With Pittsburgh’s many neighborhoods each having their own personality, it makes sense that there are hundreds of quirky, small businesses found all around our city. Ranging from comic stores to handmade gifts and coffee shops, read below to discover some of our staff’s favorite hidden gems around Pittsburgh.
Flora and Falcon // Kelly Kowalewski, Staff Writer
While I didn’t walk into the smell of flowers, I was met with fresh, heartfelt stories behind the handfelted wool flowers from Flora and Falcon. Olivia Sobkowiak is a Pitt alumna and the owner of the Costa Rican family-owned fair trade business. Opening in December 2025 after 25 years of running booths at market events, Flora and Falcon is already flourishing. When shopping for sustainable, long-lasting gifts for friends and family, the store offers a calm and homey space for shoppers while browsing a store full of inspiring stories. Sobkowiak shares the history of the business with visitors for a personal experience every time. The business stands for artisans’ access to self-sustaining jobs worldwide, not just locally.
Each handfelted flower of wool is crafted by artisans of a women’s cooperative established in 2004 in Nepal, and selling their work honors the 20 Monteverde women who founded it. The family-owned business supports artisans’ growth by traveling to Nepal and meeting with them directly, with the goal of bringing their artistry to America. They hold product design, product development and business workshops to recommend techniques for product structure. They also offer these workshops for financial awareness about fair wages, how to price items correctly and how to understand the cost of goods exchanged for labor.
Flora and Falcon also sells original artwork, alongside jewelry crafted in Ecuador and Peru. Additional products include hardwood kitchen utensils, scarves, hats and gloves made in Nepal. Because the family travels abroad to connect with artisans, Flora and Falcon also offers Spanish classes and will soon teach German. I appreciate their effort to share their art, ranging from their mosaic glass art classes to hand-deliveries of their hand-felted bouquets to patients at Pittsburgh hospitals. As a Pitt student surrounded by corporate stores, it’s beautiful to see Flora and Falcon blossom as a local business and make global change. As Flora and Falcon brings back old-school Oakland spirit with memorable visits and in-person interactions, the Pitt community and locals can support their business by visiting the store at 114 Meyran Ave.
Phantom of the Attic // Lauren Deaton, Senior Staff Writer
On the border of Pitt and CMU’s campuses, tucked in across the street from Caliban’s bookstore and up a small stairwell, sits my personal haven — Phantom of the Attic. A local comic book store, Phantom of the Attic sells manga, comics and other pop culture merchandise such as posters and figurines.
I grew up reading comic books but stopped reading them in high school when I started to get bored with them and their bland representations of women. However, in college, one of my best friends got me back into them, showing me some series that excited me before she eventually introduced me to Phantom of the Attic. It was at Phantom of the Attic that I truly discovered my love for comics and felt like I could belong in that world again.
It is not uncommon for people to assume that girls don’t read comics, or for them to be asked to “prove their worth” as an audience through stupid exercises like naming dozens of superheroes. However, at Phantom, there were never any questions — only a joyful acceptance. No sarcastic statements mocking my female-dominated stack of pulls, no questions about my knowledge of the Marvel Universe. Instead, I got questions like, “Did you enjoy that run of X-Men?” and, “Have you seen the news about ‘Superman?’” I also received recommendations actually tailored to my interests, and not tapered by the idea that because I’m a girl, I wouldn’t love grisly horror comics or dark and graphic narratives, which are things I actually love. Because of my friend, I found comics again and started to find joy in them, but because of Phantom, I found confidence within my own taste and fell completely in love with comics all over again.
Construction Junction // Tessa Powers, Opinions Editor
As someone who loves to dig around in thrift stores and has multiple Pinterest boards dedicated to interior design, Construction Junction is my favorite Pittsburgh small business. It is an absolutely perfect shop, in my opinion, offering a variety of second-hand furniture, decor and appliances, all situated in an absolutely massive warehouse. The shop has endless rows of cabinets, lamps, desks and bedframes, making it easy for shoppers to browse around for hours and continue to find new products.
I only visited the store for the first time this past August, while accompanying some friends who were looking to furnish their new apartment. In the months since, I have visited many times — I find it so easy to spend an afternoon just perusing each aisle, though my favorite section is The Attic, a more traditional thrift store space within Construction Junction. In The Attic, there are hundreds of vintage clothing pieces, silverware and dish sets, along with stylish handbags and jewelry from decades past.
In addition to having a truly eccentric selection of goods, Construction Junction is also a small business that is dedicated to helping the community and preserving the environment while doing so. A nonprofit, the store reclaims and sells used materials and relies on donations with a goal to reduce waste and promote second-hand shopping. Its affordable prices, sustainable practices and wide selection makes it a business that champions environmental awareness while providing its community members with hundreds of options for furniture, decor and materials. Whether you have just signed a lease for a South Oakland apartment and have no idea how you’re going to furnish it, you’re in the market for a new purse or even if you just need some ceramic tiles for your bathroom, Construction Junction is the perfect place for you.
HK Dim Sum // Malia Savas, Staff Writer
At the corner of Centre Avenue and North Dithridge Street is HK Dim Sum — a little restaurant tucked underneath the towering One On Centre. A friend and I once made plans in class for an impromptu dinner, after the class discussion. Neither of us could decide exactly what we wanted. A classmate of ours got my attention, having been listening to the entire discussion, to ask if we liked Chinese food. Of course we did. She told us that HK Dim Sum was her favorite restaurant near campus — it was the most authentic Chinese food she’d had in Pittsburgh. That was enough to sell us on it, and after class, we made the trek up the hill for an early dinner.
We were greeted by a little girl dressed in a fireman’s costume in late November. She was a lovely highlight of our experience — she frequently visited our table to say hello throughout the evening. The staff was wonderful — so friendly, polite and kind. The atmosphere inside is cozy yet modern, with rich wooden tones and comfortable booths. Each table is lit by its own moon — a hanging pendant light complete with dips and craters. We were the only ones there at the time, though I guess that may just be what happens when you go for dinner at 4:15 p.m. on a Monday. Nevertheless, it was lovely. We took time perusing the large menu — if you go, you will too. Everything sounds delicious, and there were no easy decisions made that night.
We settled on sharing the soup dumplings, which our classmate had recommended, as an appetizer. They were wonderful. It was one of the first truly bitterly cold days of the fall semester, and they tasted like curling up in a blanket fresh out of the dryer. The chicken lo mein I chose for my main course was equally as perfect — fresh, hot and delicious. This may not sound like I’m saying much, but if you’ve had some of the food options situated around this campus, you understand how hard it can be to find a restaurant that keeps you wanting to come back.
If you’re looking for some authentic, perfectly craveable Chinese food, go give HK Dim Sum a try. It is easily the best Chinese food I’ve ever had in Pittsburgh — and it’s not a close call.
Sidecar Coffee and Bake Shop // Evin Verbrugge, Staff Writer
Just a short walk from Pitt’s campus, Sidecar is the first place I’ll recommend to anyone looking for a new spot for good coffee and space to study. This coffee shop — located on Craig Street — is my go-to whenever I have a few hours between classes and want to spend them somewhere other than the library or my apartment. I visited Sidecar for the first time two years ago, and since then, I’ve been returning regularly, both on my own and with friends.
On their wide-ranging menu, the shop offers De Fer coffee — a local coffee roaster — along with their own housemade syrups, oatmilk, pastries and sandwiches. And although my regular order — a plain americano — isn’t that exciting, trying a new drink at Sidecar has yet to disappoint me. With both year-round and seasonal syrup flavors, there are plenty of drink options, and you never have to settle for something boring. Along with their coffee, Sidecar offers cake and pie slices, handpies, hot and cold sandwiches, and pastries such as cookies, scones and muffins.
Aside from enjoyable coffee, one thing I can count on at Sidecar is that I’ll always be able to find a place to sit. At the coffee shops closer to campus, I often have to walk in and right back out, without getting a chance to sit down because of how limited the seating is. But with Sidecar’s larger and fun-looking space, I’m able to find a place to sit, drink my coffee and get some schoolwork done — even at their busiest hours. This is also what makes the shop a great place to hang out with friends, so if you’re unable to find a free space on campus to sit and chat, Sidecar will almost always have a table or two open.