Bacon. Pulled pork. Ham. Pork chops. Sausage. Do we have your attention yet? We know, we probably had you at “bacon”, but there’s a new restaurant in East Liberty serving up all things pork and it is, of course, called Porked.
You might recognize the location as the former Union Pig and Chicken, which has caused a lot of questions from customers about the menu. They’re not a BBQ joint, and they don’t have all the typical BBQ sides. In fact, they’ve been asked about it so much, they painted their answer on the wall above the counter where you order – “Nope…just pork.” They’re focused on pork, and they’re making it every way you can think of.
Now, Porked does have BBQ pulled pork on their menu, but it also features a lot of bacon, ham, sausage, kielbasa, and pork chops. If you’ve ever wanted to eat a BLT with two pounds of bacon, this is the restaurant for you! Don’t worry, they also have a smaller BLT with *only* half a pound of bacon on it. Between making the bacon and the pulled pork, their oven is running pretty much constantly.
Porked is focused on keeping everything as fresh as they can get it. The bacon comes from Lancaster. They pick up the rest of the pork from a butcher in Finleyville twice a week. Their bread is from Mancini’s, and they’re looking into growing their own produce nearby. The owners are proud of being from Pittsburgh, so they’re also trying to feature local products like Turner’s iced tea and Snyder’s of Berlin. Their goal is to have that mom-and-pop shop feel. Their first location at Lincoln Place is the kind of spot where they know the regulars by name.
Basically, Porked wants to make people happy through food. So stop by, grab a beer (the rest of the alcohol is coming soon!), and order yourself some pork! Because, come one, who doesn’t smile at the thought of eating bacon??
This content was provided by a local, independent contributor to Made in PGH, a lifestyle blog.