North Shore Developers Hopeful Despite Multiple Setbacks
NORTH SHORE (KDKA) – Development on the North Shore certainly hasn't gone as smoothly as developers had planned.
The original line-up of restaurants has faced setback after setback due to financial problems. Now comes word another restaurant is out of the picture.
While Burgatory, which opened in October, is thriving, it's been rough for the other tenants, and KDKA has learned that North Park Lounge is no longer in the picture.
The lunch hour hit Thursday, and so did the crowd at Burgatory.
"It's been exceptional," co-owner Herky Pollack said. "We had expectations to do a certain volume, and we have far exceeded our initial expectations."
Pollack said game days have been exceptional.
"I smile because we have had our five best days in company history on Steelers days or Pitt days, and it's been absolutely phenomenal," he said.
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Just across the Breezeway, work is at a fever pitch trying to get Bar Louie ready for its opening next month.
"The atmosphere is going to be edgy, but classy. We like to do high-end martinis, we kind of have tattoos, we keep the lights dark and the music high," Alexis DePetro, Bar Louie's service manager, said.
The Bar Louie folks are in the midst of hiring more than 100 people and taking applications up the street at the Hyatt.
"We're looking for high-energy, reliable, hard-working kind of people who like to have fun and get the job done," DePetro said.
Next door to Bar Louie, the shell that was to be North Park Lounge with its Cabana Bar outside hardly got off the ground. Investment issues have derailed this project, and owner Mark Baranowski has turned his attention to other projects.
It's not the first original tenant to leave. Toby Keith's chain has suffered well-documented financial issues, and the Japanese steakhouse that was to go between Keith and Burgatory also had money issues. While there's disappointment in the delay, the developers are moving on with a tenant confirmed for the steakhouse slot and three strong tenants interested in the Keith and North Park Lounge spaces.
"The end result is we're going to have a far better line-up for 10 to 20 years versus one season of downtime right now," Pollack said.
