East Carson St, Southside Flats

This street is really happenin’. There are tons of bars, clubs, and galleries. You could spend the day on into the night on E. Carson. You can start the day, as we did at the Beehive Coffeehouse, which was fun and different. We don’t know much about art, but the LaFond Gallery was great. They have beautiful art and the people who work there are very happy to share their knowledge. We ended up not going to the place we had planned on for dinner and ate at Dee’s Café, where we played a couple of games of pool after eating. On a pub crawl, we especially liked the Lava Lounge and Fat Heads. I wish we had saved room for a HeadBurger. They looked sooooo good.

East Carson Street is one of the most lively streets in Pittsburgh and for that reason it is one of the best streets to visit, but maybe not the best one to live on. It is the heart of the bar scene in Pittsburgh and is home to establishments that serve almost every scene in the city. There are sports bars, pool halls, hooka bars, gay-friendly drinking spots, coffeehouses, and even a tiki bar and a bar popular with the biker scene. All of this activity makes Carson a great place to spend a night, but also very loud and filled with traffic. I know that many residents complain about disturbances from drunk people and traffic noise. However, there is also a convenience to living near Carson. Not only is there a great bar scene, there are also nearby cultural attractions. The Silver Eye photography center is there and the City Theatre is nearby. There are also a fair number of music venues including the Rex, Club Café and Diesel. During the day, you can shop in the small and eclectic boutiques to the west of the Birmingham bridge including some great bookstores, an interesting shop for “green” products called the E-House Company and some really special restaurants (like Café du Jour and Nakama). For good cheap eats from a colorful local, visit Cambodican Kitchen. On the east side of the bridge, there is a large “lifestyle” center with a Sur Le Table and H&M. You can definitely get everything you need within walking distance if you live on Carson, but you may find it hard to sleep. That said, it is one of my favorite places in the city.