Hungover in Pittsburgh? Try these 7 cures, from brunch to IV treatments
Learn how to feel better after a night of drinking in Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh’s bar scene is a fun one, with divey hole-in-the-wall spots that only take cash alongside hip cocktail bars that only use local ingredients in their libations. But no matter where you choose to spend your night, if you’re drinking, there’s always the risk that you’ll wake up the next morning with a headache and a sour stomach.
The best way to avoid a hangover is to prevent one in the first place. That means lots of water before, during, and after you’re drinking. But if you’re reading this article, you may be past the prevention point. Fortunately, we have some ideas to help mitigate the worst symptoms so you can get back to feeling like yourself again. From filling breakfasts to fancy IV treatments, here are seven solutions that may help you get rid of your hangover—or at least help make it suck less.
1. Grab breakfast or brunch at Deluca’s Diner – Strip District
Famous Pittsburgh breakfast spot Deluca’s Diner in the Strip District neighborhood has a vast menu, and that’s what you need when you’re hungover: options. The best foods to eat when hungover are easy to digest and rich in carbohydrates so that you can try to replenish your blood sugar, which may be depleted after a night of drinking. You’ll also want to seek out nutrient-rich foods like bananas, avocados, whole grains, eggs, citrus fruits, and seafood.
At Deluca’s, you may turn to the veggie mixed grill with whole grain toast to boost your blood sugar, eggs for the cysteine that mitigates the effects of alcohol’s toxic acetaldehyde development, hot oatmeal with fresh fruit for energy, and coffee to fight grogginess. And don’t forget to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.
2. Try The Hangover Cure at Lola’s Eatery – Lawrenceville
You may have heard that eating heavy, greasy food is the way to banish a hangover. That’s not exactly accurate, but it is true that tucking into a hearty breakfast can help alleviate your symptoms. The Hangover Cure—that’s its name!—at Lola’s Eatery is a bagel sandwich with scrambled eggs and American cheese. It’s not just a fun name; it could actually help your symptoms. The carbs of the sandwich can help replenish low blood sugar due to alcohol consumption; the dairy in the cheese isn’t always recommended for upset stomachs, but the protein can help you replenish amino acids; and the cysteine found in eggs can combat acetaldehyde, the toxic substance produced when alcohol is metabolized that helps cause your hangover symptoms.
3. Get tea service at The Café at the Frick – Point Breeze
Tea is primarily water, so it’s an excellent way to hydrate when you have a hangover. Many teas are also full of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties. Afternoon tea service at The Café at the Frick is an extremely fun and cute way to down some tea while eating tasty snacks. Each tea service comes with two finger sandwiches, a scone, sweets, and your choice of loose-leaf tea. Some of the tea options at the cafe that might be best for a hangover include: chamomile, ginger licorice, peppermint, and green tea.
4. Relax at a Pittsburgh public park
Unfortunately, the most reliable hangover cure is simply giving yourself some time to get over it, and making sure you rest up as you do so. In fact, a hangover may be a form of sleep deprivation, since alcohol negatively affects your sleep quality.
If you don’t want to just go back to bed—which is a valid option—you can grab a blanket or hamm8ock and set up at one of Pittsburgh’s beautiful public parks. We love Frick Park and the grassy open spaces amidst the trees, but you could also lounge at green Schenley Plaza or Highland Park. You may be surprised at how much better you feel after a simple cat nap in the fresh air.
5. Sip on juice at Live Fresh – Multiple locations
We’ll reiterate that the central key to overcoming a hangover is to hydrate. You can do so in a fresh and tasty fashion at Pittsburgh juicery Live Fresh, which has locations downtown, on the North Side, in Regent Square, and in Robinson Township.
Restore your depleted electrolytes with juice options like the fan favorite Island Glow, which has electrolyte-rich coconut water as well as pineapples, oranges, lemons, and ginger, or Don’t Stop the Beet, with its beets (improve blood flow and reduce headaches!), apples, oranges, and pineapples. You could also grab whole-grain toast with avocado or a smoothie bowl—the Champyinz bowl has coconut water as well as charcoal, bananas, acai, granola, and berries.
6. Hydrate with IV treatments – Multiple locations
IV treatments for hangovers have recently been popping up to give people immediate relief from their pounding headaches and upset stomachs: IV treatments can help you hydrate and restore your electrolytes very quickly. The downside is that they can be pretty pricey—usually $100 or more. Still, if you’re miserable, such treatments can be a viable solution!
In Pittsburgh, you can find IV hydration and hangover treatments at The IV Center, Quick Drip IV, Drip Hydration (a mobile IV service that will come to you!), FeelNu IV (also has mobile IV therapy!), and Restore Hyper Wellness.
Do IV treatments sound too expensive, but you love the idea? Replenish your electrolytes with widely available, store bought hydration solutions like Liquid I.V., DripDrop, or trusty old Pedialyte.
7. Hit up Asian grocery stores in the Strip District
The Strip District in Pittsburgh is a haven of international grocery stores, where you can find grocers specializing in Italian, Polish, Korean, pan-Asian, and other cuisines and imported foods. For our anti-hangover journey, we’re going to focus on the pan-Asian shops and what they can offer for both treatment and—for next time!—prevention.
Many holistic cures for hangovers abound, from apple cider vinegar to milk thistle. While some may work anecdotally, there’s little evidence supporting most of them (though if they work for you, that’s great!). However, there has been at least one study that suggests that red ginseng can help ease hangover symptoms and severity. You should be able to find this root, most easily ingested in a tea, at Sambok Korean Groceries, WFH Oriental Market, or Lotus Food Company, all on Penn Avenue. You can also try Many More Marketplace, which is nearby on Liberty Avenue.
And while this solution may not be helpful right now, since you’re probably reading this article in urgent search of a hangover cure, there’s also evidence suggesting that Korean pear can help stave off hangover symptoms if you drink some before you start imbibing. Perhaps you can grab some Korean pear juice and stash it in your pantry, and next time you can avoid the consequences of a wild night out.
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