KIDS
Best Pumpkin Patch: Is your little pumpkin precocious as a peanut? Help him or her discover the Great Pumpkin this fall at Soergel Orchards' pumpkin patch. Providing such autumnal pleasures as hay rides, balloon chases, a full-blown corn maze, and, of course, a pick-your-own pumpkin patch, Soergel's promises a kid-friendly pastoral experience. Stop by on festival weekends for the whole agricultural affair, and you'll experience an autumn your family won't soon forget. Fall Festival Weekends run the last weekend in September through the end of October. 2573 Brandt School Road, Franklin Park; 724/935-1743, soergels.com. - K.M.
Best Reading Nook: When it's too rainy and cold to play outside, what's a kid to do? We know just the place to cure the rainy-day blues: The cozy window reading nooks at Carnegie Library's Squirrel Hill branch. There, kids can snuggle up with their parent and a favorite book in one of the brightly painted square niches. Located in the heart of the business district, the nooks also allow kids and their parents to overlook bustling Murray and Forbes avenues, which could give even Richard Scarry's Busytown a run for its money! 5801 Forbes Ave., Squirrel Hill; 412/422-9650. clpgh.org/locations/squirrelhill - B.S.
Best Neon Bowling: Give your kids a break from school and treat them to cosmic bowling at FunFest Entertainment Center. The bowling alley's four flat-screen TVs allow kids to bowl with their favorite music stars' music videos. FunFest's cosmic bowling features black lights, a disco ball and disco lights. There's also laser tag, an arcade, billiards and a restaurant. Don't forget to dress the kids in white - they'll glow! $5.25 per person per game; shoe rental, $3.50. 2525 Freeport Road, Harmarville; 412/828-1100, funfestcenter.com. - C.S.
Best Spray Park: Here's some heat relief with some good ol' H2O: No swimming training required. With its 3,600 square feet of spouting sprayers and flowing fountains, the Goettman Street Spray Park is a hot spot to cool off. Kids can dodge oversized water cannons and romp about this 3-D world of water, which opened last month. 1200 Goettman St., Troy Hill. Free. Info: 412/255-2539 - C.H.
PEOPLE
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Readers' Poll: Best Reason to Stay in Pittsburgh: Readers chose "the people" as the best reason to stay in Pittsburgh. So, how about a slogan to go along with this: "Pittsburgh: We're Not A Bunch of Phonies." As a town we're true to ourselves. We say what we mean, and you can trust us to mean what we say. We're the real deal and, from what visitors and locals say, we're real friendly. Need directions? "It's easier just to follow me." As a group we're known for working hard, helping out and being generous. What's ours is yours! (Except for our parking spots. Go find your own.) - J.W. "Best of Pittsburgh" Readers' Poll: Extras!When we got the results of our Readers' Poll survey, we learned a lot about our readers. Here are some that didn't make the magazine:
Best Healthy Restaurant: Red Oak Café |
Readers' Poll: Best Local Newscaster (Male): He's an anchor with a comfortable delivery and serious journalistic cred - he's won a National First Place Associated Press Award and awards from the Radio-Television News Directors Association. He also gives us a glimpse of his sly sense of humor. In town since 1988, the hard-working Ken Rice anchors the weeknight editions of "KDKA-TV News" at 5 and 11 p.m. with the "KDKA 10 O'Clock News" on CW in-between. He's also a co-host of "The KD/PG Sunday Edition" and does a bit of an Alex Trebek-ian turn as host of "Hometown High-Q," a high school quiz show. - J.W.
Readers' Poll: Best Local Newscaster (Female): You know she loves her black-and-gold local sports teams. You may know that she's won widespread recognition for her news reporting, including receiving Emmy, Associated Press and United Press International honors. But did you know that fan-favorite Sally Wiggin graduated from the University of Alabama and earned her master's degree from the University of Michigan in - Chinese studies? The anchor of Channel 4's weekday noon and 6 p.m. newscasts joined WTAE in 1980 and has been a trusted member of Pittsburgh households ever since. - J.W.
Readers' Poll: Best Local Meteorologist: Whether the weather is dreary or dazzling, it's never more important to know the details than when you're heading out the door for the day, and readers chose Demetrius Ivory as the one from whom they want to get the scoop. Ivory delivers the forecasts on "Channel 4 Action News This Morning" weekdays from 5 to 7 a.m. A graduate of Ohio State University with a degree in atmospheric sciences, Demetrius, who has been forecasting at Channel 4 for three years, is still active in the school's Meteorology Club and, back in the 'Burgh, he produces music in his home studio and is an avid movie-goer. - J.W.
Readers' Poll: Best Radio DJ (Female): The mid-day host on 96.1 KISS fm, Cathy Schodde, known to fans as "Tall Cathy" (she's 6 feet tall), is a Pittsburgh native who, she says, "has black and gold running through her veins." At KISS events, she is surrounded by listeners who want to pose for photos and talk about their favorite parts of her show. She actively updates her popular page on KISS Nation, the station's online social network, with information and photos and replies to as many listener messages as she can handle. Tall Cathy clearly has a giant place in her listeners' hearts. - J.W.
Readers' Poll: Best Local Athlete: When Penguins favorite Sidney Crosby isn't busy with slap shots or headshots, he can be found in our very own town of Sewickley. Crosby lives there with the Mario Lemieux family (picture that power play of a family dinner) during the NHL season, but is originally from Nova Scotia. Those Canadians sure know how to breed their hockey players, eh? But you're much more likely to find this hockey hottie shirtless in an issue of GQ or Vanity Fair than running around in a flannel shirt and earflap hat. Crosby has finally given the ladies something to look at in a sport typically reserved for toothless mouths and crooked noses, and he's a rare icon to bring attention to the sport of hockey nationally. Not to mention all the awards and records - he was the only teenager to win a scoring title in any North American major-league sport. - C.H.
Readers' Poll: Best Radio DJ (Male): Is it any surprise that Jim Krenn is yet again chosen by the readers as their favorite? As half of the "Jim and Randy Morning Show" on 102.5 WDVE, Krenn brings his multiple comedic talents, including impressions and characters, to the airwaves. These are the same talents he brings to the stage because Krenn is also one of the area's most popular stand-up comics. He's shared the stage with Jay Leno, Jerry Seinfeld, Dennis Miller and other national names - guys who know "funny" when they hear it. - J.W.Thank you to our Best of Pittsburgh sponsors:
