The Best Italian Restaurants in Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh celebrates its yearly Italian Days every summer in August , but these eatery incarnate our metropolis ’s Italian side every daytime of the twelvemonth . From red - sauce spot to cross - cultural cooking , these are some of the best Italian restaurant in the Steel City . And while welove pizzaa pile ( like , alot ) , we ’ve exclude many of our favorite places that are pie - orient in favor of the restaurants exploring the remainder of the carb - loaded culinary art .

The Pleasure Bar

You ca n’t make a list of good Italian restaurant in Pittsburgh without commence in Bloomfield , the city ’s Little Italy . The Pleasure Bar has been around since 1941 , under three unlike family owner . The retro decor has n’t changed much over that time ( and includes lots of window for mass watching ) , and neither has the high - quality food . If you ’re await for an honest-to-goodness - school Italian scope with big portions , this place is for you . The gnocchi with meatball entree is dense and filling , but make trusted you save room for tiramisu and coffee .

Girasole

Girasole means “ sunflower ” in Italian , and it ’s a perennial ingredient the restaurant incorporates into some dishes ( the theater salad features helianthus sauce vinaigrette as well as helianthus seeds ) . While the step - down basement setup is reminiscent of a countrified European cafe , the carte reflects contemporaneity , changing with the season . Like a braggy Italian family , be prepared to get cozy with client in this tiny but magical space . The spinach and ricotta cappelletti with gratifying tomato cream sauce is a fan favorite that should n’t be overleap .

Piccolo Forno

Piccolo Forno features a card of Tuscan - style dishful incorporate interesting meats like cony and Elia , while also frolic an interior of traditional conception elements including expose brick . But even if the heart is set up on alimentary paste , which is for sure delicious in its own right , pizza lovers will want to order a Proto-Indo European from the wood - discharge grill . opt from classics like the margherita with crushed tomatoes and mozzarella , or more adventuresome selections like Tartuffo , topped with edible asparagus , truffle oil , corn whiskey , and testis , or the famed Capricciosa with crush tomato , refreshed mozzarella , mushroom , artichoke , European olive tree , prosciutto cotto , and egg . And do n’t forget to bring a feeding bottle of wine-coloured with you : Piccolo Forno is BYOB .

Alla Famiglia

Before you guess to Alla Famiglia , you ’ll need train like you ’re set for a marathon … of run through . As soon as you sit down , all tables are specify with “ Holy Oil ” for dipping locally made bread , which is truly a phantasmal culinary experience . But as tantalizing as it is , try not to occupy up on bread , because there ’s so much more to come . This eatery by all odds like its nub , and the veal is extremely recommended , whether it ’s the veal chop shot Pizzaiolo with red-hot and sweet peppers or the veal chopper Milanese surface and fry in butter . In the summer , try the terrace opinion for alfresco dining . The position , like the food , is breathtaking .

Cenacolo

“ line park ” and “ Italian restaurant ” are rarely uttered in the same sentence , but do n’t let that discontinue you from assay out Cenacolo . The venue is located within the restaurant ’s alimentary paste factory , which provides pasta to fate of area restaurants , and make for a unique ambience with high ceilings in a space that could be trace as “ industrial chic . ” course , you ’ll need to try the homemade pasta – there ’s something for everyone . The lobster ravioli is a standout for its angelic seafood flavors fused with garlic , spinach , and earth-ball cream .

Joseph Tambellini Restaurant

With its bloodless tablecloth and tasteful elegance , this is the unadulterated “ special social function ” Italian restaurant . Lots of duet and families will come here for birthdays , anniversaries , and Nox out because this establishment is genuinely a dainty for the taste bud . When it arrive to appetizer , the sesame calamari cast an Asiatic brandish on an Italian classic , crispy and crunchy with a scented soybean glaze . sample the Mafalda Giancarlo , with your choice of alimentary paste topped with true pine screwball , spinach , and sun - dry tomatoes for a lemonlike twist . The dessert carte du jour is effete , with plenty of after - dinner party options , from lava cake to cannoli to butterscotch punt cake .

Adolfo’s Restaurant

So maybe you care Italian food but sometimes want to pair it with culinary art from a wholly unlike culture ? Enter Adolfo ’s , an Italian and Venezuelan eating house on Liberty Avenue in Bloomfield , which brings the neighborhood into the innovative foodie era with its more foreign flair . Where else can you eat spaghetti and meatballs with a side of spicy arepas with chicken and avocado ? Plus , if you forget to BYOB , sangria is free .

Sienna Mercato

This is n’t just one Italian eating house – it ’s three , each housed on its own separate floor , each operating at a different velocity . At street level , you ’ll findEmporiowith its spread head of meatballs and sauces ; go up a flying and you ’ll be inMezzo , function generous crustal plate of charcuterie , pizzas , pasta , and wine-colored . Go all the way to the third floor to end up atIl Tetto(literally translated as " the roof " ) , one of the most handsomerooftop barsin the Steel City . It ’ll be open even when a couple feet of C get dumped on us – it ’s got a retractable field glass roof .

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Alla Famiglia