I just want to wish everyone a happy National Pierogi Day (Oct 8th). I’m not really sure if President Obama or Congress has made this official, but I have a suspicion on why Oct 8th is National Pierogi Day. On Oct 8th, 1952, Ted Twardzik, Sr., founder of Mrs. T’s Pierogies, produced the company’s first samples for a local grocery store.
There you go. Eat Pierogies.
Zagursky’s Old World Pierogies
Overall Rating : 2.0 out of 5
Filling Options : 3.0
Accessories : 2.0
Taste : 1.5
(filling + accessories + (taste x 2))/4
4668 East Prospect Street
Mantua, Ohio 44255
(330) 274-2622
website
Tuesday: 1:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Wednesday – Thursday: 12:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Friday: 12:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Saturday – Monday: Closed
Lesson learned. Only buy pierogies made in Pittsburgh proper or Chicago. Zagursky’s Old World Pierogies are not from Western PA. The are made just on the other side of Youngstown, OH. However, they are sold at farmer’s markets in Western PA. I bought a dozen in the Meadville Market House next to Allegheny College. A quick aside, I needed a break from reviewing pierogies because I was worried I was getting burnt out of eating pierogies. When I saw these in Meadville, I couldn’t resist, thus jumpstarting my reviews back up again. Fortunately I had a little cooler with me already packed with ice. Not that I was expecting to take pierogies back to Pittsburgh with me, but because I went on a trip to the Straub Brewery’s eternal tap. The cooler was to take beer with us from the brewery and drink it in the car (my passenger, not me of course, that would be illegal).
Meadville’s choices were limited, only Jalapeno or Potato & Onion. That didn’t stop the excitement form building. The packaging is a zip lock bag with a cute line drawing of a grandma, adding to the allure of this product. The packaging was so much better than the pierogies themselves.
Filling Options
Most locations selling Zagursky have Potato & Onion, Jalapeno or Potato & Cheese. The main location in Ohio does have seasonal pierogies that sound good, especially sweet potato & cinnamon. Zagursky’s losses a little for not having all of the basic flavors, but gain a little for having some interesting seasonal flavors, so they finish with an average score here.
Accessories
Pierogies are available frozen, pre-package. So preparation is up to you.
Taste
You can taste that they are homemade versus machine made. What you can’t taste is the flavor. These pierogies rank near the bottom of pack so far. I almost didn’t want to finish six of them in one sitting.
S&D Polish Deli
Overall Rating : 3.9 out of 5
Filling Options : 4.75
Accessories : 5.0
Taste : 3.0
(filling + accessories + (taste x 2))/4
2204 Penn Ave.
Strip District
Pittsburgh PA 15222
(412) 281-2906
website
Monday: 10:00 am – 4:30 pm
Tuesday – Friday: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
Saturday: 9:00 am – 4:30 pm
Sunday: Closed
S&D Polish Deli has already made a strong showing being declared “Pittsburgh’s Best Pierogi” by the Post-Gazette in its first year open. So, that’s the end of this blog since the Post-Gazette beat me to the chase. I guess “Munch” is a rival in the ultra-competitive world of anonymous Pittsburgh food reviews, but come on. This “Munch” declares S&D pierogi the “Best Pierogies Evah” and even at one point stated “finest pierogies you’ll eat this side of Krakow”. Bold statements.
I guess this is the point where I move ahead of my rival. S&D pierogies are not made in Pittsburgh, but Chicago. Yes, Chicago. They are made by mostly young Polish female immigrants in a small factory called Alexandra’s in the Belmont Central neighborhood of Chicago. As far as frozen pierogies go, Alexandra’s is the best. But what an insult to all Pittsburghers declaring a Chicago frozen pierogi better than anything Pittsburgh could muster up. I will boldly declare S&D pierogies NOT the best in Pittsburgh. Because not only do I have pride in my adopted hometown of Pittsburgh, but I’ve already reviewed better pierogies in town.
Let me tell you about Maultaschen pierogies.
Filling Options
This is by far the strength of S&D / Alexandra’s pierogies. Maultaschen Maultaschen Maultaschen Maultaschen Maultaschen Maultaschen Maultaschen. Did I mention I like spinach and meat pierogies? Well, that’s Maultaschen. To me, the spinach and meat is the best filling I’ve ever had. In fact, Alexandra is the only one who seems to make it. If you are a local pierogi establishment and are reading this, please make me a spinach and meat pierogi.
S&D / Alexandra has all of the standard flavors as well as dessert pierogies. They sound funky, but don’t hesitate to give the strawberry pierogies a try. A dozen pierogies will cost you $6.50. They lose a quarter of a point for not have local favorites such as Jalapeño.
Accessories
Pierogies are available either frozen or prepared. They will even cater your wedding. The prepared pierogies are not over buttered and well presented. You can also order an assortment of other Polish favorites, which I want to try the next time. They are also a full Polish deli. Basically, they really nailed this category.
Taste
I tried the frozen and prepared pierogies and I feel the same about both. I really like them as frozen pierogies, but as compared to fresh – homemade pierogies, they are average. A large step up from Mrs. T’s but a large step down from Forgotten Taste, Pierogies Plus and St. George’s.
I hope you have been following the latest controversy from the Pierogi Race and the Pittsburgh Pirates. It reeks of back-room deals, pissed-off executives, unwanted media attention, and having a strong position one day and the opposite position the next day. I wish the regulators of the oil and gas drilling industry had this much attention.
Unlike the kind of feedback Randall Simon gave during Sausagegate at the Great Pierogi Race n’At, this time it was a pierogi swinging a bat at the Pirates. A Pierogi made comments on Facebook against the resigning of the current management team during one of the worst Pirate years to date. The Pirates found out, then fired the kid who plays the pierogi. Then the national media found out and had a field day. Two days later the Pirates ask the kid to return to work for his $25 per race gig. He should have demanded a raise.
Lessons learned:
- don’t become Facebook friends with your boss
- racing pierogies don’t make enough money
- the Pirates really have no idea how to get out of this funk, so they now just surf the web on Facebook all day.
What really caught my eye was the Yahoo headline was something like “Pittsburgh Pierogi fired for criticism”. I’m thinking, gosh I hope its not Oliver Onion. Maybe people were criticizing him for being in last place in the standings. Did he trip and hurt Hanna? Oh no .. maybe it’s me, Pierogiman. I know it’s been a weekish since my last post, and my readers are mad, but finding this out on the front page of Yahoo is really harsh.
More Info:
The initial incident
Insightful Editorial
The Conclusion … or is it?
Sausagegate … some history
Forgotten Taste Pierogies
Overall Rating : 4.4 out of 5
Filling Options : 3.5
Accessories : 5.0
Taste : 4.5
(filling + accessories + (taste x 2))/4
3 Locations:
(where we went)
910 Beaver Grade Rd
Moon Township, PA 15108
(412) 269-9800
Cranberry Gardens Plaza
20325 Route 19
Cranberry, PA 16066
(724) 778-9470
11269 Perry Highway
Wexford, PA 15090
(724) 940-2277
monday, saturday: 11am – 5pm
Tuesday – Friday: 11:00 am – 7:00 pm
Saturday, Monday: 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Sunday: Closed
I found this place on accident and thank god I did. I stumbled upon this gem of a pierogi establishment. Forgotten Taste specializes in takeout and catering, geared for people to stop by on there way home from work. You can purchase either hot & ready to eat or frozen. I know the pierogies are made in the shop, but I wasn’t sure if they are all frozen first, or the hot & ready are truly fresh.
Filling Options
The twelve pierogi options on their menu were available, and range from potato to pork to prune. I don’t think I will ever eat a prune pierogi. I selected potato & cheese and potato & bacon to take home in their frozen state. Still no love for my spinach & meat. The prices range from $6.75 – $9.25 per dozen with the average around $8.00. In my opinion, anything over $8.00 is too high, so the pricing average to a bit disappointing and they lose a point for that. Overall, the filling options were solid, but not terribly exciting. The potato & cheese flavor is above average because they use colby.
Accessories
This is where they shine. Do you want butter & onions or tomato sauce? no problem…. How about haluski, goulash, glumpki, kielbasa, desert, or any combination of the above? Did you want that frozen or ready to eat? Did you want that catered? Perfect.
Taste
Nothing in particular stands about when it comes to the taste or texture, this is a solid package. The filling has perfectly blended and proportional to the dough. These pierogies are one of the best, without a doubt. I don’t know how better to word this, but I would say its a pierogi with a universal taste.
My favorite so far with Pierogies Plus right behind.
I just bought this fantastic pierogi shirt at WildCard in Lawrenceville. I thought it was worth the mention.
Alfred’s Deli Plus
Overall Rating : 2.6 out of 5
Filling Options : 3.5
Accessories : 2.0
Taste : 2.5
(filling + accessories + (taste x 2))/4
3041 Brereton Street
Polish Hill
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
(412) 682-3100
Tuesday – Friday: 10:30 am – 5:00 pm
Saturday: 10:30 am – 4:00 pm
Sunday: 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Monday: Closed
What a tease. This Polish grocery store was located only a couple of blocks from my house. Remember when there were two Polish grocery stores on Butler Street? Now there are none. Alfred’s moved back to Polish Hill from Lawrenceville. Polish Hill should have a Polish deli, so I guess I forgive them. I miss Mishka’s (grocery and deli) right next to my house in Chicago, so I was excited about the opportunity to sample Alfred’s. This is the second time I’ve had their store-made pierogies and my opinion remains the same.
Filling Options
There is a selection of about eight types of pierogies. I picked up a dozen Potato and a dozen Beef. Other fillings included Jalapeno, Cottage Cheese, Sauerkraut, Bacon and Cheese. The beef filling was the most interesting meat pierogi I’ve had so far. It didn’t match my all time favorite meat & spinach pierogi found in Chicago, but it came close. The potato was average.
You can purchase either cooked, which range form $8.00 – $9.50 per dozen, or uncooked, which hover around $6.00 for a dozen. These are expensive prices, so I was tempted to try the uncooked. My lack of experience with the uncooked led me to spend the extra to buy the cooked. All pierogies came frozen.
Accessories
Since Alfred’s is primarily a store, it has a very similar feel to Euro Greetings. I was a bit disappointed to find that the owner would not let me buy the glumpki because it was too old. However, I did appreciate the honesty. They sold other standard Polish dry goods and Happy Hippos, (my favorite European treat) but did not have a place to sit down and eat.
Taste
There was nothing special about these pierogies. They were slightly better than Mrs. T’s. I would not pay the higher prices to have them again.
.
Euro Greetings
Overall Rating : 2.9 out of 5
Filling Options : 2.0
Accessories : 2.5
Taste : 3.5
(filling + accessories + (taste x 2))/4
2004 Smallman Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15222
(412) 281-1808
Most people associate the pierogies with Poland, but the Ukraine and Russia have their own version of the delectable treats. Euro Greetings, located in the Strip District, exclusively makes Russian pierogies. I could not tell you the difference in philosophy or taste between a polish and russian pierogies, however, the owner said Euro’s pierogies are more focused on the fillings than dough. overall, Euro Greetings makes a tasty pierogi.
Filling Options
The pierogies are made in the back of the store, but are sold frozen. Frozen pierogies are always less exciting than fresh. At $5.50 per dozen, you can’t argue over the price. The filling itself was not fully pureed, giving it a chunkier consistency and stronger taste. I liked this. At the time I was there, not many varieties were available, which was a bit disappointing.
Accessories
Being a russian grocery store, Euro Greetings sells a variety of dips and accessories. One I would highly recommend is the Ajver, which is a spicy vegetarian topping that reminds me of a baba ghanoush with a kick. This was a fantastic and unusual topping for a pierogi. If you are looking for the traditional onions and butter, you are out of luck. Euro Greetings does have a few tables in the store for people who want to eat pierogies and enjoy the atmosphere.
Taste
The focus of the Euro Greetings pierogi is the filling, not the dough, which you can tell. It was the right mixture of fluffiness, moisture, and taste. The dough was just average. They sure were tasty.
Before I get into the mini-reviews, i want to clarify what counts as a “Grocery Store Pierogi”. I must have found the pierogies at a major chain grocery store. The stores I visited were Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Shop & Save, Giant Eagle and Giant Eagle Market District.
Some interesting facts (according to reliable internet sources), research shows pierogies enjoy a household penetration nationally of just 5%. The grocery store annual revenue is $50 million in the frozen pierogi category. Pittsburgh ranks #1 for frozen pierogi sales (according to Mrs. T’s).
There is a 2nd tier of companies that make frozen pierogies like Supreme Pierogies or Alexandra that I feel are not in this category. Supreme is getting very large, so maybe when they enter the Pittsburgh market, they will be lumped with Mrs. T’s. I wonder who makes all these private label pierogies?
Mrs. T’s
bought at Shop & Save
Overall Rating : 2.0 out of 5
Filling Options : 2.0
Accessories : 2.0
Taste : 2.0
Pennsylvania Based
Mrs. T’s is the baseline for all reviews, so naturally its in the middle. There are the first pierogies I’ve ever had. I eat only Mrs. T’s for about 6 years before I discovered other varieties. Boy I was naive. Still the go-to for the generic frozen. The further you are from Potato and Onion, the scarier and longer the ingredients list is. The potatoes are clearly school lunch powdered.
(filling + accessories + (taste x 2))/4
Giant Eagle Generic
bought at Giant Eagle Market District
Overall Rating : 1.8 out of 5
Filling Options : 1.0
Accessories : 2.0
Taste : 2.0
Really bad filling selections. I’m sure the pepperoni pizza pierogi is coming soon. To me, it tasted very similar to Mrs. T’s. A little thinner dough, which fell apart during boiling (they were all stuck together during the freezing process). Same scary ingredient list problems as Mrs. T’s. Pass.
Granny’s Gourmet
bought at Giant Eagle Market District
Overall Rating : 2.25 out of 5
Filling Options : 1.0
Accessories : 1.5
Taste : 2.75
Pennsylvania Based
Really a small company but is sold at Giant Eagle Market District. There packaging is completely different. The pierogies are cooked, placed in a puddle of onion and butter, then frozen in an aluminum tray. They are not boiled, but cooked in the oven for about an hour. Many readers of this site commented on the convenience of this packaging for picnics where you could just pull it out of the freezer than thaw. I get it. However, I literally poured 2/3s of the gob of butter these pierogies were sitting in. Second, the salt was a bit excessive. Finally, the scariest ingredient list of all. It did taste the best of the bunch, but it does come at the price of your health and your pocketbook (really expensive).
365 Organic Potato & Cheese
bought at Whole Foods
Overall Rating : 1.6 out of 5
Filling Options : 1.5
Accessories : 2.0
Taste : 1.5
These were so boring. At least their organic. My mouth fell asleep eating these.
Trader Giotto’s Potato & Cheese Pierogi
bought at Trader Joe’s.
Overall Rating : 1.9 out of 5
Filling Options : 1.5
Accessories : 2.0
Taste : 2.0
These tasted identical to the Giant Eagle pierogies. The ingredients list is good here. For the grocery store generic category, these are probably the best, simply because of the ingredients. Best is a relative term here.
Links to private label pierogi manufactures that probably make these pierogies:
- http://heritagespecialtyfoods.com – check out their flavors… a new direction.
- http://www.plpierogies.com/ – Interesting quote “All of our retail partners use fresh potatoes for their brands, however some prefer the use of cheese powders or pastes over our standard fresh cheeses, especially where price is the only issue.”
Pierogies Plus
Overall Rating : 3.6 out of 5
Filling Options : 4.0
Accessories : 2.5
Taste : 4.0
(filling + accessories + (taste x 2))/4
342 Island Avenue, McKees Rocks, PA 15136
(412) 331-2224
Monday: 11 am – 6 p.m.
Tuesday – Friday: 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Pittsburgh’s most famous pierogi establishment, Pierogies Plus also claims to be pittsburgh’s largest manufacture of the doughy delight. You can find their pierogies in grocery stores and the Bloomfield Bridge Tavern. When you walk in, you are greeted with a thick accent from Eastern Europe giving this place sense of authenticity. Pierogies Plus opened in 1991 in an old gas station in McKees Rocks. There are no seats for customers, so I figure its take out only.
Filling Options
Four varieties are always available; Potato & Cheese, Sauerkraut & Potato, Cottage Cheese & Chives, and Meat, with 26 special order pierogies with a two day notice. The prices are high for the four staples ($8.00) and really steep for the special order pierogies ($9.25). Several desert varieties are available special order, which are always tasty. But alas, I’m always looking for the perfect Meat & Spinach pierogi, and so far it doesn’t exist in pittsburgh. They lose a point for the prices.
Accessories
Several non-pierogi Polish favorites are offered, including haluski, golumpki (stuff cabbage), and pulled-pork. Why does these polish places always offer some random american dish, or maybe pulled-pork is Polish. I did not sample any of the non-pierogi dishes. Pierogies plus is take out only, so I cooked them up my usual way of a quick pan fry with onions and a small amount of butter. I’m always a bit disappointed when its take out only.
Taste
Their dough has a nice, chewy quality similar to St. George’s, which I like. The fillings were good, but did not stand out. They are made fresh daily, and you can tell in the taste. Overall, these were very good pierogies, not quite as good as St. George’s, but better than Rosie’s.
Although this blog is focused on fresh, home or church made pierogies, I think its important to recognize the options for grocery store frozen pierogies. Mrs. T’s defines this category and of course is our basis of comparison for all pierogies. Giant Eagle now makes their generic version. I found this one, Granny’s Gourmet at Giant Eagle Market District and I thought I give it a shot. Its odd that I must cook this in the oven for an hour. Kind of like a pierogi meat loaf? I’ll tell you the results to see if they are truly worthy of the Granny title.
Overall Rating : 3.8 out of 5
Filling Options : 2.0
Accessories : 3.0
Taste : 5.0
(filling + accessories + (taste x 2))/4
3455 California Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15212
(412) 766-8801
Thur – Fri : 10 a.m. – 4 p.m
Pierogi Sale
This is a classic example of cute old ladies making pierogies as a fund raiser for their church. St. George’s Church is located in the Brighton Heights neighborhood of Pittsburgh. As you enter into the church’s social hall in the rear of the building, you will see what the world was like 100 years ago when all of the Eastern European immigrants first came to our city. You are first greeted by two volunteers excited to see you. The will offer you two choices of pierogi and optional butter/onions. The pierogies are sold to-go by the dozen. Upon leaving, you will be wondering how you would look in a babushka.
Filling Options
St. George has two varieties, potato or half & half (potato and sauerkraut). Although they do a fantastic job with their two varieties, I wish they had more. These two do represent two of the five core Pittsburgh favorites, as measured by the five Pirates Racing Pierogies. Since this blog is new and I can’t assume my readers attend Pirates games as often as I do, the Pirates, our MLB baseball team, races pierogies during the inning break. The racers are Jalapeno Hana, Cheese Chester, Sauerkraut Saul, and the highly intelligent Oliver Onion. Potato Pete is in retirement and does make special appearances, autograph signings, etc.
Accessories
They only sell pierogies. Since that is the focus of these reviews, they will not lose points for not having other polish favorites. They did sell a small onion/butter to-go carton. One carton per two dozen pierogies was the perfect amount of butter/onion/pierogi ratio. I’ve always prefer a medium amount of butter. I really have a distaste when pierogies come soaking in butter. Since the butter issue is one of my biggest issues with other establishments, they get high marks for keeping it separate.
Taste
St. George’s makes up for variety in taste. Their dough has a chewy, tough quality which is really appealing to me. Each pierogi was of ample size and very fluffy filling. Overall, these were excellent pierogies. They receive bonus points for being fresh, which they make each Thursday morning.
overall rating : 3.4 out of 5
filling options : 4.0
accessories : 2.5
taste : 3.5
(filling + accessories + (taste x 2))/4
2015 pittsburgh mills blvd., suite 107, tarentum, pa 15084
(724)275-7700
Mon – Fri : 10 a.m. – 7 p.m
Saturday : 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Sundays : Noon. – 4 p.m.
Rosie’s Pierogies, nestled in a small strip overshadowed by the monstrous Pittsburgh Mills Mall off of Route 28, stands out among the national chain restaurants. There was a good crowd on Saturday afternoon, with about half eating in and the other half taking theirs home. Rosie’s was started in Plum in 2001, and moved to the Mills Mall two year ago to reach more customers.
Filling Options
Since this is my first review, I chose Mrs. T’s as a baseline. Rosie’s has 25 varieties to choose from, with their four staples always ready to go; potato & cheese, sauerkraut, bacon potato & cheese, and jalapeno potato & cheese. Some enticing highlights include spinach & parmesan, sauerkraut & kolbassi, and garlic mash potato. Rosie’s missed the five rating here because they made it convenient to only eat their four main staples at the restaurant. Also, I’m always looking for a good meat & spinach, but alas, no success.
Accessories
Rosie’s offers several other options besides just pierogies, including a good haluski and average golumpki (stuffed cabbage). The chicken is really good American (as opposed to Southern) style fried chicken. Other menu items I didn’t try were fresh kolbassi and renogie, which is their trademarked deep fried pierogi. Pittsburgh pierogies are traditionally served with butter and onions, a tradition which Rosie’s adheres to. The pierogies were swimming in the butter, which not only took away form their flavor, but made me feel a little ill afterwards.
Taste
The taste of each flavor lived up to my expectations of a “better than Mrs. T’s Pierogi”. I did feel the flavor was lacking a little punch, though. The combination of their four main pierogies choices were all very starchy. I would have liked to see some less starchy options for pierogi choices or side dishes.
I will find the best pierogi, but for now, Rosie’s was good not great.
Photos from Rosie’s Website
This blog is dedicated to my love for pierogies. For my wedding, I wanted to serve the city’s best pierogi. After many web searches and conversations with people, I’ve determined there is no source for information on finding good pierogies in our fair city. This blog is to be that definitive source.
Pittsburgh’s strong affection for the food makes it a big part of our culture as a city. I was first introduced to the pierogi my freshman year at Carnegie Mellon in the cafeteria. The irony is that in my hometown of Chicago, the world’s second largest Polish city, the only place to find homemade pierogies is in the ethnically Polish neighborhoods. Since I didn’t grow up in one of these neighborhoods, I didn’t even know what a pierogi was.
The longer I stay in Pittsburgh, the more my love for the taste of pierogies has grown. Like everyone else, I started with Mrs. T’s. Now I’ve learned when the local churches and fire halls are having fresh pierogi sales. I hope my searching, tasting and writing will help others find the best pierogi for themselves. Also, I hope my readers will tell me of their favorite pierogi spots.
I will post a new review each week starting April 1st, 2010. I will finish when I can’t find any more pierogies. Hopefully during the life of this blog, I will be introduced to some pierogi-making grandmas. * hint, hint.*
Pierogiman
