In 2025, I came up with the idea to list out 25 restaurants I wanted to make a point to visit no matter if they were new or had been around the Pittsburgh food scene for years. After giving myself a full year, I made it to 16/25 restaurants in 2025 – check out my recap here. Of the 9 I didn’t make it to in 2025, some of them were carried over to the 2026 list while some fell off due to my lack of interest in visiting.
Anywho, here is my 2026 “new to me” restaurant list I’ll be working through! This idea is perfect for any time a friend wants to get together for a bite & we don’t have a specific place in mind. My list is a combo of fine dining & casual grab-and-go spots which I find to be great (especially for my wallet LOL). I haven’t been to any spots yet, but I do have a reservation set for Siempre Algo in February I cannot wait for! If you have any recommendations on must-try menu items, feel free to shoot me a message on instagram @the412franimal 😊
The 412 Franimal 