*DISCLAIMER* All of these photos are my own. I do not claim monetary benefits on Meat & Potatoes’ dishes.

This past Saturday, I attended the Pittsburgh Restaurant Week Winter 2014 Food Blogger Brunch at Meat & Potatoes! 😀 I was SO grateful to have this opportunity! I have wished to attend one of the blogger events since the start of Pittsburgh Restaurant Week. FINALLY, the stars have aligned just for me, and my schedule cooperated.

There were 19 food bloggers in total; all of us were seated at the Private Chef’s Table at Meat & Potatoes (which, I would tell you where it is, but then I might have CIA agents chasing after me…). This room was impeccably designed! I thoroughly enjoyed meeting and networking with the other bloggers.

ANYWHO… on to the FOOD! 😀 

Dish #1: Oatmeal- bacon lardons/braised apples/spiced walnuts. Tied with one (possibly two) other dish(es) as my FAVORITE dish of the blogger brunch! I loved that Meat & Potatoes provided a healthier brunch option. Despite the healthy connotation of this dish, the chefs used high-quality ingredients to prepare this meticulously crafted breakfast.

While the food bloggers and I waited in between dishes, we munched on toast with homemade butter and raspberry jam! Both Meat & Potatoes and Butcher & The Rye have the best bread EVER! Plus, the raspberry jam was sooooooo good!

Dish #2: Short Rib Hash- poached eggs/potatoes/horseradish hollandaise. This dish is tied for first place! Totally mind BLOWING! Next time I visit M&P for brunch, I will definitely be ordering this dish! 😀

Dish #3: Chicken & Waffles- fried chicken/cheddar jalapeño waffle/bourbon bacon syrup. I couldn’t WAIT for this dish! 😀 During the Summer 2012 Pittsburgh Restaurant Week (at Meat & Potatoes), I sampled a similar dish (fried chicken livers with a cheddar jalapeno waffle and the bourbon bacon syrup). Meat & Potatoes has now added the Fried Chicken Livers to the “snack” portion of the dinner menu, and the cheddar jalapeno waffle and bourbon bacon syrup is a permanent fixture on the brunch menu, now toting a piece of Fried Chicken breast. This dish, was, of course- INCREDIBLE! I felt like I was transported to the south. I could see either The Pioneer Woman or Trisha Yearwood serving me this dish on one of their Food Network shows. This dish represented America on a plate.

Dessert #1: Fruit & Coffee- bananas/coffee ice cream/charred citrus/ricotta/compressed blackberries. This dish was presented elegantly (I LOVED the wooden bowl), and had all sorts of flavor combinations. I enjoyed the coffee ice cream, bananas and the compressed blackberries. Although the ricotta was present, I did not taste it in the dish. I didn’t care for the charred citrus fruits. Overall, I believe this is a good dish, but could use a little bit of editing (at least for my taste).

Dessert #2: Raspberry Donut! The piece-de-resistance! The last part of the three-way tie for first place! This dish was HEAVENLY! In my opinion, skip the “fruit & coffee“, and go for one (or two) raspberry donuts! Everything about this dish (from the dough, to the vanilla glaze, to the raspberry jam inside) was incredibly luxurious and satisfying. A guilty pleasure I would gladly pursue any day (or time) of the week!

There you have it, folks! I HIGHLY recommend visiting Meat & Potatoes for brunch. In my opinion, that would be the PERFECT stop on either a Saturday or Sunday, either before or after a show.

Happy dining, foodies!

–Friendly Pittsburgh Foodie

Pittsburgh Restaurant Week’s website: http://pittsburghrestaurantweek.com

Pittsburgh Restaurant Week’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/PittsburghRestaurantWeek

Pittsburgh Restaurant Week’s Twitter page: https://twitter.com/PghRestaurantWk

Meat & Potatoes’ website: http://meatandpotatoespgh.com/

Meat & Potatoes’ Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MeatAndPotatoesPgh

Meat & Potatoes’ Twitter: https://twitter.com/4meatnpotatoes

Meat & Potatoes’ Instagram: http://instagram.com/meat_potatoes