Taiwanese Bistro Cafe 33 — Restaurant in Pittsburgh

I have to say. I used to come here very often. But it makes me unhappy to write this. Today I had an terrible experience here, it has been ups and downs for a while.

Today I came in and was sat down as any other day. I sat there for a pain streaking 15 or 20 minutes and no one even bothered to look my way. The wait staff would look at the table to the right of me and to the left of me, see my closed menus sitting there. No water on the table nothing. They even brought the wrong dish to my table and saw my menus on the table. I tried to flag down wait staff multiple times with them just ignoring me. Maybe 4 or 5 waiters/waitresses walked passed me looked at my table and did nothing. It got so bad that the table next to be saw how frustrated I was and had THEIR waiter take my order. After the order was taken food took a while to come out, still no water still no one to come by to bring plates or check on anything. Must have been 30-45 minutes or more in before anyone even brought water. At this point both tables next to be and the one in front have me had already ORDERED, EATEN and basically been done and just chatting now.

When the dishes came out all the portion sizes must have shrunk by 50% or more. There was a stint during covid they were also using old meat which tasted foul but I figured everyone was running into supply issues. So I never bothered to write an review or say anything. But today it seemed like they just decided since they were busy maybe just cook one dish and send it to two tables.

The whole time after I got food not a single person came by to refill water or do anything. It was almost like I was invisible. But sure enough when I was almost done eating the check came promptly. No water refill, no how are you doing, no napkins nothing.

Whole time not a single person came by to see how things were or what I needed. Not a single person came to the table more than once, except to get the check.

I think this place has gone downhill from the glory days. I used to frequent this place and the staff there recognizes me but to treat a regular like they are non existent in addition to the food being lesser quality over time truly saddens me and makes me reconsider coming here again, especially how they treated me this last time leaves a bad taste...

I don’t live in Pittsburgh but some local friends wanted to try it so we all went. Overall, it is a good place to get some Taiwanese food, which is different than the typical Chinese restaurant fare you would find in the US.

We ordered several items that were a bit unusual from the typical fare.

Pork steam soup dumpling -having been to one of the best soup dumpling places in Taiwan, the ones here are a close approximation. The skin of the dumpling we got was either over cooked (left to steam too long) or too thick. Of course, for the first time people it was good. For me it was just okay.

Taiwanese style popcorn chicken with basil - this was as close to real as it could get, especially with the basil. Everyone gave this a thumbs up.

Radish pancake - this was also a good hit, which was a bit of a surprise for me. This used to be what was considered poor man food but now popular as a heathy alternative.

Basil chicken (三杯雞) this was also a hit. I was anticipating boned In chicken but I guess that would probably be less accepted by the typical US diner.

Satay Beef over Chinese watercress （空心菜）honestly I didn’t know this vegetable was called in English. I have heard several names but it’s one of my all time favorites. I have ordered it at different parts of the country for different friends and it has always been accepted. They did a very good job here too and it was all gone by the time dinner was over.

Chinese food is very regional and Taiwanese food is one that is very different. The ones we ordered were all true Taiwanese foods. My friends really enjoyed their experience. They have lived in the area for decades but this was their first true Chinese...

*update Nov 2023 (a year from previous post)

It remains a FOODIE’S DELECTATION OF AUTHENTIC TAIWANESE.🤩🤩🤩.

It’s on Pittsburgh’s TOP 3 RESTAURANTS WHERE ONE DOES HAVE GUSTATORY DELIGHT OF UNIQUE REGIONAL CUISINES FROM AN ANCIENT CULINARY CULTURE.

My Taiwanese colleagues continue to rave about it👏👏👏. My family and friends do love it.

As I noted previously, the longish menu is a way to explore the variety of Taiwanese food. Whilst main culinary influences originate with Fujian and Hakka settlers, Taiwan’s cuisine has become very distinctive due to its island geography, lots of seafood and mountain broths.

Pancakes, casseroles and soups are particularly great especially for the Fall and Winter.

—— TOP 3 AUTHENTIC CHINESE RESTAURANTS IN PITTSBURGH. None of that horrible unhealthy americanized chinese-like food that has contaminated the American palate.

They have a multicultural clientele including visiting ethnic Chinese and Chinese-American families. Very busy even at lunchtime on weekdays.

It has longish menu, but one that is amenable for delightful discovery over several visits. The servings are generous, great for sharing between 2-3 people. Order at least 3 main dishes and savor the different subtle flavors, from simple salt/pepper/garlic slices to silken sauces to spiced heat sauces.

My favorites: Pork w woodear mushrooms, Eggplant chicken (best eggplant dish I’ve had), Beef short ribs, Duck yolk pork ribs tips, Seasonal Watercress (wow!), Fried pork dumplings (very thin dough packed with ground pork). Don’t forget the black tea, it cleanses the palate to savor each entree.

Service...