Great Allegheny Passage Trail and Smoke

Burn:  The Great Allegheny Passage Trail is located at the Waterfront in Homestead.  If you take the entrance closest to the Rankin Bridge, you will see the Pump House on your right and parking for the trail.  It's a substantially long trail since it meets up with the C&O Canal and heads to D.C., so it is good for long training runs.  I think what I like most about this trail is that it appeals to my inner Pittsburgher.  You end up in the woods, running along side train tracks with a view of Edgar Thompson across the Monongahela.  If that isn't Pittsburgh, what is?  I think most Pittsburghers have at least one connection to a mill or mine.  (My grandfather worked the mines.)  I loved running this trail and looking at the monster across the river, seeing the smoke puffing out of the stacks, listening to the train whistles and thinking, "These are my roots, and it's really good to be home."  I had a moment. (Don't judge.)  Did I mention you also run behind Kennywood?  Come on, what can be cooler?  I think it has surpassed Frick as my favorite running spot.   

 

 This thing is MASSIVE!!  Probably a big funnel that they used in some steel mill.  Of course, I had to climb in it for a picture.

 Brunch:  Smoke BBQ and Taqueria.  225 East 8th Ave, Homestead.  This is a hidden gem of Pittsburgh.  Seriously, I felt like I was transported back to Austin, TX (where the owners came from).  The tacos were amazing and the mac 'n' cheese was pretty darn good too.  Everything is fresh, organic and delicious.  Lots of things are spicy, so if you have a sensitive palate (like Lindsay) you have to tread lightly.  I had a brisket breakfast taco and a chorizo breakfast taco with avocado crème.  Have I mentioned that I lived in Texas for six months?  I feel I am a very good judge of brisket, and this was good.  I'm glad the Texans didn't lose their BBQ skills when they moved north because going to Smoke is much cheaper than airfare to Austin.  Also, they make their own chorizo (what originally drew me to this place).  For those that love horchata, they have that here too.  I tried their Kiwi Aqua Fresca a.k.a. kiwi lemonade.  Again, freshly made and perfect after running six miles.  It's BYOB, so next time I'm bringing a six pack of my favorite brew (maybe a Shinerbock just to keep with the Texas spirit), but you can bring your own favorite libation.  Smoke is kind of a no-nonsense, good food, laidback type of joint, and I'm so happy I found it.   

Oakmont Arboretum Trail and Oakmont Bakery

This Saturday, I went to Lindsay's turf to run the Oakmont Arboretum Trail.  Oakmont is known for two things.  One is Oakmont Country Club which holds the US Open every now and again.  The second is Oakmont Bakery which happens to be our "brunch" this week. 

Burn: The Arboretum Trail is a nice, easy run.  It's a paved trail along the railroad that cuts downtown Oakmont in half.  The websites list it being 1.4 miles long.  Unless we missed a portion of it, my Garmin had it being .8 miles long.  Luckily, Lindsay and I were only running two miles today, so an out and back from her house sufficed.  Then a stroll to the bakery was a nice cool-down.

Brunch: The Oakmont Bakery. The picture left is of one of the seven cases of goodies ranging from bagels and bread to cakes and cookies. Oh, let's not forget the rows and rows of donuts that they have on the walls. You can't order something bad at Oakmont Bakery. This is why they've been around for so long, and why the once, hole-in-the-wall bakery I remember going to as a kid is now remodeled and living up to the posh Oakmont standard. I ordered a Paczki (a Polish, filled donut) and Lindsay ordered a maple, bacon donut. Yes, you read it correctly. This donut was covered in maple frosting and crispy bacon. There is truly something for everyone at Oakmont Bakery. It also has a full coffee bar and a cute little sitting area if you don't want to take you confections to go.

Schenley Park and the Porch at Schenley

This is very delayed, but better late than never, right? 

The view of Pittsburgh from Schenley Oval

Burn:  Schenley Park
I think the first thing that needs to be addressed is Plan Your Run!  Lindsay and I did a four miler, and I thought I had a good idea of where we were going.  That was not the case.  We did four miles of lost.  Also, LOTS OF HILLS!  I guess I need to surrender to the idea that I'm not living in Florida anymore.  The plus side, it's good for your butt.  I think we will try it again and run the Panther Hollow trail next time. 
The second thing that needs to be mentioned is the view from the Oval.  Wow!  I grew up going to ice skate there, and I don't remember the city looking so beautiful or the awesome view of the Cathedral.  It's a good place to end a long run.  It makes a nice reward.

Brunch:  The Porch at Schenley



Southern Tier's 2Xmas

The Porch is located across from Hillman library and the Pitt student union.  My favorite part of breakfast was our appetizer of farm bread.  OMG...This bread is amazing!  Plus, it comes with homemade jam, apple butter and honey butter.  You can also buy a loaf to go.  Which, of course, I left with.
For our main courses, Lindsay had the Farm Bread Breakfast Sandwich and I had the daily fritatta.  She complained.  The bacon was not crispy enough and the egg was over easy.  Personally, I wouldn't care.  I guess if you want this sandwich, specify how you like your egg and bacon cooked.  I enjoyed my fritatta.  It was a bacon, arugula and crab fritatta.  The fritatta and quiche change daily.  Both of the dishes came with a side of home-style potatoes and a curry ketchup.  The ketchup was weird.  I've done curry mayo before, but adding it to ketchup did not please my palate.  I opted for the plain old Heinz. 
The Porch has great beer and great cocktails.  Lindsay and I had to stay for a pint because I wanted to try Southern Tier's 2XMAS that they had on tap.  Also, a lot of their cocktails are made with Wigle Whiskey, Pittsburgh's own whiskey distillery.  (Wigle is on Smallman St. and they have tours.  It's a must!)

 

Porch gets two thumbs up from me.  Lindsay was a little disappointed, but enjoyed it enough to give it another try.

Highland Park and Park Bruges

This week is a little out of order.  This is actually from November 10.  I was lazy over my Thanksgiving break and did not Burn although Brunch was a Square Cafe again.  (I'm telling you.  If you haven't tried it yet, it's a must.  They just updated their menu with more wintery items.)  Ok, onto the highlighted week!

The Burn:  For this week's run, Lindsay and I went to Highland Park because it's an easy run.  Ok, it was because I wanted to eat at Park Bruges, the sister restaurant to Point Brugge in Point Breeze.  Highland Park is a nice run if you don't want to do a lot of mileage.  If you want to do anything over four miles, you would have to explore outside of the park.  Staying inside the park limits would be too boring (at least for me).  There are two main loops. The Reservoir Road is 1.1 miles, and the reservoir itself is approximately .75 miles.  There is some elevation, but not enough to get your butt burning, so not too bad.  Now onto the more exciting part of this week's blog.

Brunch:  Oh Park Bruges, you are amazing!!  The only bad thing about Park Bruges is that it doesn't open until 11, BUT the food, atmosphere and drinks are great!  I am normally an early riser and like to run and eat early too, but this meal was worth the late start.  Plus, the later start gave me an excuse to try one of the awesome beers they had on tap.  I went a little unconventional this week with Montreal Poutine and crab beignets with a Prankster golden ale.  Yes, that is a picture of french fries, gravy and cheese curds (poutine).  The crab beignets were good, but very rich.  They had them listed as an entree.  I think they are better as an app so that you can share them.  They were so rich I could only eat one.  Lindsay got the sausage gravy which gave Jacksonville's Metro Diner a run for their money.  (I didn't think you could get good, southern sausage gravy in the north.  I am officially wrong.) If you make it to Park Bruges, ensure you get the bacon.  It's award winning from Wisconsin!

Duff Park and Dick's Diner

BURN:  This week we traveled out RT 22 and explored Duff Park in Murrysville.  I really liked this park for many reasons.  First, there are a lot of trails to choose from depending on your workout and skill level.  Secondly, everyone was so friendly!!! Lindsay and I passed about 10-15 people on the trail and there wasn't one person who didn't say hi.  For our run, we ran an out and back on the Funk Bike trail for about a mile and then went onto the Fernwood trail for a half mile before turning around.  There were some hills, but nothing crazy.  Here is a link to the park.  I highly recommend making the trek out.  It was a great run.
DUFF PARK TRAIL MAP

BRUNCH:  Nothing too special this week.  It's just a good ol' diner food.  Dick's Diner has been around for quite sometime.  The sign says 1946.  I don't think you can order a bad item on this menu.  This week it was chocolate chip pancakes and french toast.  The positives: they ask you how many slices/cakes you want.  Why get a stack of three if I can barely eat two?  They also make italian bread french toast.  YUM!  Personally, I think it's the best kind.  Finally, you can't go to Dick's Diner and not take a piece of pie home.  My fav is the coconut creme pie, but the list is long and extensive.  I would actually suggest having pie for breakfast.  Why not?

Frick and the Square Cafe

 BURN: Last Saturday, Lindsay and I decided to start our first blog submission running Frick Park and eating at Square Cafe.  For those of you not familiar with the area, Frick Park is located in Regent Square - Edgewood/Swisswale exit of 376 E.  There are a ton of trails, allowing you to choose your own adventure.  If you park in the lower lot, the trails are mainly flat.  Park off of South Braddock Ave. by the tennis courts and you can create a hillier route.  Lindsay and I did an easy two miles this weekend.  As you can see by the pictures, it's beautiful.

BRUNCH: Oh the Square Cafe.  How I love this place!  It's good food, a great crowd and tons of options.  Get there early though if you don't like to wait.  It's even more important now since the colder weather is deterring people from sitting outside.  If you do have a wait, no worries, you can get a cup of coffee from the bar.  

Pumpkin Walnut Pancakes with Nutella/marscopone topping

Square Cafe always has specials normally a sweet option and a savory option.  This week they featured pumpkin walnut pancakes with a nutella marscapone topping for the sweet.  The pancakes were good; the topping AMAZING!  This was Lindsay's choice.  I couldn't resist my "go to" selection-Lemon Ricotta Pancakes.  Everything about this pancake is perfect. The lemon isn't overpowering.  It's enough to notice it and overall delicious.  If you don't do sweet, they have a mess of savory dishes that will knock your socks off as well.  And for those of us with a crunchy side, they get a lot of their veggies from local farmers.  They offer vegan, vegetarian and even gluten-free           options.  Check it out!

Lemon Ricotta Pancake=delish!

The inception...

I figure a good place to start is an introduction and explanation of how this blog came to be.  First, my name is Janine Curcio.  I am a 30-yr-old first year medical student.  In my previous life (how I refer to my time before moving back home and attending medical school) I was a Navy Lieutenant and a P-3 Naval Flight Officer stationed in Jacksonville, FL.
The Burn.  Running has always been a way to explore.  Whether it was escaping the yard of the Naval Academy for 30 minutes while I was a midshipman, or making a right through my Jacksonville neighborhood for once instead of my normal left.  The Navy has given me a chance to run all over the world, and for that, I'm thankful.  (I don't think many people can say that they ran Deception Pass park in Whidbey Island, WA and the Ford Island Bridge, overlooking the Arizona Memorial in the same week.  Two of my favorite runs for very different reasons.)  I'm a casual runner and embrace the phase, "slow and steady wins the race."  I also say, "My running habit supports my eating/drinking habit." This leads me to...
Brunch.  I love breakfast.  I like it in a box.  I like it with a fox.  I would eat it as breakfast or as brunch or brinner.  I do not discriminate against eggs, pancakes, french toast, or any type of breakfast meat.  It is all glorious.
The Burn and Brunch.   In my previous life, I had free time.  Free time was consumed by running, riding my bike, cooking, exploring, brunch, finding the best happy hour, finding the best beer, baking and yoga.  All this was done with amazing friends, with my dog or by myself.  (I never let "party of one" hold me back.)  Fast forward to now.  Most of my time is consumed by reading pages upon pages of text books with no pictures and class.  I had to figure out a way to kill a couple birds with one stone.  After not seeing my best friend, Lindsay, for a month, I suggested to meet up for a run and breakfast.  I love Frick Park and the Square Cafe in Regent Square.  It was decided and a great Saturday morning.  Then, the tunnel closures made us be a bit more flexible.  Using my Googling skills, I suggested Highland Park for week two since I wanted to eat in Lawrenceville (again, running supporting where I want to eat).  Seeing a blog or two about running, I wanted to create my own.   Over this week's breakfast, Maura's Favorite Gyro Breakfast, Lindsay and I created "The Burgh's Burn and Brunch."   Who doesn't love running and breakfast on a Saturday morning?  I invite you to read this blog for information about running in the Greater Pittsburgh area.  I invite you to read if you want to learn about some great places to satisfy your weekend breakfast cravings.  I invite you to read this blog if you run to support your eating habits just like me.

Some Burn and Brunch techniques (not procedure):
Bring an extra shirt to change into for brunch.  Sweat + coldness=chill=freezing through brunch
Bring a hat if you have short hair for brunch.  Running + sweat=messy hair=hot mess