Allow me to begin this posting by sharing some drastic (but really exciting!!!) changes that are about to happen in this blogger’s life. First, since my last posting, I have graduated from the University of Pittsburgh, accepted a full time position with Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, and signed a lease on an apartment in the Old Fourth Ward of Atlanta, GA. That’s right… Sweet-Cakes and Milkshakes is headed down South!
What does this mean for you?
- W ell, it means the next time you’re in Atlanta, you can find some great eats first on this blog. I’m keeping up the tradition, one restaurant per week for my time in Atlanta (at least one year). As we’ve already discovered, one of the best ways to learn about a city is to discover its food. Looks like some sweet tea and southern bbq will be on the menu!
- It also means that you can still come here for Pittsburgh food choices. I’m behind on posting (by about a month, yikes!). But, good news! I have this week off, so I’ll be catching up and filling you in on my last four weeks of Pittsburgh restaurant visits.
- And finally, it means that you can find me at a new address. I’m buying www.sweet-cakesandmilkshakes.com and I’ll be designing my own site, so be looking for this URL to forward you to my new and hipper site!
But for now, allow me to begin that catch-up. Two weeks ago, my co-op co-workers and I met up for a “final hurrah” before graduation. Lunch at Luma (just two hours before a final exam, always the responsible decision).
Luma is a past hangout of my supervisor, who lived in Aspenwall a couple of years ago. I had heard nothing but great things, so, naturally, it was on the list! Luma is located right off of Freeport Road across the Highland Park Bridge (trust me, it’s worth crossing the river). This four roomed establishment includes a bar and a “garden room” – AKA, a room with three walls that are windows. Despite our arrival to what seemed to be a pretty slow day for lunch, we were surprised to find that we needed a reservation (which, thankfully, we had made). Right at noon, the place was filled.
Our meals consisted of a mixture of salads and sandwiches. And, the soups were irrestistable, so we all used some lobster bisque and house soups as a starter. If there is one food that I am over critical of, it is lobster bisque (a few years a go I waited tables at a café that served the best bisque in the South Jersey area). LUMA delivered, I’d say that their bisque was as good if not better than that of my little café’s.
Here are some other highlights of our meals:
- Delicious fresh bread with olive oil – CHECK.
- Unique salads – CHECK.
- And the salmon? Quote all three of my coworkers: “This might be the best prepared salmon that I have ever had” – HIGH PRAISE! All three of them had it paired with a different type of salad. So, well prepared food – CHECK.
- But what if you’re a burger person? Well just ask Andrew, who we all correctly predicted would go with the Chophouse Burger. He loved it (and the side was a healthy fruit salad to help balance out the meal). Classic American food – CHECK.
- And the price? Well, it’s a little pricey. A “special occasion” place would be the way I’d put it.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Venture across that bridge and check out LUMA for a fun gathering with coworkers or a nice date night. LUMA will be on my list for when I’m back in the Burgh to visit “the old stomping grounds!”
