Fantas-Tea, Pho Grill coming to Gibsonia.

Signage has gone up for two new places in a Gibsonia plaza: Fantas-Tea and Pho Grill. The former will be a bubble tea place and the latter will be a Vietnamese restaurant. Not much information is available about either, though records indicate both are operated by a Korean couple that operates a beauty salon in Murraysville, and an older website from last year points to a "PhoEverMore" planned for the spot with a catch-all menu featuring pho, fried rice, ramen, and various Asian appetizers. Fantas-Tea and Pho Grill will be located next to each other at the Walnut Creek Plaza, 5316 William Flinn Highway (Route 8) (map).

More signage up for Breakfast With Tiffany in Fox Chapel.

More signage has gone up at 1034 Freeport Road in Fox Chapel (map), where Breakfast With Tiffany will be coming soon. It is next in a long line of Thai places in this spot, and replaces The98 Contemporary Thai Cuisine, which occupied the location for a few months in 2023. It is from the same head chef as Squirrel Hill's Took Took 98, who also ran The98.

Pittsburgh's first Tiger Sugar opening on Saturday, September 7.

Pittsburgh's first Tiger Sugar will open on Saturday, September 7, in Squirrel Hill. Tiger Sugar is an international Taiwanese bubble tea chain with locations around the US.

With humble beginnings in Taichung, Taiwan, in 2017, Tiger Sugar has grown into an undisputed cult brand of Boba worldwide. Our Tiger Sugar drinks not only taste good but tell our unique story with “tiger stripes” that are infused onto all our drinks with unique hand-poured syrups.

They say imitation is the best form of flattery. Many companies have tried to replicate our black sugar bubble tea, but our tried and proven methods stand the test of time.

We use a proprietary 8-hour method for cooking our syrups and tapioca pearls. This results in the perfect marriage of tea, milk, and syrup in every sip.

Our award-winning bubble tea brand is bold, and our unforgettable drink varieties are a testament to this.

It is next to Mango Mango, another international Asian dessert chain that opened its first Pittsburgh location in 2024. Tiger Sugar is located at 5847 Forbes Ave. (map).

Paris Baguette finally opens in Pittsburgh's The Block Northway.

After a last-minute cancellation of its initial September 4 grand opening plans, Pittsburgh's first Paris Baguette has finally opened in The Block Northway this morning. Paris Baguette is a chain of international Korean bakeries, with five planned for the Pittsburgh area. Hours at this location are 7:00 am to 9:00 pm; it's located on the ground floor next to Blaze Pizza.

Opening of Paris Baguette at The Block Northway, originally scheduled for September 4, now delayed.

via @parisbaguetteus 

 

About a day after local press reported on the opening of Pittsburgh's first Paris Baguette, a press release by The Block Northway's Director of Experience states the opening has been delayed, with no new opening date yet established. The cafe's social media has been reporting a September 21 grand opening date, but this has not yet been confirmed by the mall.

Paris Baguette set to open its first Pittsburgh-area location tomorrow, September 4.

Paris Baguette is set to open its first Pittsburgh-area location tomorrow, September 4, in The Block Northway on McKnight Road, according to local media. Paris Baguette is a chain of bakeries ubiquitous throughout South Korea that has over 150 locations across the United States. The menu boasts a wide variety of cakes, baked goods, sandwiches, juices, and coffees, in addition its eponymous French bread. It is the second international Korean bakery chain to open in the Pittsburgh area, after Tous Les Jours in March.

The franchisee said earlier he aims to open five Pittsburgh-area locations, but only the North Hills and Shadyside locations are in progress. It had earlier set September 21st as the grand opening.

Pepper Space grand opening in Oakland, September 2.

Pepper Space, a new Chinese restaurant in Oakland, will be holding its Grand Opening on Monday, September 2. It is located at 4609 Forbes Ave. (map), in the space near Forbes Ave. and S. Craig St. that was long occupied by Orient Express.

Bomb Chicken soft opens in North Oakland.

Bomb Chicken---serving assorted chicken dishes, bubble tea, and Chinese food---soft opened in Oakland on Saturday. It is from the same ownership as Hundred Miles Crepes, which operates in Oakland near the University of Pittsburgh campus. An open sign is illuminated and the interior is nearly done, but signage is not up yet and there is only a few counter spots available for seating, though the dining room should grow in time. It is the latest in a long line of Asian restaurants to open at 256 N. Craig St. (map) over the last decade, including Pad Thai Noodle, Chaing Mai Noodle, Miss Saigon88 Cafe, Ana's Vietnamese Cuisine, Tan Lac Express, and Pad Thai Noodle again.

Ramen King 2 coming soon to the North Hills.

A new ramen restaurant, Ramen King 2, is coming soon to the North Hills. It carries the "2" in its name, as the original Ramen King opened in Canonsburg in October 2022. Ramen King (2) is located in the McIntyre Square shopping center, next to Gabe's, off McKnight Road (map).

Thai Tamarind in Glenshaw holding soft opening Thursday, August 15.

Thai Tamarind is soft opening its second location on Thursday, August 15, located at 2909 Mt. Royal Blvd. (map) in Glenshaw, in a building previously Le Thai Cafe. The original Thai Tamarind opened in Bellevue in August 2015. The new spot's soft opening will start at 4:00 pm.

Miniso coming soon to South Hills Village Mall.

Chinese chain Miniso, "a Japanese-inspired lifestyle product retailer offering high-quality household goods, cosmetics, and food at affordable prices," is coming soon to South Hills Village Mall. The international chain arrived to western Pennsylvania in June with is Greensburg location, and is aiming to open in this suburban Pittsburgh mall in the fall.

MINISO is based on three core principles. Affordable high quality: guides our decisions from design to materials. Joy: the response our customers experience while in our stores. Lighthearted: the relaxed and happy feeling when encountering the large variety of goods available.
MINISO has collaborated with world-famous brands including Coca Cola, Marvel, Hello Kitty, Sesame Street, Mickey and Minnie, Pink Panther, We Bare Bears and Beijing’s Palace Museum, releasing playful crossover products that have been hugely popular with our young shoppers.

Miniso has been described as a "Japanese Hot Topic" or a "Chinese Five Below" and seems to specialize in kawaii products, plushies, Japanese snacks, and various Disney and Sanrio branded products, as well as other Asian products.

via miniso-us.com

Pepper Space coming soon to Oakland, replacing Orient Express.

Signage is up for Pepper Space, coming soon to Oakland in the spot long occupied by Orient Express. Orient Express, near the intersection of S. Craig St. and Forbes Ave., closed in May after 19 years of business. Though menu information is not yet available, if the logo is any preview it looks to promise some of the spicy Chinese cuisine that has grown in popularity in parts of Oakland and neighboring Squirrel Hill over the last decade. Pepper Space will be located at 4609 Forbes Ave. (map).

Pho51 Cafe opens in Brentwood, another Vietnamese restaurant from team behind Saigon88 Express, Pho Saigon Cafe, and Pho Kim 88.

Pho51 Cafe opened last month in Brentwood in the South Hills. The restaurant, which has been in the works since last fall, features pho, bunbohue, spring rolls, and bobble tea, with an assortment of other Asian dishes and appetizers. It is run by the same ownership of Saigon88 Express in Robinson and Pho Saigon Cafe in Bethel Park, both of which have opened in the last five years, and Castle Shannon's Pho Kim 88, which opened in 2006.

Oakland's TW Kitchen to close; a second Norheastern Kitchen to take its spot.

TW Kitchen, a Taiwanese (primarily) take-out restaurant, announced on social media last night that it will close, its owners set to enjoy retirement. TW Kitchen opened in March 2019 on North Craig St. in North Oakland. It will be replaced by another spot called Northeastern Kitchen, which already operates a is independent from the spot in Squirrel Hill with the same name. Here is the announcement, from their Facebook:

【中文版在下面】

Dearest customers,

After 5 years of business, we are regretfully announcing the closure of TW Kitchen. We have been running restaurants in Pittsburgh for nearly 30 years now, and after these many years of hard work, we are looking forward to the calm of retirement. It has been a great pleasure to serve the residents of Oakland our authentic Taiwanese food, and we humbly thank all of you for your patronage.

A new restaurant, Northeastern Kitchen, will be coming soon later this month, specializing in dishes and dumplings from Northeastern China! Please give them your love and support. If you purchased a prepaid card from us, you can continue to use it at Northeastern Kitchen!

With deep appreciation,
Stephen and Jenny Chow

親愛的顧客，

經過這5年的營業，我們台味厨坊已於7月31日結束營業。我們總共在匹兹堡經營餐館接近30年，經過這些年的辛苦工作，我們決定退休過平靜的日子。非常榮幸這些年服務奧克蘭地區所有喜愛台灣料理的顧客們。非常感謝各位的支持與惠顧。

接下來【東北厨房】將繼續在這個地點服務各位，他們專精中國東北菜色，包括水餃，包子等等，請繼續給與他們支持。如果你有買我們的預付卡，也可在【東北厨房】繼續使用！

非常感謝各位，
Stephen and Jenny Chow

Kyo Matcha and Meetcha soft opening in Squirrel Hill today, holding Grand Opening on July 27 and 28.

Dessert spots Kyo Matcha and Meetcha are holding a soft opening in Squirrel Hill today followed by a Grand Opening this weekend. They'll be located at 5864 Forbes Ave. (map) in the former Footers Cleaners spot where signage first went up in October. Kyo Matcha, according to its official site,

is an international chain of Matcha desserts dedicated to creating top-quality raw materials. Due to the influence of the Japanese-style matcha culture, the Kyoto Matcha is based on the brand mission of “Let the Tea Return to the Forest”, rooted in the traditional Japanese tea culture and dedicated to the promotion of Matcha culture.

Meetcha is a bubble tea place. This is the latest in a recent batch of Asian dessert openings in Squirrel Hill, following Meccha Matcha, Mango Mango, and Tiger Sugar.

Work progresses on KYURAMEN, TBaar, both coming soon to Pittsburgh.

Work is progressing on national ramen chain KYURAMEN and national bubble tea chain TBaar, both coming soon to East Liberty. KYURAMEN was announced last July for Eastside Bond in East Liberty. TBaar was not announced, though signage went up recently in the spot next door and on the signposts. In response to an inquiry, KYURAMEN ownership indicated a potential September opening.


The Eastside Bond building welcomed Tous Les Jour, the international Korean bakery, in March, the first of the huge Korean chains to open in Pittsburgh.

Grapow Asian Street Food opening July 17.

Grapow Asian Street Food will be opening in Oakland on July 17. Signage first went up in early June at 411 S. Craig St. (map) in what was briefly and most recently the neighborhood's second Chick'n. It will be open 11 am to 9 pm. Grapow is the name of a Thai street food dish, and sneak peeks at the menu are available on the restaurant's Instagram.

Itamae Thai & Sushi Bar now open in Mt. Lebanon.

Itamae Thai & Sushi Bar has recently opened in Mt. Lebanon, holding its Grand Opening on July 5. Mt. Lebanon Magazine profiled the restaurant on May 10 when it was still in the works:

Hungry for sushi? A new restaurant called Itamae is coming soon to 193 Castle Shannon Boulevard, replacing Yum Yum Asian Cuisine, which closed in February.

Itamae is Japanese for chef, or someone who works behind a cutting board. The new concept will be Thai and sushi. The decor will be Asian/Japanese.

Indonesian-born Vick Oktavian and his wife, Katie Kaewwangworn, are self-proclaimed foodies with years of culinary experience. “We love checking out different restaurants and trying different cuisine. We are firm believers that in order to make good food, we must train our taste buds by eating good food,” said Oktavian.

It is located at 193 Castle Shannon Blvd. (map).

Sushi Atarashi, Wushiland Boba to open in East End's Meridian development next spring.

Sushi Atarashi, a small chain of sushi restaurants in Pittsburgh, and national bubble tea chain Wushiland Boba are confirmed as tenants for the East End Meridian development in Shadyside set to open next spring, according to restaurant ownership and a June 25 Pittsburgh Business Times article.

Sushi Atarashi is the rebranded outcome of Sushi Fuku, as the two split back in 2015 with the S. Craig St. location in Oakland retaining the original name. Sushi Atarashi---atarashi means "new" in Japanese---has several locations around the Pittsburgh area in addition to the original Oakland Avenue location, and is aiming to open a revolving sushi restaurant in Robinson later this summer. Restaurant ownership confirms revolving sushi will be part of this new Meridian location as well. Wushiland Boba is a growing chain that opened its first Pittsburgh location in January. Sushi Atarashi and Wushiland Boba will join Market District, Shake Shack, and Barnes & Noble at The Meridian, which is replacing a small strip mall in Shadyside.

Signage up at Shadyside's Paris Baguette.

Temporary window signage is up at 5514 Walnut St. (map), where a Paris Baguette is coming soon. It is one of two Pittsburgh-area locations for the Korean bakery chain, though the franchisee aims to open five throughout the region.

Paris Baguette will be the second international Korean bakery chain to open in Pittsburgh, following Tous Les Jours in March 2024. The bakeries are part of a recent wave of national and international chains finally opening locations in Pittsburgh after ignoring the area for years; these chains include Mango Mango, Tiger Sugar, Kpot, Kyuramen, Top Pot Hotpot & Korean BBQ, and Wushiland Boba, among others. In my view these chains are a healthy, welcome complement to local restaurants and cafes, a sign that Pittsburgh is able and very willing to support the franchises we see in many larger or similarly-sized cities.