Oh, that's so good.

Yeah.

Still got that mustache.

Mmm.

Made by yours truly.

Showdown is back.

I'll drink my free coffee out of this.

And on this episod we're talking about the shops, the drinks, and the people that make up the caffeinated culture of Pittsburgh's coffee scene.

Chin chin!

Chin chin!

From classic cappuccinos to bold new brews.

We're sipping from three standout spots: La Prima in the Strip, Grim Wizard in Allentown and Creative Chem Co in Bloomfield.

So hold on to your beans and watch me learn how to make a drink on this episode of Showdown.

La Prima Espresso is one of the first coffee shops I ever visited in Pittsburgh.

And for a lot of people here, it's been a constant for decades.

Founded in 1988 by Sam Patti, La Prima started as a place to sell and service espresso machines here in the Strip District.

But it didn't take long for it to become something else entirely: a must stop café woven into the rhythm of the neighborhood.

The original location doesn't offer much seating and that's somewhat intentional.

This is coffee, the Italian way.

Quick, purposeful.

Meant to fuel your day, not anchor it.

I still picture the nonnos sitting outside when the weather's nice.

Playing cards, smoking cigars.

Speaking Italian and reminding you that coffee culture doesn't always have to be precious.

La Prima honors its roots with traditional espresso and a classic cappuccino, something that means different things depending on where you are in the world.

And as part of this round of Showdown vibe check, the question isn' whether La Prima is trendy, it's whether this old school approach still holds true in its own in Pittsburgh's ever changing coffee scene.

Sam, thanks for having us here at your original awesome location in the Strip.

I would love to know when it comes to sort of coffee culture in Italy and and what cafes look like.

It looks a bit different than other cafe you may see here in the States.

It was actually set up to sell espresso machines.

That's the first thing I did.

So I needed a showroom for the espresso machines.

And I thought, I'll just make a little quasi cafe.

I put the machine you know, at the center.

So, potential restaurant customers come in and say, okay, here' a machine, here's how it works.

And then it turned into a cafe.

Full blown cafe.

I grew up in a bar room in Indiana PA, so I've always understood how a bar room or serving drinks works.

And so I just did what I knew how to do.

Daniel, thanks for having us here.

I would love to learn how you make a traditional cappuccino here at La Prima.

And what does a traditional cappuccino mean to you?

For us at La Prima, our Doc Cappuccino is in our six ounce glass.

So it's a single shot of espresso with steamed milk and about half an inch of foam on top.

Okay.

All right, well, I'm ready if you can walk me through the process of making this.

You have awesome machines here.

Yeah, we just upgraded the two machines.

We got four group heads.

Now, here we like to pull straight into the glass.

We believe that preserves the crema and creates a better taste of the coffee in the drink.

So we'll get this going.

So we're looking for about one ounce of coffee.

So itll come up almost an inch of the way.

There we go.

These colors are cool.

I almost like the the ombré effect that the espresso does.

And here's the part that everyone loves to comment on.

“Ooh.

How do you do that?” The artwork, right?

Oh, yeah.

Look at that!

Might get a little something.

Thank you.

Grazie.

Salud.

And if you're Sam Patti you'd put a little cocoa powder on there.

Oh, well, I got to do it the Sam way.

As you can see, it's a good cappuccino.

You need that froth.

You need that foam.

Well I think I'm ready to make one.

You're ready to try?

Okay.

Let's do that.

So we don't want to waste milk.

Right.

You don't want any to be left over.

No, no, no.

Does that look okay?

Looks good.

All right Starting out, having more milk.

It gives you more.

You know I may have a bit extra, but... So you can pull that down and get a feel for it.

So it's just air.

Okay.

Is that hot?

Very.

Okay.

Yeah.

So you definitely want to start with this submerged under the milk.

Otherwise you'll get it to spray everywhere.

I don't want that.

Now keep a hand on the on the pitcher because that's going to be your temperature thermometer.

Right now we'll just hold it there till your hand says ow.

It's getting close.

It's warm.

Ow.

Yeah.

There we go.

That was... That was hot.

All right, that looks nice.

That looks good.

No big bubbles.

Yeah.

Let's see the magic happen.

Okay.

All right.

Lets see if you can get a little art.

I don't know if get any art.

All right.

But I will try my best.

Shout out to the the homies at Boredom for showing me some of the art process.

Have you done this before?

Maybe.

Oh, there we go.

Wow.

Okay.

Id call that a flower of some sort.

Not too bad.

La Prima cap made by yours truly.

Good job.

Wow.

So Sam does it with mocha.

I like to do it with some sugar.

Get a little bit of sweetness.

Still got that mustache.

Yeah.

That is so good.

Good job.

Shout out.

Thanks Daniel.

I appreciate that.

I think when I started out I figured out I have to just to pay my rent and live, I have to sell 30 coffees a day.

How am I going to sell 30 cups of coffee a day?

And when I first started out, I didn't have American coffee because I knew if I did that, people say, why am I going to pay $1.60 when I can get a cup of coffee for less?

How long have you been coming here to La Prima?

Since day one of the first day 36, 37 years ago.

First I was here.

I've been coming here since they opened.

Really.

Back in the 80s?

Oh, yeah.

Yeah.

And what do you get to drink?

Espresso.

We have a lot of customers, that come in and say, “Oh gee, we just came back from Italy, and this is a cappuccino Just like I drank it in Italy.” We hear that a lot.

This is my favorite place to b when we come down to the Strip.

Or when we come anywhere nea Pittsburgh from Peters Township.

This is your place to go to.

What's your go to order here at La Prima?

I always get an espresso.

Okay.

All right.

I mean, it's espresso.

Oh, here we go.

Heres the espresso.

Hey.

Thank you.

Grazie!

In some ways, it's a pain in the neck because there are all these kids in the espresso business.

But it's such a vibrant business, and it's just really a lot- It's a lot of fun tryin to keep up with what's going on.

And they're energetic and they want to do things in a different way, create different drinks.

And so it's really it' really been a fun, fun business.

You know, you can't fall asleep.

You have to pay attention here.

You know, you spend a couple hours with with friends, people, You meet people like I met you.

Yes.

Yeah.

I remember when you was a little boy.

Yes, exactly, I remember you exactly.

You were outside playing the cards.

You weren't smoking though because you quit.

But you were playing cards, drinking your espresso and little piccolo piccolo me was like, oh, that's my future.

I'm going to be that whenever I'm older.

Ah!

So that's where we look for cards players too.

You have to teach me sometime.

Sure.

No problem.

I tell you, I wouldn't want to live anywhere else.

I just think Pittsburgh has everything and it's all accessible.

Grim Wizard coffe isn't your ordinary coffee shop.

And you feel it the second you step inside.

This place leans into its own world.

Heavy metal, energy, mysticism and bold branding.

Even if the aesthetic isn't your everyday vibe, there's something disarmingly kind about the people here and the community that they're building.

It goes beyond coffee.

There's pinball, events, rogue energy, and a genuine sense of welcome that makes it feel like more of a gathering place than just a drink stop.

In a neighborhood like Allentown, with its own challenges and creative spirit, Grim Wizard feels intentional, a space that invites everyone i even if it's not for everyone.

And as one of the stops in this round of Showdown vibe check, it may have the look, the identity and the heart, but it still has to prove itself.

And for me, I' ready to let my freak flag fly.

Kelly, thanks for having us here at Grim Wizard.

It is such an awesome space.

I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed and overstimulated.

That's what we are, where we're overwhelming and overstimulating, for sure, in the best ways possible.

The pinball machines.

I mean, iconic.

How cool.

How did you acquire these?

Our friends were touring Europe and they don't drink, and they were lookin for entertainment on their tour.

And so they started playing pinball.

And then when they came home, they invested in one machine, and then they invested in two machines, and then they invested in three machines and aske if it was okay if they started putting their machines in here for people to play.

And I said, yeah, metal, coffee, pinball.

I think that's a great trifecta.

But we have all the cool, counterculture, spooky kind of machines.

Yeah.

Monsters, Elvira, Stranger Things, Walking Dead, Metallica.

Iron Maiden, so.

And Godzilla - everybody's favorite.

My husband and I are both graphic artists and visual artists, and, branding and identity is like key.

Lots of people can open a coffee company, but to make it stand apart from other coffee companies and to truly make it your own so that it doesn't disappea in the crowd, like the heavier and the bolder the graphics, the better, I always say.

The intentionality behind the naming of all of your drinks.

What does that creative process look like?

So, we name all of our drinks after, like, metal bands, metal songs.

Wizard counterculture.

So we actually rack our brains are like, all right, what's the best name?

Or we'll be listening to something in the car and it'll come up on the screen and we'll be like, that's the next name.

That's the next one.

Yeah.

What could that be?

It could be chocolate and cayenne.

You know, it's a spicy band.

It needs a spicy drink.

Yeah, yeah.

Of course.

We have to get to the centerpiece of the cafe here.

The espresso machine is the heart to any business.

It is your workhorse.

It goes all day, every day.

You know, and more people order espresso drinks, than they do drip coffee, for sure.

Especially when you've got, like, weird ones, like we do.

Oh yeah.

But this is a Simonelli.

It is a pretty basic machine, but it's a two group, and so it allows us to pull four shots at a time so we can get through lines.

We are a smaller counter space, and so it fits our space absolutely beautifully.

I could have bought a car an drove it in here for the price.

I'm sure!

Do not Googl the cost of expresso machines.

They're expensive.

Yeah.

Well, Kelly, I would love to make a drink with this awesome machine.

Absolutely.

I would love for you to have a drink from this awesome machine.

Lets do it!

All right.

So, Kelly, I know that you're known for shaken drinks here at Grim Wizard.

Yes, we are.

Shaken lattes.

Okay, which one do you recommend we make?

I highly recommend the Thunder Horse.

That seems to be our most popular.

Yeah, okay.

That's a fun name.

What's in that?

It is a white mocha with tiramisu and sea salt.

Tiramisu?

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Its real good.

All right, let's do it.

Okay, okay.

Alright lets do it.

Okay.

So first thing we're going to do, because we're doing a shaken latte, and these all go over ice.

We use half and half instead of regular milk.

And it creates a much creamier frothier drink.

Its almost a milkshake consistency.

So we're going to gra one of these shakers over here.

And we're going to put, two pumps of the white mocha right there in the middle.

Okay.

Perfect.

One... Maybe one and a half.

There you go.

Beautiful.

Great.

Now we're going to take the tiramisu sirup, which is right over here.

There's so many sirups.

So we're going to put a little scant ounce.

So just a little short of an ounce.

Little scant ounce.

I like that.

- A little scant ounce.

- Beautiful.

Perfect.

Right in the shaker?

Now we're going to grab this shaker, and we're going to bring it over here and put two shakes of sea salt in it.

So here's our sea salt.

So go ahead and... One, two.

Beautiful.

Perfect.

- Just like a wizard.

- Just like a wizard!

So we'll set that aside.

And now we're going to make our espresso shots.

All right!

Now usually your shots are going to want to pull between 28 and 32 seconds.

Okay.

It looks like you have a pretty good pull there.

You can see all this striping in there.

Yeah.

Anytime you see the tiger striping in there it's the crema and the coffee.

That is a good sign.

Good.

And then as soon as you get to this little line right here, you're going to want to shut it off.

There you go.

Nice.

Beautiful!

Beautiful.

I like the... The ombré effect.

Yeah.

It's got a beautiful crema on it.

It's an Indian Monsoon Malabar that's in there.

Love that.

Right into the shaker?

Right in there.

One and two shots.

Three counts?

Yep.

1, 2, 3.

Stunning.

We're going to take a full cup of ice.

And we're going to drop it on top.

Hold that in place.

Okay.

Kelly this may come as a surprise to you but I do not have any bartending experience.

So I'm very excited for this.

What do I need to know to ensure that this does not fly off?

That you don't have a big oopsie yeah, yeah.

You want to grip this firmly.

You want to hold on to this firmly and make sure that they are together.

And then you're going to shake vigorously about seven times okay.

Okay!

All right.

Let's try that.

Okay.

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.

Like you've been doing it for years.

There we go.

Now bring it on over here.

Right into the glass.

Pour it right into the glass?

Right into the glass.

Yes.

Perfect.

Amazing.

- That was perfect - That was the perfect amount.

You made a perfect drink.

That three second pour really pulled through.

Do you need another job?

You know... - Yeah, why not?

- All the free coffee you can handle.

What are you going to have to drink?

I don't know.

I might try one of our seasonals.

Like an Emperor, I think.

Probably.

That seems to be a popular one.

Great.

Well, let's do that.

And then let's go... Let's go sit and, chat.

Sounds good to me.

I'm so excited to drink this.

All right, first taste.

Cheers.

Cheers.

Salud.

Oh, that's so good.

Yeah.

We use the espress beans from here because they're the best ones in the city.

They are so good.

Yeah.

Theyre air roasted.

They're air roasted!

They're so delicious.

What's your go to coffee order?

Usually the Thunder Horse, but my favorite is a seasonal called the Electric Wizard.

The Electric Wizard?

I tried to get them to make me a gallon of it one time.

No way, a gallon?

Where would you keep it?

Just at home?

I would drink it.

There's no keeping it.

All in one go?

Yeah.

Oh, yeah easily.

Okay.

So it's not like, you know, we're going to bring it home.

You'll have it you know, maybe throughout the week you're just - a full gallon.

If I can come here and get an Electric Wizard, I'm getting two of them at once.

You walk into Grim Wizard, and I mean, you're you're overwhelmed, right?

Like I was - by the awesome colors and lighting and artwork and intentionality.

And I think t to some people it may be a bit humbling or awkward or scary coming in here.

I mean, it feels like you're trying to make almost this, like counterculture counter cafe.

Like who who is Grim Wizard for?

Some people didn't see the Grim Wizar on the outside of the building.

And say it's a little loud for their taste and they prefer a quieter, you know, white box coffee shop.

But everybody else, this has been, a turning poin for them where they were like, I come to Pittsburgh just for this coffee shop I have to visit here when I'm here.

This is a wonderful community of really artistic people, really friendly people.

All kinds of different peopl are drawn to this establishment.

Our staff is incredible.

They are nonjudgmental, because they are those that have been judged their whole life.

Everybody judges them by their covers.

One of the things that I count on every single time that I come in is just the music that I want to hear.

Every time that I come in.

When you walk through the door, we treat you like we've known you for years and you belong here.

We absolutely love it here.

And everyone that comes to our gym is always here.

It's like, we go hand in han and, especially Sundays, like, we do this yoga class, we listen to Black Sabbath, and then every single week, everyone leaves from class and comes over here to get drinks.

Well, I mean, I think I already signed up to do some yoga down the street, so maybe I'll do that.

And then when I come here, I'll be a bit more relaxed.

- To Black Sabbath?

- Yeah.

To Black Sabbath.

That is the right way to do yoga.

So I hear.

So I hear.

I will keep coming here forever.

Forever and ever!

Yeah, yeah.

I'm never going to leave.

You're stuck with me.

You're never going to leave.

I never intended to have the shop here in Allentown.

It was another shop for a very long time, but it was such a pivotal point, and such a cornerstone of the rebuild of this neighborhood.

So if you appreciate the eclectic, the dark kind of macabre, the sort of offbeat, wacky, this is kind of the place for you.

You know, like standard exactly run of the mill... What you expect whenever you come into, you know, a local coffee shop.

Yeah.

And, like, humble flavors.

No Starbucks caramel macchiato.

Absolutely not.

No, no, no.

No, no.

What even is that?

Bloomfield has always been a neighborhood that reinvents itself.

One storefront, one stubbor dreamer at a time, and Creative Chem Co feels like the next step in that evolution.

A brand new co-working and coffee space built for people fueled by ideas, deadlines and just the right amount of caffeine.

The owner, Marla, spent years as a creative director.

She envisioned a space that channels the spirit of the old Beehive Coffeehouse that 90s refuge where artists, eccentrics and restless minds gather to make things happen.

Upstairs, there are hot desks, rentable studios and shared gear for the folks chasing their next project.

Downstairs, the public coffee bar hums with filmmakers, freelancers, musicians, and the occasional person pretending to work while reall just soaking up the atmosphere.

It's a space that smell like espresso and possibility, but in Showdown vibe check, it's not enough to look the part.

It has to feel it.

So the question becomes, is Creative Chem Co the creative heartbeat Bloomfield has been waiting for?

Or just a beautiful concept still finding its rhythm?

So Marla, This building is very significant to the neighborhood here in Bloomfield.

Tell us about the history.

Sure, this buildin has been around for 120 years, at least from what we can tell.

Yeah.

So it used to be a chemical manufacturing company.

They made cleaning products for old boilers and that company was called Creative Chemical Company.

So we revamped the name.

You had to keep the name.

Yes.

Right.

Yeah.

It's such a cool space.

I mean I'm just taking a look around the entire space.

The curation here, the artwork.

We are a co-working space and cafe.

We know a lot of people work in cafes, and we kind of want to A, have the coffeehouse vibes, but also have the breakout spaces that people can work.

We have to take a look over here.

I mean, this iconic painting, mural, shirtless, Jeff Goldblum, I mean, come on.

This mural is done by Jeremy Raymer.

And I commissioned him to do this mural because it is what I call Jeff Gold-Bloomfield.

Okay, I see what you did there.

So it's a Pittsburgh icon in a field of flowers for Bloomfield.

And we we say life finds a way in Bloomfield.

So this space is the co-working space.

So cool!

Wow.

So we have all of our dedicated hot desks.

It still is you know, very similar to the downstairs as a vintage vibe.

And we really wante to be thoughtful about the style as being part of like, what inspires you?

You have this really cool kitchen space too.

Is anyone cheffing it up here?

Nobody is cheffing it up yet.

Yet!

But we really want to partner with all of the local cuisine that we have in Bloomfield.

These mugs!

Are these shareable mugs?

Look at that.

Ill drink my free coffee, right?

As a member, I'll drink my free coffee out of this.

Yeah.

So Creative Chem Co is also a coffee shop in a cafe that we have in this space here.

And TJ of Commonplace yo helped set this space up right?

And really train the baristas here and support the coffee and caf that that is being served here.

Yeah absolutely.

It was really fun to work with Marla and Ben to get this into an executable coffee bar.

This is awesome.

It's so cool.

I mean, tell us about this machine here.

Its primary task is to control the water input to the coffee to extract the coffee better.

So kind of a cool piece to set up with this bar too.

I love the way it looks.

The main differenc between espresso and drip coffee is that espresso is adding 140 psi of pressure through the coffe to extract the oils differently than they would be extracted in a drip coffee brewer.

You don't want to, like, just shoot that back because it's very hot and it's going to be a lot of flavors.

So we recommend slurping lower water temperature.

Let it spray over your whole palate.

You'll get a much bigger like kind of experience with the coffee.

I would appreciate TJ, if I could get a TJ made cappuccino.

Oh yeah?

That would be great.

I love to make coffee.

Okay, great.

The primary task of the barista is to inject some air into the milk using the steam wand, but not enough to where the bubbles are going to get big and airy.

So we're going to do two things with the milk.

We're going to aerate.

And then we're also going to heat.

So just a very subtle draw down on the pitcher.

We'll do that when the milk is still cold and now we'll just heat the milk.

This will also hopefully vortex that aerated milk a bit and hold that texture.

Nick, I'm so excited to make a coffee for you.

This is the this is the moment, right?

I didn't know I was going to be able to do this, but this is great.

There you go, my friend.

Lovely.

Thank you so much.

Yeah of course.

Salud.

Cheers.

Mmm.

TJ, this is great.

It also happens to be my first coffee of the day.

Oh yes!

I appreciate it.

Commonplace.

You you have your own locations.

But the fact that you're working with all of these other local cafes to, to provide the coffee and the training and working on the equipment, like that's such a cool thing and it's feels very unique to coffee shops in the area.

Yeah.

Thanks.

Yeah.

We received a lot of help as we were going through the process of opening Commonplace, and our view is really to find ways to give back to the community.

So we want to connect with people in all different areas of the coffee industr to see how we can support them.

It's great.

Well, cheers to you.

Thanks, Nick.

Cheers to you all.

I think more so now than ever, third spaces are incredibly important.

I think coming out of the pandemic, at least for me, it was really important to get back to like life with other people.

Yes!

In a way.

Theres a new generation of kids moving into the neighborhood whos you know, a lot younger and, you know, it's a lot more diverse.

It's wonderful.

You know, it's great.

You're going to be doing events, right?

Yeah, yeah, we're really excited.

We're thinking about like a few different ideas.

So having like a DIY craft bar where we have some, you know, like pre-made, you know, prepackaged crafts that folks can come in and do when they reserve their desk.

They also can reserve their, their craft they want to do.

Marla, thank you for having us here.

And thank you for being a grea neighbor and community member.

You guys are brand new, so I'm very excited to see how you gro and really prove your your space here in Bloomfield and in Pittsburgh.

Thank you for comin and sharing some coffee with me.

Of course.

Cheers.

Cheers to you.

After spending time at La Prima, Grim Wizard, and Creative Chem Co, one thing is clear: coffee in Pittsburgh is about so much more than whats in your cup.

Its about the people you meet, the spaces you share, and the culture that brings it all together.

From old-world espresso to bold, boundary-breaking new brews, each of these spots brings something special to the table and honestly, you really cant go wrong with any of them.

But this is Showdown which means there can only be one winner.

And thats where you come in.

Cast your vote and let us know who takes the title.

Until next time, keep exploring, keep connecting and keep the coffee culture brewing.

Until next time, keep exploring, connecting and something about coffee.