Charlotte Shields-Rossi | a&e editor

Brian McCollum, self-proclaimed foodie and former blogger, has a passion for exploring the Pittsburgh scene and found that January and August are typically the slowest months for the city’s restaurant industry. January suffers because of post-holiday recovering and August because it is right before back-to-school season.

In an effort to fix this problem, he started Pittsburgh Restaurant Week in the winter of 2012, which he calls his “passion project.”

“Restaurant Week is an opportunity to bundle existing and new dishes to create a special week-long menu experience at the restaurant,” he said.

Restaurants offer dining deals, usually in the form of fixed price menus, to drum up business for their eateries, while patrons enjoy a meal without breaking the bank.

In August Pittsburgh Restaurant Week highlights dishes with lighter options and restaurants with outdoor seating. During January the week follows the theme “New Dishes of the New Year.”

This January during the event, EYV Restaurant, located in the North Side was booked every night. Michael Godlewski, owner of the veggie-forward restaurant, or as he calls it the “steak house of vegetables,” credits the full house to Pittsburgh Restaurant Week.

“It is a helpful marketing tool for people that have always wanted to try the restaurant, so having that little deal is like a little more [of an] incentive, especially after the holidays,” Godlewski said.

Godlewski’s restaurant has participated in the event, since it opened in 2023. This year they offered a three course fixed price menu for $45.26, with menu items such as curried apple pierogi, porchetta spiced squash and hummus fritters — highlighting seasonal local produce.

Although there is not an invite process and all restaurants are welcome to join, there is a registration fee of $250 or $350 for menus priced over $46.26, with an additional $100 late fee for those who register after Dec. 31, all according to their website. The fee covers the overhead and marketing costs of producing the event, according to McCollum.

In the first year of Restaurant Week, 30 restaurants participated. This year it more than doubled. The week hosted its winter event between Jan. 12 to Jan. 18 with 78 restaurants on the list. The prices ranged from $20.26 to $55.26, the 26 cents as a nod to the new year.

Angela Earley owns two restaurants in the Steel City — Penn Avenue Fish Company in the Strip District and Bryant Street Tavern in Highland Park. Earley said that she wanted to be a part of the event for years, but missed the deadline. This year after being reached out to by organizers she decided to enroll her restaurants in the event.

“It gets a little gray and cold in January, so I think getting people excited about leaving their house and maybe taking an adventure out to a new place that they maybe haven’t been before,” Earley said. “It seemed busier than what a typical week in January would normally be like.”

Penn Avenue Fish Company offered two fixed price menus for $48.26 — cooked meals and items from the sushi bar, both with an appetizer, entree and dessert. Bryant Street Tavern presented a fixed price menu for the same price, with a starter, main meal and dessert. The menu included dishes like baked mac n’ cheese and fish & chips. After a successful first year, Earley plans on participating again.

Carmella’s Plates and Pints, located on the South Side, is not new to Pittsburgh Restaurant Week, having been on the list for around a decade. The restaurant serves an American Fair cuisine and boasts over 700 spirits. During Pittsburgh Restaurant Week they offered a three-course fixed price menu for $45.26.

Owner Carmella Salem said that the event is good for business, bringing a lot of new faces into her restaurant during its duration.

“It really does give people reason to come out when it’s cold and maybe snowy,” Salem said.

The three course menu included an appetizer, entree and dessert, with new dishes like Mediterranean lamb stew, chili soy salmon and orange olive oil cake.

“We cultivate a brand new menu just for Restaurant Week,” she said. “It really can show a lot of creativity from the local restaurants.”

In 2026 Pittsburgh was ranked #13 for the best “foodie cities” in the country, according to WalletHub, earning a “foodie friendly” title because of its unique culinary experiences and budget friendly options.

“It is an event that Pittsburgh foodie people really enjoy going [to], trying new restaurants,” Salem said. “It creates a nice buzz in the air about coming out and trying unique great food at a restaurant you have never been to before.”

Charlotte Shields-Rossi can be reached at shieldsrossic@duq.edu