First Niagara Pavilion

Pros:
Hmmmm...
I don't really have much to say here

Cons:
Over priced everything
Horrible beer selection
Parking is a clusterfuck
Safety - A lot of drunk people driving around after the show

Oh First Niagara, how I detest thee.

To start, the boulders in the parking lot are absurd. A fantastic way to break your ankle, if you're looking for a way to do it. At least parking was free and you could tailgate no problem-o. They did have staff riding around on golf carts keeping tabs on activity. Whatever. Rent a cops make us all feel safe right?

I was here for a comedy show and a few of the comedians noted how we were um, not in Pittsburgh. I HATE that this venue is considered Pittsburgh. This is Burgettstown, middle of nowhere Western, PA and we all need to stahp acting like this venue isn't a pain in the azz to get to.

We had lawn seats and apparently at 23 we are too old to sit on our bums in the grass for a few hours. Our backs were killing us by the time the show was over. The slope is too, erm, slope-y to be comfortable without a chair.

I keep saying I won't go back here if I can help it and THIS TIME I MEAN IT.

Yup, it's still a mess to get in and out of. You will wait and wait and come close to running over drunken concertgoers who never look to their left and right before  darting out into traffic.

The bathrooms flood each and every time.

Rocks populate the lot, making it treacherous to walk on sometimes.

The food is expensive as well as terribly processed and unfresh. A plastic bottle of Sprite cost me $5 this trip.

When it rains (and luckily it didn't this time), the lawn becomes a stadium-wide mudpit, especially when inebriated  fans start tearing up sod and launching it at each other.

However, I must state that the sound and spectacle are acceptable.

My ticket for Kid Rock and ZZ Top (I was there for Billy, Frank, and Dusty) was free, courtesy of a friend who works for Live Nation, and had it not been complimentary, I probably wouldn't have gone since I resent this venue's very existence, especially with the birth of newer, better, and closer ones (What other areas does FNP serve besides the Pittsburgh metro area? West Virginny? Don't they have their own outdoor sheds?) within the past few years. Fortunately, last night was my only reason for going there this season (I skipped Mayhem Festival due to the mostly drab line-up and for not being able to get a day off to go).

Unless a really massive concert tour that you can't say no to is headed to The Burgertown Pavilion, I'd skip it were I you.

P.S. Take the shuttle bus (you can buy roundtrip tickets for any event through Ticketmaster) to and from the pavilion instead of driving yourself. It costs around $20 but will alleviate much of your commuter stress. Just be on time at your pick-up points (the bus departs for Pittsburgh 15 minutes after the last song) since the bus drivers are unforgiving to stragglers.