SUZANNE LAWRENCE | PHOTO BY LOUIS STEIN

Suzanne Lawrence took a comedy class in 2015 at Arcade Comedy Theater, “kind of on a dare from some friends.” Before even completing the course, she was offered $10 and two beers to perform a 10-minute set at bygone Lawrenceville comedy spot Hambone’s.

“Now, I get slightly more money,” she says. She has since opened for national headliners, including Tig Notaro, Michael Ian Black and Melissa Villaseñor, and taken the stage as far afield as California. (And, she says, nearly London — but “the guy responded when I was already heading for my plane at Heathrow.”) A West Virginia native who returned to the region after spending time in Los Angeles, Lawrence works in research for UPMC by day and continues to perform by night.

We wanted to know: What is Suzanne Lawrence’s Best of the ’Burgh?

What’s your Pittsburgh “hidden gem,” a place that you love that doesn’t get the attention it deserves?

The bar Leo. a public house on the North Side: “It has that neighborhood dive-bar vibe, but they have really incredible custom cocktails.”

If you could only eat one local meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Banana Walnut Hotcakes from The Dor-Stop Restaurant

If Pittsburgh had a theme song, what would it be?

“I’m Still Standing,” Elton John. “Specifically, the version from ‘Sing 2.’ It’s the one … that [my daughter] Molly plays most. We do a lot of retrospective learning about songs.”

What’s the annual tradition that you wait for every year?

Ice skating at PPG Place — and the Peoples Gas Holiday Market

Favorite Pittsburgh appearance in a movie or on television?

“Silence of the Lambs,” particularly the scene filmed at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall & Museum

What’s your unpopular Pittsburgh opinion? What is something you think about the city (or a famous aspect of it) that won’t win you any friends?

“I think we need more bike lanes — and better public transportation in general.”

Where’s the first place you take out-of-town guests?

The Strip District: “It feels like the historical heart of Pittsburgh … It has interesting stores, places you can get memorabilia — even if it’s not licensed. There’s basically something for everyone.”

You get one incline ride with any Pittsburgher, living or dead. Who is it?

“The lion at the zoo. Just to see. I just want to see if we could be friends. I think we could.”

If you could bring back one Pittsburgh place or restaurant that’s no longer there, which would you pick?

“In no particular order: Hambone’s, the Shadow Lounge and the fish on the Wholey’s building.”