...
Façade:	A Little Scary	Scene:	Empty
Parking:	Easy	Patio/Outdoor:	No
Kitchen:	Bar Food	Cleanliness:	Normal
Smoking:	None	Jukebox:	Internet Crap
Hours:	12pm-2am	Cig Machine:	No
Drink Prices:	Average	# taps:	4
Bathrooms:	Sit	Specials:	Daily
Live music:	Never	Riley Factor:	$8.56
ATM:	Yes	Cash Only	No
TVs:	8	Size:	Normal

Mitchell's

Lawyers go here. Are you a lawyer? Go here. Do you want to meet a lawyer? Go here. Are you coming from the courthouse for some other reason? You get the drift.

It was dead when we went there, as it was 9 PM on Friday night in downtown Pittsburgh. The kitchen was already closed and there were only a few people still hanging around. The food looks like basic bar food, but the drinks are cheap. It wasn't bad or anything, but unless you are at the courthouse and looking for somewhere to go, there is not much else to say about it. It is definitely another Happy Hour only place.

Address:	304 Ross St, 15219    http://www.mitchells.tv/	Games:	Video Poker
Façade:	Not Scary	Scene:	Courthouse
Parking:	Easy	Patio/Outdoor:	No
Kitchen:	Bar Food	Cleanliness:	Normal
Smoking:	Some	Jukebox:	Internet Crap
Hours:	10am-2am	Cig Machine:	Yes
Drink Prices:	Dirt Cheap	# taps:	10
Bathrooms:	Sit	Specials:	Happy Hour and Monthly
Live music:	Never	Riley Factor:	$6.75
ATM:	No	Cash Only	No
TVs:	4	Size:	Normal

Grant Street Tavern

After our seriously disappointing trip to Easy Street, we were not expecting too much from the Grant Street Tavern. Maybe the reason everyone flees downtown after 6pm is because all of the bars are Tommy Bahama hellscapes? It would not have taken a lot to be better than Easy Street, but Grant Street Tavern renewed our faith in the world.

The Grant Street Tavern is a little hidden away. It's small, dark and filled with wood and brick; it feels a bit like a secret space. When we walked in there was only one seat at the bar. While we were hemming and hawing, trying to decide whether to sit somewhere else or come back later, the patrons with bar seats sprang into action. They moved over, made space for us, introduced themselves, and shook hands. Where were we? Bar heaven?

We took our new seats at the bar and ordered our beers and whiskeys. They don't have any drafts here, but they serve your beer in its very own coozie. Coozie! It is bar heaven! Then what should appear without us even asking: pretzels and mustard. Our stomachs were empty from our ill-fated dining attempt and the pretzels were desperately needed.

Then we saw it. Sitting on the top-self. Jameson 18-year whiskey.  Cue choir of angels. We didn’t even know it existed! We decided that we must try it. And we did. And it was good.


I don't know that we can talk about this bar in anything less than glowing terms. The patrons were welcoming and friendly. The bartender was charming, generous and knowledgeable. Our beers were kept nice and cold in their coozies and our whiskeys were poured in proper glasses. It was one of the few times we were sad we were on the clock and had to move on so quickly. Next time we are downtown, this is where we'll be.

Address:	310 Grant St, 15219 http://www.thegrantstreet.com/	Games:	None
Façade:	Scary	Scene:	Super friendly regulars
Parking:	Easy	Patio/Outdoor:	No
Kitchen:	Lunch only-snacks later	Cleanliness:	Normal
Smoking:	None	Jukebox:	Radio
Hours:	-9pm	Cig Machine:	No
Drink Prices:	Dirt Cheap	# taps:	0
Bathrooms:	Sit	Specials:
Live music:	Never	Riley Factor:	$7.00
ATM:	No	Cash Only	No
TVs:	2	Size:	Hole in the Wall

Easy Street

It is 7:30 on a Friday night. Let us repeat, 7:30 on a Friday night. We walk in and find some seats at the moderately crowded bar. The outside patio is packed and there is an acoustic guitar guy. Strangely, people do not seem to be avoiding the acoustic guitar guy. Who are these strange beasts? We purposefully situate ourselves as far as possible from the acoustic guitar guy. 

After a long time, we are finally approached and our drink orders are taken. We then ask for menus and are told "Sorry, the kitchen is closed." This takes us back. "Wait, at 7:30 with a bar full of people you decided to close your kitchen?"  The bartend replies, "Yeah."  "When do you close your kitchen?" we ask. "Whenever we feel like it," he replies. So, that was strike three and we quickly ask for our check and finish our stats as quickly as possible.

Overall impression: if you are an older rich guy who wants a young trophy girlfriend, this may be

your place! We saw at least four couples with a 20+ year age difference doing their thing. If you are the kind of guy who thinks he can pull off a tight t-shirt and a sports jacket, this may be your place. We have bad news for you though; you look like a total douchebag. You are neither Crockett nor Tubbs, my friend.

This place is huge with a gigantic outside seating area. We assume it is not always contaminated with the smooth jams of an acoustic guitar. The interior looks like some generic Panama Jack display. The menu looked really good, which is why we went there to start our night. We did not end up eating properly until 1AM as a result of this, which might have influenced some of our other experiences that night. We hold Easy Street personally responsible for all subsequent shenanigans on the night of August 16th.

Address:	One Oxford Center, 15219    http://www.easystreetpittsburgh.com/	Games:	None
Façade:	Not Scary	Scene:	Yuppie, D-bag
Parking:	Easy	Patio/Outdoor:	Yes
Kitchen:	Mysteriously Closed	Cleanliness:	Nice
Smoking:	None	Jukebox:	Acoustic Guitar Guy
Hours:	Mysterious	Cig Machine:	No
Drink Prices:	Richie Rich	# taps:	16
Bathrooms:	Sit	Specials:	Happy Hour
Live music:	Sometimes	Riley Factor:	$15.00
ATM:	No	Cash Only	No
TVs:	6	Size:	Friggin' Huge

Pub in the Park

If you know the secret way around the Squirrel Hill tunnel, then you have probably driven by Pub in the Park a number of times. If you don’t know the secret way around the Squirrel Hill tunnel, forget what you just read. There is absolutely no secret way around the Squirrel Hill tunnel.

Swisshelm Park is a funny little neighborhood. It is squeezed between Swissvale and Frick Park, and you would never know that it is part of the “city.” Pub in the Park is the neighborhood community bar for Swisshelm Park, hence the name. It also seems to serve as a defacto community center for the neighborhood.

Full disclosure, A lives 4 blocks from Pub in the Park. However, he has only been there like 3 times, including our visit for the crawl. If you walk by on St. Paddy’s day or on another Swisshelm Park community event day, the place is bursting at the seams. Normally though, it is just a smoky little neighborhood bar.

It is a good sized bar but it is really poorly laid out. They have a surprising lack of bar stools and seating. We are not sure if seats have not been replaced over the years as they have broken, or if it is a deliberate decision. Either way, we disapprove. It is also a little pricey for what it is.

The lighting is good, and they have a decent beer selection. There are $2 Miller Lights for baseball games, which is nice (A is all about the Buccos, J doesn't like to watch baseball on TV). They use the local pizza/sub shop for their food, which is ok. Veltre’s is passable.

So this place exists. If you ever move to Swissvale or Swisshelm Park, you will probably end up here and have a mediocre time.

Address:	7034 Blackhawk St, 15218 http://pubintheparkpgh.com/	Games:	Darts, Video Poker
Façade:	Scary	Scene:	Local Smokey Dive
Parking:	Easy	Patio/Outdoor:	No
Kitchen:	None	Cleanliness:	Normal
Smoking:	Some	Jukebox:	Internet Crap
Hours:	Tues-Sat -2am, Mon-1am, Sun-12am	Cig Machine:	Yes
Drink Prices:	Above Average	# taps:	10
Bathrooms:	Sit	Specials:	Happy Hour
Live music:	Never	Riley Factor:	$10.50
ATM:	Yes	Cash Only	Yes
TVs:	7	Size:	Normal