Con Alma — Restaurant in Pittsburgh

Although the service is always top notch and the live music is fantastic, during my second go around here, I was less than pleased by the food. They rotate through various “culturally inspired” menus (the first time I came here it was the “Indian food”-inspired menu, this last time was the, I assume, “Mexican food”-inspired menu)- however if you going in are expecting Mexican food or Indian food then you will be in for quite the surprise (not necessarily a good one). The various palettes put on display in their menu are- to be nice- complex. My friend and I went there and shared the grilled octopus (not something they list on their website’s menu for whatever reason) and the bulk of the night we spent talking about how we didn’t like it, but we didn’t like it for interesting reasons I think. It’s not bad as in badly prepared, it’s bad as in how the flavors just don’t do eachother any services. It’s cilantro with raw onions, sweet peppers, grape tomatoes (or perhaps a different variety, I’m not sure- they’re small tomatoes of red and yellow), and octopus. If you think about all of these flavors, something you’ll notice is it’s mostly bitter, acidic, and sour stacked up on one another. Now there is of course also a sauce containing mayonnaise smeared (and it is smeared, I think artistically) along the right side of the plate- but that sauce, too is overpowered by a peppery acidity. Of course it’s very possible that I just don’t have the sophisticated enough palate to appreciate this dish, however when me and my friend (we are not very chooses when it comes to food) sat down and tasted it, the unbalanced acidity and pepper came together to create a weirdly chemical flavor (though it’s important to note that I don’t believe they used any chemicals in the process of making it, that’s just how the “synergy” or lack-thereof of the flavors made it taste). I don’t have the gene that makes cilantro taste like soap, usually it tastes peppery and acidic, like normal. It tasted like soap last night. There’s nothing to balance out the acidity and unpleasant pepper flavor throughout this dish, though I think the octopus was meant to be that sort of tonic; however there were only four or five measly pieces of octopus, so it’s not like you can have some after every bite. Though the octopus meat itself was quite good- albeit covered in a little too much of the sauce that gives it an unpleasant bitter flavor. The decision to add Spanish octopus in this dish was an interesting one. The whole idea of these flavors was absolutely ambitious I’ll say, and I commend the chef for the sheer audacity to stack these flavors together. However I did not like experiencing them, and it seemed the table next to us didn’t either as they barely touched the plate when it arrived (though the table next to us ordered quite a lot of food, I can’t imagine the price on their check).

Speaking of, although I very much understand the rationale of the pricing and have no problems with it (the live musicians are great, pay them a good amount- of course!) I was quite surprised by the $20 music fee at the end of dinner. Maybe I missed some signage when first entering the restaurant- in fact that’s likely the case. However don’t be like me in that regard! Go in knowing there will be a flat fee of $20 on your check at the end of the night.

This was the second time I went (the first time I went here with my dad), however this was the first time I actively disliked and had a hard time eating my meal. The first time I came, they had their “Indian cuisine”-inspired menu. I had macaroni and cheese- or, I suppose “Indian cuisine”-inspired macaroni and cheese. Despite the slightly absurd nature of the dish and its context. It was quite good. From what I remember, it was a baked macaroni with a few different cheeses and some bell peppers within (though it’s been a while so my memory of the ingredients is foggy). Don’t eat this dish if you have IBS, that’s all I’ll say. The octopus was alright for IBS. Their food is hit or miss, their...

Plain establishment from the outside but once you go in there is an old-time, latin, jazzy ambience with a stage hosting a live jazz band, a full bar with a latin/Cuban inspired cocktail list (and wine and beer), and a latin-inspired menu. Great for date night or a night with a few friends only because seating could be rough for a party larger than 4.

Cocktails on the pricier side for what they are... Running between 8-12$ BUT the ones we tried were very delicious and well thought out. The front room with the stage is very small and cramped with about 4 tables for couples. Past the bar there is a cozy lounge in front of the kitchen and there is a very cute patio outside with bar seating, high-tops, lounge chairs/sofas.

I am from Miami and love a good ceviche so my friend and I decided to try their Halibut Ceviche. We were a little disappointed because the dominating flavors were the jalapeno and a pretty fishy flavor that overpowered the dish (I like spice too...). Would not recommend. The rest of the dishes others ordered looked well-plated but thats all I tried. Dishes were on the pricier side for the small portions including for appetizers and entrees. They took about 30 mins to bring out our dish as well, which I attributed to the crowdedness; however, after reading a few other reviews on here now, it seems like a usual thing.

Something that was an unpleasant surprise was that they charge $5 per person for live music which we did not know ahead of time and weren't informed. We also arrived well over halfway into the performance of the artists and spent a portion of our time seated outside (far from the live band listening to them streamed on speakers), so I'm not sure that was fair to charge us the live music fee when we saw literally 1/4th of the show. Nonetheless we didn't question it.

The service was pretty slow but it was packed, cramped, and live music was happening at 11PM on a busy Friday night. The servers did a great job handling the hustle-and-bustle of the evening; they were helpful, kind, knowledgeable, and patient.

A huge pro for this new bar: I'd have to say this was the most diverse crowd I've seen in Pittsburgh at this bar, which coming from a bigger city, made me feel more at home. I'm so happy its located close to my house and tucked away on Ellsworth Ave, which is a diverse street in it of itself.

Ill come back for happy hour (5-7 on certain days - check instagram) with food and drink specials and definitely for Jazz Brunch on Sunday. Hopefully these times will be less packed than Friday night. Would overall highly recommend and I'll definitely be back. I'm curious to meet the owner and see how this Latin/Cuban...

We are road-tripping and drove over 8 hours today. Have had great experiences across the country with service and food for the last 4 days until here tonight (I guess you can’t win them all). I found tako (around the corner) as one of the best restaurants and so we were headed there. It took so long to park though, we only had about 20 mins until they closed. Driving around we saw “con alma” and I was super impressed with their menu! We decided to go as it said online it closes at 12am.

We walked in about 9:45, and the hostess asks if we are there for drinks. I said we were hoping we could get dinner and she informed us the kitchen would be closing in 10 minutes so we would need to order very quickly. I totally understand this but I felt very rushed upon sitting down and immediately wanted to leave as I expected to come in and enjoy dinner. We placed our food order at the same time as drinks.

Food came out fast. Foccacia was delicious! I did anticipate the ricotta/confit to be a warm dip but it was still delicious. I got the pumpkin ravioli. When the food came out, there was so much cheese, almost like they were trying to cover something up. The pine nuts were almost black/burnt. The filling on the ravioli was tasty but the pasta itself was so thick and chewy (possibly undercooked?) yet burnt on the outside… it was hard to swallow. My boyfriend had arroz con pollo and said it was good. I was not interested in trying it (did not look appetizing).

The waitress was very nice but almost seemed a bit nervous. It made me uncomfortable. I also hate POS systems where they pay at the table and you have to tip on the screen right in front of them. I panic picked 20% but I wish I would’ve been given some time or privacy to leave her a tip on a receipt. I had no time to think about it.

It was $100+ for a beer, soda, app, and 2 entrees. There was not live music at the time (I looked and we had just missed it so they were probably coming out of a very busy night… I kind of get it). There was nice jazz playing (Cowboy Bebop songs actually).

Honestly we are driving to our Airbnb and I am just sad about spending $100+ on simultaneously undercooked and burnt pasta. I did not feel this place was “with soul”. And I’m sad that I broke my roadtrip streak of having nothing but good dining experiences.

Edit: it’s been a year and I still think about how terrible this was. Infamously the worst meal I have ever had...