Tuesday, January 6, 2009

PositivelyPittsburghLive, Pittsburgh Coffee Houses

This show originally aired live on January 5, 2009 at 7 PM on the TalkShoe internet network. Archived version is available at: http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/tscmd/tc/18520 or at:
http://www.positivelypittsburghlivemagazine.com on its unique PositivelyPittsburghLive™ radio channel.


The editorial calendar for January, 2009 for PositivelyPittsburghLive™ is Pittsburgh Warm Ups and Pittsburgh Area Winter Sports
This epsisode: Pittsburgh Coffee Houses

Terra Jones
Amani International Coffeehouse and Cafe
507 Foreland Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15212 (North Shore, Pittsburgh)
412-322-0647

Terra has always had a vision to incorporate the idea of art as a freedom of expression.  Terra has done this through a partnership with the Pittsburgh Public School to bridge art and coffeehouses.  She has also fulfilled her desires of someday being a business owner and giving youth the opportunity to be employed under her.  As an employee of Terra’s, the children learn much more than ringing at a cash register.  Terra is purposfull in making sure the young people understand what it take to make a business run successfully.  Which includes but is not limited to small business management, marketing, career development, and customer service. 
Continental breakfast catering just like panera
·         Over 1500 square ft. of space
·         Great for meetings, office parties, baby showers, birthday parties, small music events
·         Custom catering packages for your event
·         100 space parking lot attached to the coffeeshop
·         Peaceful tranquil atmosphere
Terra’s Mantra - Uniting Cultures With One Cup. Amani’s has a warm Eclectic Urban Feel and a Warm inviting environment reminiscent of a Soho coffee shop and right in the middle of Pittsburgh.

Cafe Vita
424 Allegheny River Blvd,
Oakmont 15139
412.828.5506
Co-Owner: David Ariondo

Café Vita is in the Center of one of the few last walking communities in the Pittsburgh area surrounded by stylish shops and service businesses. David Ariondo says he is definitely a foodie, and without any formal culinary training he would advise anyone wanting to take their business in the direction of Café Vita, they REALLY need to love food.
Besides being a meeting place in the community, Café Vita has ramped up the food by offering panini sandwiches and soup, then expanded to salads, burgers and even crabcakes, tilapia and grilled vegetable platters.  For breakfast they now offer omelettes, french toast, and side dishes, and are now offering Sunday brunch. Café Vita also has a crepe day once a quarter. The Tuscan Kitchen theme started out in 2004 as a coffee shop and has now evolved into a full blown café.

Enrico's Tazza D'Oro - Cafe and Espresso Bar
1125 N. Highland Ave
Pittsburgh, PA 15206
412.362.3676

Enrico’s Tazza D’Oro is a European style café and espresso bar – a cultural oasis. We specialize in the craft of making exceptional coffee and espresso in the true European tradition.  We opened for business in June of 1999 and we are located in Highland Park on North Highland Avenue.   Our location is not a typical coffee house model.  Tazza D’Oro is nestled in a residential neighborhood very close to Highland Park and the reservoir and the clientele are walkers and bicyclers.

Prior to opening, Amy spent 1.5 years travelling the country and Canada trying to find an exceptional coffee roaster.  Batdorf and Bronson, which is located in Olympia, WA. chooses only the best 1% of the all the green coffee grown in the world.  They take exceptional care in the art and craft of roasting these beans.  Through Batdorf and Bronson, Tazza D’Oro is able to access Relationship Coffee, Fair Trade Coffee, Certified Organic Coffee, Bird Friendly Coffee and Shade Grown Coffee.  Their roastery and offices uses 100% renewable energy and they have received numerous awards from the State of Washington for their green business practices.  Tazza D’Oro is absolutely fanatical about their coffee! 

Open for ten years, Tazza D’Oro prides itself in its exceptional service staff. trained.  Each staff member is required to become a certified barista.  A certified barista is required to know and accomplish the fine art of espresso preparation, espresso drink preparation/presentation and extensive knowledge about all the coffees we carry and serve.

Fresh Cup Café Laura Kacy
210 West Main St. Saxonburg, Pa 16056
724-352-8181
http://www.thefreshcupcafe.com/


The Fresh Cup Cafe- a hybrid breakfast lunch cafe, small tearoom in the back. Laura is learning about coffee but is a tea officianado and we know soon she will be an expert on coffee also. Laura came from a part time business of doing portable tea parties in her business Home is Where the Tea Is! The Fresh Cup Café is located in the Mainstay B&B in historic Saxonburg.
 
Atmosphere is casual, comfortable, homey but not country.  A mix of wooden chairs and a combo of square and round 2-3 person tables that make it quite intimate. Theme- classic European and casual. Fresch Cup Cafe retails fabulous teas at this time, not coffees. The Fresh Cup Cafe often collaborates with the Mainstay B & B on events. Laura Kacy speaks national and collaborates nationally with renowned tea experts. The Fresh Cup Cafe is a member of the local tea association for area Tea Rooms.

Your Inner Vagabond and World Lounge, Andrew Watson
4130 Butler @ 42nd St
Pittsburgh, Pa. 15201
412-683-1623
http://www.yourinnervagabond.com


Your Inner Vagabond opened in February 2008 as an alternative to both modern coffeehouses & smoky bars. Your Inner Vagabond has late-night hours often until 2 AM, a Middle Eastern & Mediterranean menu and beverages from around the world.  Patrons can enjoy lounging on couches in a sumptously appointed environment reminiscent of Renaissance gathering places. They can enjoy nights of live music & film, playing board games or surfing on free Wi-Fi.
Andrew and wife AJ Schaffer for the last 6 years have run a 15th century-themed coffeehouse at Pennsic War, a two-week Rennassance Faire type event held annually near Slippery Rock.

These cosmopolitans are originally from NJ but have traveled all over the world. They cycled across Europe a few years, ago and got the idea for YIV hanging out in the traditional coffeehouses in Morocco & Istanbul. Despite their newness and radically different business model (they don’t open until 4 PM and stay open late, YIV recently won Best Coffeehouse 2008 in City Paper's readers poll.

Friday, January 2, 2009

Pittsburgh Talkcast Host Celebrates 100 Shows

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Joanne Quinn-Smith, Host and Publisher
PositivelyPittsburghLive™ Talkcast, PositivelyPittsburghLiveMagazine.com™
412-628-5048
jqsdreamweaver@aol.com
joanne@positivelypittsburghlivemagazine.com


Pittsburgh Talkcast Host Celebrates 100 Shows
Interviewing Pittsburgh Centenarians
Positively Pittsburgh Live Explores Only Pittsburgh Positive News


Pittsburgh, January 2, 2008 Centenarians and the anniversary of 100 shows, what could go better together, unless the centenarians are quick witted and humorous and the show’s content is only positive news stories. Positively Pittsburgh Live Talkcast™ is a show about all the positive news about Pittsburgh. Host, Joanne Quinn-Smith began recording the one hour show in February, 2007 every Monday from 7 PM to 8 PM EST to combat the negative news about wrecks and shootings and burglaries. The theme of the show is: “All the Positive News for Pittsburghers, about Pittsburghers and By Pittsburghers. “ In 100 Shows, Joanne Quinn-Smith has interviewed over 300 guests each week taking on a positive core value, institution or topic concerning Pittsburgh every week. On Monday, December 22, 2008 she celebrated Positively Pittsburgh Live’s 100th show with two centenarians who live at St Barnabas Assisted Living in Gibsonia. The interviews with the two Centenarians were on the spot interviews and later interspersed with the usual 15 minutes of Positive News combined with a live guest interview.

The live guests were Cathy Brenneman, Director of Public Relations and Advertising for St. Barnabas Health System and Jim Roddy, spokesperson for Presents for Patients which is run in five States through the St. Barnabas charities. Jim Roddy, former Allegheny County Executive is also the “unspoiled” only son of Margaret Lichtenstein, one of the Pittsburgh Centenarians interviewed for Positively Pittsburgh Live™.

In the Live interview Margaret Lichtenstein talks about her life since 1909 including North and South Carolina, Texas and now here in Pittsburgh. The prides of her life are her awards in elocution as a young girl, her business man/public servant son and her first 15 point buck that she shot when she took up hunting at 66 years young. She shot a buck every year for 15 years, says deer meat is her favorite meat and she would not have killed it if she didn’t intend to eat it. She still has the head of her first buck on the wall in her living room. Mrs. Lichtenstein will be 100 in January and is a life long avid reader who still listens to books on tape and accredits her longevity to keeping busy and constantly educating herself.

On the other hand, Marie Provanzano, 101, is a delightful and humorous Pittsburgh native of Swissvale who tells stories of her native Swissvale which has always been an ethnic Italian neighborhood. Marie loves people and had 120 people at her 100th birthday party, showing that her family and friends are still growing over the years. She accredits her longevity to her love of people and her faith in God. She also does not discount her Italian heritage which gave to her a love of fun, music and dancing. She also enjoys the St. Barnabas Community and her relationships with her neighbors in other apartments. She still likes to do her own laundry at 101.

Pittsburgh Centenarians and 100 shows in almost two years have inspired host Joanne Quinn-Smith but since February, 2007, she has had no dearth of inspiration in the Positive aspects of the Steel City. In 2009, her editorial calendar included:

Pittsburgh—on the Cutting Edge, Technology
February—Pittsburgh’s Black History, Events, Historic Communities, Heroes
March-- Pittsburgh Creative Arts
April—Pittsburgh’s Helping Hands
May—Pittsburgh Mothers/Fathers; Pittsburgh in Bloom
Pittsburgh Parks
June—Pittsburgh a Vacation Destination
July—Pittsburgh Tech Capital
August—Pittsburgh Schools and Universities
September—Pittsburgh Sports
October—Pittsburgh Economic Strength and Viability in Current Economics
November-Pittsburgh Schools, Community Outreach
December-Pittsburgh Restaurants, Tea Rooms, Parties

In her quest for the Positive News, host, Joanne Quinn-Smith has been led to interview
these Pittsburgh notables such as:

• Dr. Kenton J. Zehr, Chief Cardiac Surgeon, UPMC
• Clarence Hopson, Deputy Director, Allegheny County Parks Department
• Tom Savini, nationally acclaimed actor, director, and special make-up effects artist
• Tom Link, Urban Redevelopment Authority
• Ed Fasulo, The Pittsburgh Casino
• Teresa Conn, Pittsburgh Passion
• Penny Folino, Folino’s Restaurant, Tom’s Diner
• Bill Flannigan of Pittsburgh 250 and Our Region’s Business
• Magdeline E. Jensen, CEO of Greater Pittsburgh YWCA
• Kathryn J. Heidemann, Director of Pittsburgh’s First Night

Positively Pittsburgh Live editorial calendar in 2009 will address in January, Pittsburgh Warm up Activities and Winter Sports. Other topics for the year will be Pittsburgh Communities, Pittsburgh as and Ethnic Melting Pot, Pittsburgh Business Organizations and various topics dealing with 25 year celebration of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust.

Hi-Lights:
• Positively Pittsburgh Live™ Talkcast celebrated 100 shows
• Positively Pittsburgh Live™ only reports the Positive News about the Greater Pittsburgh Area
• Centenarians Interviewed: Margaret Lichtenstien, 100, Marie Provanzano 101
• Live Guests:
• Jim Roddy, former Allegheny County Executive and spokesperson for Presents for Patients
• Cathy Brenneman, PR and Marketing Director for St. Barnabas Health System
• PositivelyPittsburghLiveMagazine.com™ provides an online community magazine for Pittsburghers, with calendar and forum and a cost effective way for local merchants and organizations to advertize.

This show is archived at www.talkshoe.com at: http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/tscmd/tc/18520
or:
http://www.positivelypittsburghlivemagazine.com on its own unique radio channel