In the picturesque Berkshires, Pittsfield has always been known as more blue collar than bucolic. It’s the urban center in this rural Western Massachusetts county and until the late 1980s, it was a hub for General Electric. At the height of production, during World War II, GE employed 14,000 people in a city of just about 50,000. But then GE packed up its bags and the lifeline and identity were taken away. Slowly this small town started experiencing big city problems with jobs dwindling and drug use growing. For years, downtown storefronts sat vacant.

Pittsfield's Revitalization

But cities all over the country are experiencing second lives and Pittsfield in now in the game with new restaurants, coffee shops, wine bars, tapas bars, breweries, coffee roasters, and hotels opening up in the city center.

While Pittsfield may not be the obvious choice if you’re looking for an escape from city life, it is located smack in the middle of everything. To the north are world-class museums like MASS MoCA, art galleries, and summer stock theater showcasing Broadway-bound shows. To the south is Tanglewood, which is the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Shakespeare & Company theatre, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival and the Norman Rockwell Museum. 

To help you find the best places for eating and drinking in Pittsfield, here is our 24-hour FED pro-recommended guide.

MORNING | Breakfast

Dottie's Coffee Lounge

Dottie’s is a coffee ‘lounge’ offering breakfast and lunch using all organic produce in their food. It’s adored by locals.

"It's great and a go-to for coffee. It’s a local’s place and I love it."
FED Pro  >  Chef Brian Alberg (Eat on North)

444 North Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201
T: 413.443.1792 | dottiescoffeelounge.com

LUNCH | Colombian

La Fogata

Chef Miguel Gomez takes trips to New York City markets to buy Latin American ingredients so that he can provide a more authentic dining experience. He learned about meat in his family's butcher shop and worked as a meat cutter for Mazzeo’s meat shop at Guido’s for eight years before opening up La Fogata, based on home-cook recipes from his native Colombia.

"It’s Colombian food and chef Miguel is also a butcher, which is really cool. I get his meaty plate that comes with plantains and beans and rice. It is very typical Colombian style, you know that leaf of lettuce with a couple slices of slightly under-ripe tomato and a little drizzle of oil, but it’s not even olive oil, it’s just oil. It’s crisp and fresh."
FED Pro  >  Chef / Butcher Jeremy Stanton (The Meat Market & Fire Roasted Catering)

770 Tyler Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201
T: 413.443.6969

LUNCH

Lantern Bar & Grill

When this iconic 1926 diner shut its doors in 2016, locals were heartbroken. But chef Bjorn Somlo (Nudel) brought new life back into this historic tavern and elevated the bar food with farm fresh ingredients and grass-fed meats. Go for a light meal with cured steelhead trout or heartier with a triple stack bacon cheeseburger or veggie-focused with a charred broccolini sandwich or even chefy with a kimchi-brined fried chicken.

"They started the same year as the Oscars. It's been here for over 85 years.”
FED Pro  >  Chef Bjorn Somlo (Nudel)

455 North Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201
T: 413.448.2717 | lanternbarandgrill.com

AFTERNOON | Beer Tasting

Wandering Star Craft Brewery

On Saturday afternoons from 12 to 3pm, stop by this family-owned, 15-barrel production microbrewery for a tasting with Chris Post, who trained at Manhattan’s Chelsea Brewing Company. Their beer is sold all over the Berkshires and New York City. Get a growler to go and bring a taste of the Berkshires home with you.

"I really like Chris Post's beers at Wandering Star. Chris is great guy and a great brewer. He is an Englishman and there is a definite English style to his beers that shows through. The product he puts out on a regular basis is consistent and very drinkable, in a drink a second or third beer type of drinkable."
FED Pro  >  Sommelier Dan Thomas (Eat on North)

11 Gifford Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201
T: 413.717.7041 | www.wanderingstarbrewing.com

EVENING | Drink Beer

Thistle & Mirth

The menu is written on a chalkboard behind the bar with a great selection of IPAs, ciders, kombucha, and a nitro tap. If hunger strikes, you can order steamed buns, a meat or vegetarian banh mi, or one of their various ramen dishes.

"A beer bar with a great draft beer selection with a lot of local brews. They also offer beers that you don’t see too often and rotate their selection quite frequently."
FED Pro  >  Sommelier Dan Thomas (Eat on North)

"This place is low key and great for having an interesting conversation with whomever is in here. I wouldn’t call it picturesque though. It’s run by a guy who had quite a nice wine bar, but then discovered he liked beer better. He opened the beer bar next door and the wine bar went to rack and ruin. They have a really nice, well chosen selection of beer and it’s $5 a pint."
FED Pro  >  Brewmaster Chris Post (Wandering Star Brewery)

44 West Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201
T: 413.344.4335

EVENING | Drink Wine, Cocktails, Beer

Methuselah Bar & Lounge

"They have a great cocktail program and beer selection, and their wines by the glass selection is interesting and fun. A lot of times you are trying something new here, which is good, since a lot of wine by the glass programs can be a little stagnant and have the same types of wines."
FED Pro  >  Sommelier Dan Thomas (Eat on North)

"Methuseilah is like a trip to a New York City posh cocktail bar without leaving the Shire."
FED Pro  >  Chef Brian Alberg (Eat on North)

391 North Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201
T: 413.344.4991 | www.methuselahbarandlounge.com

Mission Bar & Tapas

"For great tapas and Spanish wines. There is a shortage of places that focus on Spanish wine and there is a lot of great value in Spain. This place fits the bill."
FED Pro  >  Sommelier Dan Thomas (Eat on North)

"This is such a great place to go for live music, tapas and downing a Porron with friends."
FED Pro  >  Chef Brian Alberg (Eat on North)

438 North St, Pittsfield, MA 01201
www.missionbarandtapas.com

DINNER

Trattoria Rustica

"It’s a stone room lit by candle light. Order the veal chop seared and finished in the brick oven."
FED Pro  >  Chef Brian Alberg (Eat on North)

27 Mc Kay Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201
T: 413.499.1192 | trattoria-rustica.com

LATE NIGHT(ISH) or HUNGOVER LUNCH

Hot Dog Ranch

"You can get mini hot dogs, tater tots, and a cold beer. It is dark and I don’t think there are any windows in it, so you can go at any time of the day and feel secluded. If you are hungover, it is a good place to go for cheesy tots. Food that is not too healthy, but tastes very good."
FED Pro  >  Sommelier Dan Thomas (Eat on North)

Open 10am - 1am, Cash Only
20 Linden Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201
T: 413.499.0055