While browsing Social House 7’s menu of fantastically crafted fusion dishes like their chee fried sprouts and fiery firecracker shrimp, it is hard to believe that their creator’s original career path was not in the restaurant industry.

The following is an outline of a plan by the Downtown Neighbors Alliance to revitalize Downtown Pittsburgh post COVID-19.

Weekends in Pittsburgh call for brunch, but where can you go to get the best food, drinks, and atmosphere for your springtime soiree? Here are six of the DNA’s top picks to have a tasty brunch in the Golden Triangle.

Without a doubt, the best meal we ate this week was the chicken katsu don rice bowl from Yuzu Kitchen.

From Turkish cafes and Japanese izakaya style restaurants to Italian and Chinese eateries, a visit Downtown is sure to satisfy any culinary craving you may have. However, the best Chinese restaurant in the area lies just 10 minutes outside of the Golden Triangle.

With one bite of lamb kofte kebab or shrimp saute at Alihan’s Mediterranean Cuisine, you’ll be left wondering who is behind not only your delicious meal but also the moniker of the restaurant.

Chef Wei Zhu comes from 3 generations of chefs and started cooking when he was 15 years old in his family’s restaurant in Chengdu, China. He opened his own restaurant in China before coming to America in 2005 to attend culinary school, destined to learn how to cook the perfect steak.

This project can make an impact on the lifestyle of Downtowners and we are committed to leading the way to create a healthy neighborhood in Downtown Pittsburgh.

Last Thursday, May 4th, the Downtown Neighbors Alliance hosted our Downtown Experience Awards Dinner which serves to celebrate the advancement of Downtown Pittsburgh and honor three of its most impactful citizens.

Downtown Neighbors Alliance went to PaPa J’s this week to taste their wedding soup. We made a great choice of restaurants and a great selection to try. Wedding soup is sometimes called Italian Penicillin, because this bone broth soup is a comfort food that heals the sick.

Michael Troiani has been around the restaurant industry his whole life. As one of eight children, he jokes that “a Sunday dinner was like a restaurant event.” When he was 9, his father opened Papa J’s first location in Cranberry where he spent his youth cleaning tables and his later years in the kitchen before taking the reins of ownership around 2000.

Downtown Pittsburgh will host the area’s first Asian food festival called Taste of Asia at The Pittsburgh Playhouse. The event will feature a selection of dishes from the area’s top Asian restaurants including Essence, Zen Restaurant and Sushi Bar, Shanghai Tokyo and Chengdu Gourmet 2 as well as organic juices provided by 1:11 Juice Bar.

This week the DNA staff went to a few downtown restaurants and shared a few meals. The consensus was the Broccoli Chicken entree at Nicky's Thai was the best dish we ate this week.

Downtown Pittsburgh will be teeming with activity this Friday April 28th as the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust hosts their quarterly Gallery Crawl in the Cultural District.

A neon red sign in the front window of the Cultural District fusion restaurant, Social House 7, reads “Keep your friends close and your sushi closer.” After trying their Godzilla roll with its crispy tempura shrimp, savory seared tuna, and tangy seaweed salad, you will surely understand why.

Quantum Theatre explores all of the above plus much more in their newest show, “The Devil is a Lie.” Written by Jennifer Chang and directed by Kyle Haden, the show details the story of George Fast, CEO of data analytics company Voltaire, celebrating the company’s best quarter yet with the company’s investors, which are played by the audience.

The Greater Downtown has places to help you celebrate the savory hand pies that can easily serve as a snack, appetizer or entrée. Empanadas are a culinary cousin of the pierogi, which is probably why Downtowners love them.

Pittsburgh Police Officer Brian Wissner, a Pittsburgh native who has served Zone 2 since 2011, then spoke about how Pittsburgh is helping the city’s homeless population, especially those with addiction and mental health issues.

The restored Union Trust Building on Fifth Avenue and William Penn Place, one of Pittsburgh’s most iconic landmarks, is now home to Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse. It’s no secret that this American steakhouse makes an impression on those who are rarely impressed.