Sewickley Saturday

This afternoon, I'm doing my usual weekend ritual of blogging while doing laundry at my favorite laundromat in Shadyside. While waiting on my clothes to get sloshy-fresh, I'll recount my day stay-cation with Husband from now two weekends ago in Sewickley. {I promise, this will be the last Sewickley post for a while.}

We began our stay-cation to Sewickley by driving over the 40th Street Bridge across the Allegheny River, then veered out towards our destination. It was a foggy morning, which is somewhat typical in PGH during transitional weather times.

We arrived in Sewickley at 9:30AM, full of coffee and ready for the day. Our first stop was the Sewickley Spa, where I'd arranged for both Husband and I to have a de-knotting neck and back treatment. This is the most popular treatment, and that's surely because it's a great relief for those that work at a computer all day.  

The spa is in a covered house on Beaver Street, one of the main drags in the small town of Sewickley. This is typical for many other small businesses in the area. 

Adorable, yes?

I snapped a quick photo of Husband and I before we went in for our treatment. 

Inside, the house was outfitted with serene decorations/colors. I was cavalier enough to take a few photos while changing into my robe in the bathroom. {I didn't want to be that person.}

After our glorious de-knotting massage treatment, we decompressed in the waiting area. We had our choice of hot tea, lemon water, trail mix, little cakes, and tarts. Of course, we HAD to sample them all.

Husband's declaration of manhood.

We sat there for a good half hour, and weren't disturbed at all. Lovely.

As we were leaving, we noticed a small water feature in the front of the house, complete with little goldfish.

Now that the relaxation was over, it was time to get down to business. We walked up Beaver Street, and enjoyed the "small town-ness" of it all.

We stopped at The Sewickley Cafe for an early lunch {read the review here}, and began shopping in the boutiques and shops afterwards. Evidently, Sewickley was having a soup crawl, and many of the shop owners were participating. {So, WHY did we go PAY for lunch?!?}

Our first stop was in House 15143, which featured a soup from Vivo Kitchen {another restaurant on my wish list}.

A word about the shop - it's incredible. It was a reflection of what we're hoping to achieve in our guest room*, colors and all. Grey and yellow are my "thing" right now. And chevron, it seems.

House 15143 is trendy without being vapid. Sometimes home decor can be just "what's hot" rather than useful. Case-in-point. 

Husband enjoyed the wall of candles, before we moved on. {If you saw my elated post on Facebook, I'll discuss that pillow later!}

We walked along the main streets of Sewickley, and I captured a few photos as we dodged the hungry soup-crawlers.

Inside another home decor shop on Beaver St.

The small town charm was almost too much to take.

Jewelry corner in Threadz Boutique. Look at that chair!

We stopped into Village Candy, and gaped at their selection of bottled drinks. 

Husband, without doubt, chose a Dublin Dr Pepper {May it rest in peace}. 

He's happy about it.

I went for a new-to-me drink - Cheerwine. Unfortunately, there's no wine in the ingredient list, and it tastes strangely like Cherry Coke, but I drink it happily. I can't even imagine how good an ice cream float would be with this stuff.

Then, we decided to get a good look at the non-commercial areas of Sewickley by taking a car tour. With the windows down. The breeze blowing and the sun shining, it was a glorious drive. The houses were insane. If you're looking for that small-town, babyville, this is it! It would be perfect to raise a family there. {Don't get any ideas.}

We ended the day with a dinner of wine and light bites at The Naked Grape Enoteca {You can read my review here}. 

What a delightful day! It was nice to escape the city for a day and enjoy Sewickley. Where should we explore next?

*Note: We're renting this house in Lawrenceville with an extra bedroom + bathroom {guest suite!} for when folks from Texas come visit this summer. It was a mad dash to finish it, what with our first guest coming in mid-April. Look out for a post on the finished suite!

PGH Dining: The Sewickley Cafe

Yes, I'm still writing about Sewickley. It seems like we were there ages ago, but I still have so much to say. Maybe by this weekend I'll be finished, and can get back to city musings. 

Husband and I grabbed an early lunch at The Cafe Gourmet Provisions Sewickley The Sewickley Cafe, located on one of the main drags of the town, Beaver Street. As more people piled in, we discovered there was patio seating in the back {which would had been lovely on a sparkling, sunny day like that.} Instead, we sat at a table near the wall, and took in the long bar, open kitchen and cold case full of layered cakes. We made a mental note.

 We decided to try and order something healthy, but completely lost that thought when we saw the chicken salad and truffled fries. Now, I've had a truffled fry in my time, and could have chosen to pass these up. But, I'm glad I didn't. 

 They were delicious. Crispy, and odorous with that truffly stink. Loved it. 

The chicken was in chunks, which is fine in my book. I can eat this version or the milled-up kind and be happy. This particular chicken salad had a mayonnaise dressing, and featured halved purple grapes. 

Seeded bread crust.

 We also shared the coconut shrimp salad. That's healthy, right? Shrimp? Lettuce? Well, it does have fried shrimp and a butter croissant, but it was light and fresh. We were pleased with the tart dressing that accompanied it, too.

 Finally, since everything had gone to hell in a hand basket, we ordered a large, thick slice of lemon cake. {Which strangely turned out to look strikingly like birthday cake.}

 I'm not a fan of the fluffy, Cool Whip-like icing this cake was covered in, but that didn't stop me from taking a few bites. The lemon flavor of the cake came shining through, but Husband finished it off.

There are so many food options to try in Sewickley, and The Sewickley Cafe holds it's own. My one comment would be for management to consider a less confusing logo, and maybe stick with featuring just the name of the restaurant. Too many words confuse people!

Neighborhood: Sewickley

Good For: Brunch, Lunch

Gems: Patio Seating, Cake

Drawbacks: What is this place called?

 

What I Wore {Sewickley Saturday}

Last weekend, Husband and I continued our "stay-cations" in and around Pittsburgh by visiting the {Borough of} Sewickley. And, guess what - this is what I wore. 

PGH Dining: The Naked Grape Enoteca

I'm going a bit out of order, and I'm skipping other reviews to write one on the Naked Grape Enoteca. It's worth it. 

We received several recommendations from Husband's coworkers that live in or near Sewickley to try the Naked Grape while we were there on our stay-cation this weekend. We walked in at 5:00PM on Saturday evening, and were immediately seated at our table of choice...outside. The weather was lovely. The tables were not fully extended because the restaurant had just opened for the evening, but the tables could seat up to 5 or 6 people. 

But before we get to the wine and food, take a look at the decor on the inside:

Gift sets and wine accoutrement. 

We sat at the table close to the door, and enjoyed the sunset while looking over their order form menu. The Naked Grape works differently than other wine bars/bistros. They are a wine tasting room, with the availability to order bottles or cases of wine. In PA, that's a beautiful thing. {The laws/regulations here are super strict.}

Our sommelier/owner/waitress/lady friend, Ryta, explained that they serve guests wine flights, which feature the wines they frequently order. Great! Sounds like a plan for dinner to me. Pour me a glass, let me hold my Husband's hand, and I'll take in the air while watching the pedestrians, bicyclists and baby strollers go by. 

Our first wine selection was a Sauvignon Blanc from Chafen Vineyards from California. This was one of our favorites, and so much so that we ordered a bottle to take home. {A white wine that Husband actually likes?! Unheard of!}

$24.79/bottle

We then dove into ordering light bites, starting with the biggest thing on their menu: the cheese and meat plate. And, WAS this a PLATE! Salami, Capicola, salted grapes {how rustic Italian!}, artichokes, three cheese wedges {one cow, one sheep and I think another cow}, almonds, walnuts, apricots, olives, and caper berries. Absolutely worth the price {$14}, and perfect with the white wine. 

We then had the Latah Creek Chardonnay {$15.79/bottle}, followed by the Gold Ring Vineyards' Cabernet Sauvignon {16.49/bottle}.

Ryta, one of the owners, was there each step of the flight, sharing her knowledge with us. She was easy-going, and I enjoyed having her to guide us through our hour and a half dinner.

Ryta with the Gold Ring Vineyard's Cab Sav.

I stopped to snap a photo of their plates. Look at that color!

We finished the meal with a plate of hummus, and the bonus pour they were serving for the evening. It was a Chilean wine, which rank among my top picks. {The Consul Chileno Carmenere to be exact. $15.89/bottle.}

Hummus, served with cracked black pepper crackers and olive oiled toasts.

You can view their wine menu here, which while from December 2011, it still features many of the wines we had on Saturday. 

We are so pleased to have made it to the Naked Grape Enoteca and tasted a few of their wines and bites. From the great prices to the detailed selection of the wines they offered, I'm sure we'll continue to order wines from Ryta and her husband, and visit each time we're in Sewickley. Thanks for a lovely meal!

Neighborhood: Sewickley

Good For: Dates, Happy Hour, Group Dinners, Weekend Activity

Gems: Owners, Wine Quality

Drawbacks: Waiting for your ordered wine to come in!