Nightlife in Pittsburgh: Hilltop Heaven and Nintendo Nights

Sean Collier, PM nightlife editor, drops in on two places guaranteed to keep you entertained for an evening.

PHOTOs by Renee Rabenold

Hilltop Haven
At the crest of a quiet neighborhood, a former social hall has been resurrected as a cozy nanobrewery. Spring Hill Brewing (springhillbrewing.com) opened for weekend business in July 2018; the business expanded to Thursday-Sunday hours in March.

In addition to a rotating list of farmhouse-style ales, events from the conventional (food truck roundups) to the distinctive (theme nights wrapped around “Twin Peaks” and retro pro wrestling) draw crowds to the hilltop brewpub.

The Asado food truck, from the Gaucho team, can be found outside on most Fridays and Saturdays. Look for a bit of the building’s former life evidenced on the bar itself; when this was the Workingmen’s Beneficial Union, it housed a six-lane bowling alley. Salvaged wood from the lanes now serves as the bar top. 
 

Nintendo Nights
Sure, hosting a game night at home is great. You do not, however, know games like Victory Pointe knows games.

The South Side arcade (victorypointe.com) is split into two levels: downstairs for stand-up video-game cabinets (prepare to get viciously competitive at life-size “Mario Kart”) and upstairs for tabletop and console gaming. Browse the catalog and select from hundreds of video games, on their original systems, dating back to the ’80s — “NBA Jam,” anyone? — or peruse the wide selection of board and tabletop games and settle in.

Snacks (including custom milkshakes) are available or you can order delivery, and it’s BYOB. Oh, and the price is right: $7/hour for video games (including the arcade cabinets), or $7/day for board games.