Point Brugge Cafe

Point Brugge CafePoint Brugge Cafe
Point Brugge CafePoint Brugge Cafe
Bar, Eatery

401 Hastings St
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 15206-4505
United States

(412) 441-3334 | map
pointbrugge.com
PLACE STATS
Average:
4.15
Reviews:
10
Ratings:
17
pDev:
9.4%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 3.93 by slasich from Pennsylvania

May 16, 2020
 
Rated: 4.3 by heddar33 from Pennsylvania

Jun 06, 2017
 
Rated: 4.75 by muc1987 from Pennsylvania

Jul 27, 2016
 
Rated: 4.75 by JohnnyLarue from Pennsylvania

Jul 14, 2016
 
Rated: 4.16 by greg4579 from Pennsylvania

Jan 11, 2015
 
Rated: 3 by Monkeefartz from Maryland

Nov 01, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by Rhettroactive from Virginia

Feb 17, 2014
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Reviewed by RblWthACoz from Pennsylvania

4.23/5  rDev +1.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
If you want to go out to dine at a nice spot where the beer is going to be excellent, this is your place. A great date spot. Cozy, albeit somewhat cramped in spots. Selection is heavily Belgian, as you would expect. I felt the food was quite good. Especially considering that cuisine options in Pittsburgh offer little beyond the standards you come to expect; even along the lines of independent creative spots. It strikes me as rustic and country in tone; the food that is. Service is good. This is a place to keep coming back to as it's a genuinely unique restaurant in a genuinely nice neighborhood.
Jan 03, 2013
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Reviewed by AARomanov from California

4.13/5  rDev -0.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3 | food: 4.5
This place is very nice and has an open European cafe arrangement (which makes sitting at a bar all day drinking beer a little more excusable as you can still see the sun and get fresh air)

In what appears to be a quite neighborhood, this place seems to get a fair amount of traffic on weekends so there may be a wait but you can always get beers at the bar and sit outside.

The food definitely seems good and what you would expect from a Belgian restaurant. If you're there to drink, get a cheese plate. If you've been drinking too much, get a hamburger with frittes. If you want some tasty moules, get the moules.

I was surprised to not see Belgian Waffles on the desert menu.

The only downfall is the relatively limited beer selection. Only 4 on draught (which really shouldn't matter if you've got enough bottles) and not an overwhelming amount of beers in the bottle. However, there are many very much worth trying and even beers like Bud Light and Sierra Nevada. Also, they have a full bar so even grandpa can come!
Sep 15, 2010
Photo of ef88
Reviewed by ef88 from Pennsylvania

3.68/5  rDev -11.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3 | food: 4.5
A: Pretty small place, but it's interesting how you're in the middle of a residential area and then, all of a sudden, out pops this restaurant. Nice outdoor seating and we were able to have a beer outside while waiting for our table.

Q: Good (?).

S: Decent service--luckily we beat the dinner rush. The wait for food wasn't too bad, maybe 20 minutes or so. Plenty of time to put back a Corsendonk.

S: You have the option of getting a 12 oz. or 750 mL (to share) bottle. Some nice Belgians on the list, along with American micros such as Furthermore, Oskar Blues, and Great Lakes. My one gripe is that there is no saison available in the 12 oz. bottle, just a few in the 750 mL bottles. And there's Miller/Amstel/Heineken for the disrespectful.

F: We started off with a plate of mussels in a garlic and white wine sauce, which was nice. For my entree, I got charcuterie, which was extremely substantial. Very good.

V: $11 for 1 lb. of mussels or $17 for 1.5 lbs. of mussels seems pretty good to me. 750 mL bottles were $15-$20, while 12 oz. bottles were $3.50 (Miller Lite)-$10.00 (Lindemanns).

This was the first 'beer-centric' restaurant in Pittsburgh I've been to and it was a nice experience. Definitely looking forward to trying Sharp Edge soon for a comparison.
Jul 29, 2010
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Reviewed by Stigs from Pennsylvania

4.3/5  rDev +3.6%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 5
Stopped here for a Valentine's Day brunch/beer yesterday. Arrived 5 minutes before the door opened and were the first to get seats at the bar, which we sat at for 3+ hours.

Selection isnt huge but has just about every category covered between 4 taps, small bottles, and big (sharing) bottles. I drank an Orval, Koenings Quad, and DFH Brown...my girlfriend had a Blanche de Chamblay, Framboise Mimosa, and Gouden Carolus Triple.

The food was phenomenal. I had some kind of scrambled eggs with Cehvre on a warm spinach salad, she had a rediculous Lobster/Crab omelette which was only $9 and had an adequate amount of the good stuff. Also split a divine waffle towards the end. The only "eh" food was a side of Maple/Apple sausage which just didnt have enough spice.

Our bartender was very nice and friendly. We will definitely be going back and be sure to get there before it opens, great overall experience.
Feb 15, 2010
Photo of OneDropSoup
Reviewed by OneDropSoup from Pennsylvania

4.08/5  rDev -1.7%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
This place is nestled away in the Point Breeze neighborhood of Pittsburgh -- you might have to look for it a little, as it's not on any main drags & there's little in the way of amenities around it.

The atmosphere is upscale-ish, Euro-flare -- a small place, occupancy of about 100, I'd say. Nice mezzanine seating above the main dining room.

The beer list is not overwhelmingly extensive, but there's still PLENTY to choose from, & it's definitely quality. The restaurant is Belgian-inspired, so there are always at least 30 Belgian bottles, & the menu lists them by style (the Flemish red section caught my eye). There are another 30 good imports & domestic craft brews, with Belgian-American offerings (Golden Monkey, Southampton Biere de Garde). Beer geeks will find nothing to complain about here.

The food's definitely quality here, too -- I had the mustard-crusted salmon on greens & was pretty impressed. Some beer-infused offerings (the Hop Devil-battered shrimp look enticing), & about the only place I've seen carbonnade flamande on the menu. If I still ate red meat, I'd definitely be hittin that!

One beef I have with the place is their "no reservations" policy. It's not a big place, & the few times I've been there I've had a considerable wait. The wait's not so bad when the weather's good & you can sit under the awning, cafe-style; when it's nasty, there's really not much choice but to stand on the stairs. Bleh.

It's on the pricey side, but not prohibitively so, & you get what you pay for. I'm not a Getty, so this is more like a "special occasion" type place (Valentine's, anniversary, etc.). I recommend it, but you're best off if you come during off-peak hours.
Jan 24, 2009
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Reviewed by Kolsch from Pennsylvania

4.05/5  rDev -2.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
Having visited Point Brugge many times I figured now is a good time for a review.

Atmosphere: I like the minimalistic vibe with no TVs. Small bar area seats 8 comfortably, could seat 10 if some are slim size.

Selection: 4 Beers on Draft. Belgian offerings, though I have seen a Hoppy beer every now and then. Usually excellent Belgian choices.

Food: Is good to excellent; best Mussels in Pittsburgh!

Service: service is usually good, no complaint's

Overall: This could be considered an uppity place. If you have no tolerance for rich, pushy people who feel they are entitled to a bar stool then stear clear of this place!
Dec 31, 2008
Photo of Calico
Reviewed by Calico from New York

3.83/5  rDev -7.7%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4
Price: Moderately-priced selection of lunch and dinner entrees, draft selection of U.S. microbrews and imports at about $3.50 each, with some imports ranging up to “if you have to ask” prices.

Beer Selection: A rotating selection of bottled and draft microbrews and imports, tending towards Belgian Wits and Strong Ales. About 30 bottled beers available and 5-6 beers on draft.

Food: American Upscale Bistro fare with some Belgian specialties. Lunch menu is a bit limited, but good. We didn’t see the dinner menu.

Ambience/Service: Typical minimalist bistro décor. Could get a table for 2 at 1 p.m. on a Saturday. Seating was a bit cramped, but the ambience was pleasant otherwise. Good table service, but servers not particularly beer-savvy. Moderately noisy lunch crowd. No TVs or music. Can’t comment on ventilation since nobody was smoking. Bathrooms clean and functional, but not handicap accessible.

Location: An old corner store on a quiet commercial/residential street. Parking is on-street. We had to park a few short blocks away and walk. Relatively easy to find and get to using a map, unlike many locations in Pittsburgh.
Jun 28, 2007
Photo of amstelcat
Reviewed by amstelcat from Ohio

4.33/5  rDev +4.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
I really like this place. My fiance moved to Pittsburgh about six months ago and is about four houses down from this place. Point Brugge is a cool little Belgian cafe with a nice selection of beers. They only have four taps (Pilsner Urquell, Stoudts Winter Ale, Soouthern Tier Trippel and some other micro the last time I was there) but they have a nice selection of 750's of Belgian styles and pretty good variety of smaller bottles. Last night I had Victory Saison, Rare Vos, and a Chimay Blue. Please take my advice and get the mussels with the Classic sauce along with the frites. Only $11 and crazy good. My only complaint about this place is it's small size which makes for cramped imbibing at the bar.
Jan 08, 2006
Photo of cupbeerman
Reviewed by cupbeerman from Pennsylvania

4.38/5  rDev +5.5%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4
Located in Pointe Breeze just a few blocks off Penn Ave, Point Brugge is as close to a euro cafe as will ever been seen in Pittsburgh. Inside, the place is very nice, featuring a bar that is very small with only a few stools. There are also about a twenty tables and booths on the ground and up a few stairs. One nice feature is that it does not have a single TV, but they do play music.

The beer selection is great. Point Brugge Cafe does have around 75 bottled beers and four taps (two Belgians, one micro and one other import). While that does not match the selection of other places, the quality is what is most impresive. They only stock the best of a kind of beer, with selections Stone, Dogfish Head, Penn, and many other craft beers. The selection was picked out by the owner, Jesse, who used to be the beer manager for D's. There is also multiple glassware so beer is served in the correct style of glassware.

The food is very Euro-centric, rounded out with some American staples such as steak. I only got a chance to try the Belgian Frites; however looking around at the people eating, the food does look good. The service is very friendly and very knowledgable about the beer they serve.

I would say that this place is worth a stop and is one of the top bars in the Pittsburgh area. Pointe Brugge is a tad pricey but not really that bad. Parking is on the street since there is no lot. The place is closed on Monday.
Jul 19, 2005
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Reviewed by QXSTER1 from Pennsylvania

4.33/5  rDev +4.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
Here is a great little cafe inspired by the owner's trip to Belgium and his desire to recreate that ambience in Pittsburgh. The food has a definite Belgian slant with mussels being prominent in the appetizer and entree menu and served with some great sauces. The red curry, coconut milk and lime juice mussels were awesome. I can also vouch for the Carbonnade Flamande, a meat dish braised in dark belgian ale, it was rich and delicious.

Only four taps but the selection is carefully chosen. On my visit two Belgian ales of course, along with a German hefe and a local IPA were being served. The bottle selection showed some beer knowledge with many styles and countries represented. Plenty of large bottles to share at dinner or 12 ozers for individual tastes.

The place is small so expect a wait after 6PM most nights, but it is worth the inconvenience. A neighborhood Belgian cafe in Pittsburgh is a welcome addition for the Belgian beer lover.
Apr 24, 2005
Point Brugge Cafe in Pittsburgh, PA
Place rating: 4.15 out of 5 with 17 ratings