It’s not the “subway”, it’s the “T”!
I’ve always parked at Station Square, and taken it over to the Golden Triangle. There are 3 or 4 stops (US Steel Building, old Max Azen furs building, and Gateway center, plus one other somewhere I can’t remember). And you can get one ticket that will cover the incline and the T.
If you want public transportation, its PAT, Port Authority Transit.
Pittsburgh’s my home town!
I like all of it, but haven’t really been there in a long time to know what is new.
The zoo was very nice, especially the aquarium. The Buehl Planetarium was nice–I think it closed but there is a new one.
The Point is nice, with the blockhouse I believe.
Certainly the view (at night) from Grandview Avenue in Mt. Washington across to the city–take the incline up/down.
Also the Carnegie Museum of Natural History–probably one of the best museums of its kind in the US.
Buhl planetarium rather, no e
The hotel website called it a subway
So I called it a subway.
It would be a madhouse over Labor Day, but Kennywood is a great amusement park.
Do not miss the Heinz Regional History Center-I did my internship there and it rocks. There’s an old trolley car in the lobby that you can climb in!
Well I am sitting here in one of the University of Pittsburgh frosh dorms, so I feel I need to chime in on my home.
Make sure you visit the University of Pittsburgh campus and especially the Cathedral of Learning. The nationality rooms are very impressive and a guided tour will be well-worth it. The Cathedral commons room itself is very impressive. For a good view ride the elevator to the very top–the 36th floor. The recently renovated honors college is very impressive and has a GREAT view over all of the city. The campus is in Oakland, which is right by the Carnegie Museums of Art and Natural History, which are both worth a look. Right on Forbes Avenue in the heart of Oakland is a Primanti Brothers. Also there is one of the Pittsburgh legends, the “O,” which is the nickname of the Original Hot Dog shop. Make sure you get the O fries (do NOT order a large. a small will feed two people). The O is the other Pittsburgh restaurant that is always on the FoodTV programs about best local restaurants.
Be sure to check out Walnut street in Shadyside, Murray Ave in Squirrel Hill, and just about all of Forbes Ave in Oakland and Squirrel Hill. They’re good places to walk around.
For museums the Andy Warhol museum on the North Side simply cannot be missed. It is an excellent museum. I’ve also been to the John Heinz Regional History Center. It, too, is a quality museum that really highlights all of Pittsburgh’s history.
The Pirates are playing labor day weekend. If you get the chance, grab some cheap seats and see a game in PNC Park (the stadium is only a block from the Warhol). The stadium is absolutely stunning inside and out. It’s possibly the best stadium in baseball. You won’t be sorry if you go.
Pittsburgh has a lot to offer. Post back next week and let us know what you did see and do.
Ah, Pittsburgh… I miss home.
You must go to the “Big O” on Forbes Avenue. Best french fries in the world. And if you get wings, remember that when they say “hot” they MEAN HOT.
There are some neat little shops down in the Strip district that you might like, plus a few clubs (Rosebud, etc.), if you’re into that kind of thing.
There is a coffee house on Forbes Ave. called The Beehive. It’s pretty cool, and you’ll meet a lot of the locals.
Squirrel Hill is a really great area to walk around in; small ethnic stores and pretty little cafes. A little pricey, but fun. You can get a city bus there about every 15 minutes. Actually, you can get most anywhere on public transportation in the 'burgh. Parking is expensive. You may want to just buy a weekend bus/T pass. You can get one at any corner store.
The Cathedral of Learning is an absolute MUST. It’s breathtaking.
Damn. Now I’m homesick.
I studied at Pitt from 1987-90 and was a guide for the Nationality Rooms. Most of the good suggestions have already been made, but I feel compelled to explain about the Nationality Rooms: they are actual working classrooms (with one exception), designed by the various immigrant communities that made/make up Pittsburgh to represent their heritage. The “old” rooms encircle the first floor - there are no regular classrooms there at all - and the newer ones are being built on the third floor. I haven’t even seen half of the new ones, hope I can get back there soon…
Back in my day, at least, South Craig Street was Oakland’s Restaurant Row. I googled and noticed my favorite, Ali Baba, is still there. We used to go and order a bunch of stuff off the a la carte menu and split it. If it’s as good now as it was then it comes highly recommended. I never got into O fries, though they’ve got good burgers and dogs there. Of course, this problem of mine with O fries might stem from an incident in my freshman year, when a small group of us tried to cheer up a dormmate over a shared extra large order of cheese fries. You know those fry baskets you see in fast food places? One of those is an extra large order of O fries. Now pour cheese sauce over it and I think you have one month’s RDA of grease on your table… oog.
Have fun and take me with you!!! 
Oh by the way, St. Paul’s Cathedral in Oakland is impressive and you should stop there while in Oakland. It’s right off of the “restaurant row” on South Craig Street.
Make sure you get to Dave and Andy’s homemade ice cream either in Oakland or Station Square. Try either cookie dough, apple pie, or birthday cake. They are all great, but whatever you get, make sure to get a homemade waffle cone.
Almost forgot- If you’re up for some good pizza or a calzone, try Corleone’s downtown. It’s on 6th Street, just about three blocks off the 6th Street bridge. They have a decent bar as well, and the atmosphere is distinctly old-school Pittsburgh.
The best place for dessert is Klavon’s, which is on Penn Avenue, right where the Strip meets Lawrenceville. It’s a little old-fashioned ice cream parlor. You will so not regret it!
BTW, we’ll be there this weekend as well.
Maybe we can get some Dopers together for a while one day. 
That would be fun Airman Doors, USAF! We can start our own mini PittDope party.
The Beehive is closed now, hyperjes sorry.
All the Oakland stuff is good, but do remember that its Labor Day weekend, and school has just started. Oakland is going to be crawling with drunken college students. (I’ll wave if I see you. Actually, I’m going home for the weekend, so I won’t…but still.)
I second Fuel and Fuddle, and Dave and Andy’s. I also highly suggest The Church Brewery (I think its on Liberty). It has a lot of different beers (My roomate’s SO was raving about the Doppelbach, he said it was Guiness-like only not bitter.) and really great pizza on the left, and really great beers and really great actual dinner food on the right.
Also, you have to call ahead and get a table, but the James Street Bar has really, really good live jazz and excellent New Oreleans food. (Its a bit pricy though, everything else that has been mentioned is college kid priced stuff. James Street is for grown ups and priced accordingly, and worth every cent.)
Do the Carnagie, and do not miss the inclines, the view from Mt. Washington is astounding.
about The Beehive. Big part of my youth- gone.
I had forgotten about the James Street Bar. Very good idea, Medea’s Child.
Pitt’s my alma mater, and I spent a lot of time in the Cathedral (especially in the basement, in the scene shop), but I always liked Frank Lloyd Wright’s critique of the Cathedral of Learning… “the biggest ‘Keep Off the Grass’ sign in the world”.
The nationality rooms are great, and while you’re in The Neighborhood, you should visit the Carnegie Museum across the street, and Phipp’s Conservatory just behind the Carnegie. A drive or a stroll through nearby Schenley Park is nice, if you have time.
The City of Pittsburh website is pretty comprehensive.
You asked for Japanese food. My favorite was always KIKU in Station Square. Eat dinner there, then take the Duquesne Incline up to Grandview Avenue and see Dahntahn Pittsburgh at its best, from Mt. Washington at night.
Yinz need to prepare linguistically prepare for your visit, too.
Have a great weekend!
Kennywood, Kennywood, Kennywood.
Also, if you have time and interest, this is pretty interesting, and it’s only about 30 minutes from the city.
(Just got back from Pittsburgh last night.)
I don’t know Pittsburgh, but another thing you might want to consider is Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater. It’s a good ways outside of Pittsburgh, but if you’re coming from Staten Island, and you take the Pennsylvani Turnpike (I-76), it’s not too far out of your way on the drive up/drive back.