The Primanti Bros. founders, ca. 1933, behind the counter (from left): Joe Primanti, John Depriter, [unidentified], Stanley Primanti, [unidentified], and Dick Primanti
Pittsburgh native Brian Rock what comes to mind when someone mentions his former hometown and he quickly rattles off these favorites: Steelers, Penguins, Pirates, South Side, Strip District, and the iconic Primanti Bros.
“Whenever I travel back to Pittsburgh I always make sure I stop by and eat at least one meal at Primanti’s,” says Rock, who now lives in Woodbridge, VA, just outside Washington, DC. “There’s something about it that just can’t be duplicated.”
His fraternity brother from Duquesne University, Erik Gerhard, concurs.
“Primanti’s always reminds me of late nights in college with old friends,” says Gerhard, now an attorney in Harrisburg, Pa. “We used to frequent the one on 19th and Carson in the Southside, which was a block from my apartment. However, the caricatures of famous Pittsburghers at the Strip District location stands out most.”
Primanti Bros. remains a special place for Pittsburghers and visitors alike. And to think, the 78-year-old restaurant almost closed its doors for good in 1974.
Reopening Primanti Bros.
Primanti Bros. actually got its start at the height of the Great Depression in 1933 when Joe Primanti opened a cart in the Strip District and sold sandwiches to truckers and other blue collar workers on the go. Later, he expanded it to a restaurant along 18th Street where his other brothers Dick and Stanley, and his nephew John DePriter, a cook, joined the business. Joe moved to California in the 1940’s for health reasons and Dick, Stanley, and John carried on the tradition for the next three decades.
After Stanley and John passed away in the early 1970’s, Dick, who was nearing retirement age, was anxious to sell the family business. There were no takers and a closed sign marred the front door of the once-popular restaurant for several months. That is, until Jim Patrinos, who owned a local diner, came knocking.
Only 24 years old at the time, Patrinos, who used to visit Primanti’s at least twice a year, was surprised to see the place closed and was urged by a friend to purchase and reopen it.
“I decided to get in touch with Dick Primanti and became the new owner,” recalls Patrinos, who re-opened it in 1975 after making some minor modifications. “I tried to keep everything as original as possible. I bought all of the bread and meats from the same vendors. We had a former employee show us how to make the cole slaw. I didn’t want to change a thing, and hopefully I didn’t.”
One change Patrinos made was to the hours of operation. Primanti’s used to be open from 1am-1pm to accommodate the truckers and other overnight workers. After a year, he decided to stay open all night, and since then it has remained open 24 hours.
With the success of that location, Patrinos expanded its operations and opened a second location in Oakland, near the University of Pittsburgh. Later, he added locations in downtown Pittsburgh, Southside, Market Square, and Three Rivers Stadium. In 1999, Patrinos expanded to the suburbs and added a locations in Robinson with an expanded menu. Over the next 11 years, he added eight more locations including North Versailles, Pleasant Hills, and Cranberry. Today, Primanti Bros. has 20 locations altogether, including three in Ft. Lauderdale, where Patrinos has a second home.
National Attention and Accolades
Turn on your television during any nationally televised sporting event in Pittsburgh, and you can bet the cameras will show a clip of Primanti Bros. That national attention began way back in the mid 1970s when the University of Pittsburgh football team was on its way to a national championship and the Steelers were in the midst of a dynasty.
But it wasn’t until an article appeared in Penthouse Magazine in the early 1980s that more people began to take notice of the Pittsburgh restaurant with its unique sandwiches stuffed with cole slaw and french fries. A freelance writer for the Wall Street Journal was planning to run an article about Primanti’s, but the piece was nixed. A year later, he pitched the same idea to Penthouse who ran it. Since then, the Pittsburgh landmark eatery has been featured in hundreds of publications and television programs, including shows on PBS, Food Network, Travel Channel, and Discovery Channel. Most recently, it was featured on the Travel Channel’s “101 Tastiest Places to Chowdown,” where Primanti’s was crowned as having America’s “Number One Sandwich.”
In 2007, Primanti Bros. was named an American Classic by the James Beard Foundation in Washington, D.C., a non-profit organization that recognizes and honors excellence among those working in the food and beverage industry.
“I was overwhelmed by the award,” Patrinos says. “The organizers compiled a nice little film they showed at the ceremony. It was very nice and I was very honored.”
Even the City of Pittsburgh has honored its heritage by renaming the street the original location sits on to Primanti Way. While Primanti’s has received its fair share of local and national fame, Patrinos credits former Pittsburghers and current residents for the national exposure.
“We’ve been very fortunate to have received all this national attention, but I feel what’s given us the best exposure nationally are the people who left Pittsburgh,” he says. “When the holidays arrive, everyone comes back to visit their families and on their to-do list is to go to Primanti’s and have a sandwich. That’s why we’re so busy during the holidays.”
Strip District Location: Still the Original
Most of Patrinos’ time is spent at the Strip location.
“We do have operation managers in these other stores, but the Strip is still the yeast of all the stores,” he says. “As the Strip goes, so goes all the other stores. I’m in touch with them daily, by phone or in person. The Strip is the original location and it’s where people want to go, so I am very protected of that location. It’s very special to me. I’m there at least one day a week, usually on a Saturday when it’s the busiest. I like to help out and also keep the customers entertained.”
While the other locations offer patrons an expanded menu, including salads, pizzas, and pasta, Patrinos kept the Strip location all original. He wanted to stay true to the founders’ roots, and preserve that sense of nostalgia among the customers.
“Nothing changed in the Strip,” he says. “It’s the only location where we only serve the original sandwiches. We tried to keep it as original as possible.”
The menu consists of 20 different meats to put on the original sandwich, plus the cole slaw and fries.
Patrinos loves the location in the Strip District.
“This is the hub of the city,” he says. “The traffic of people who come through here is just amazing. I have now been there for 36 years, more than half of my life. The Strip is very much a part of my life. We’re happy to be in the Strip.”
Patrinos has certainly seen changes throughout the Strip such as the transformation from a wholesale to a retail destination to the influx of night clubs in the late 1990s to its current transition into a residential living destination.
“It seems like it has its peaks and valleys, but no matter what happens, the marketplace takes care of itself,” he says. “I think the Strip has re-discovered itself to become more of a vibrant shopping area again. The keys to this growth were places like Wholey Fish. They were the pioneers to get other retailers there. Penn Mac has also done a great job. They were many who were part of the transformation into making the Strip District a destination.”
When Patrinos talks about the Strip location, he always mentions his longtime employee, Toni Haggerty of Bethel Park, who has worked for him since he re-opened the Strip location. Patrinos speaks fondly of Haggerty.
“When I started expanding in the 80s, she was there almost every day,” he says. “I took care of the nights and she took care of the days. She has been a large part of the success and part of the essence of that location. She’s the life and soul of that place.”
Haggerty describes Patrinos as a brother to her.
“He’s like family and he’s such a wonderful person to work for,” she says. “And he’s great to the customers.”
Haggerty, who works five days a week, 10 hours day, says what keeps her coming back are those customers.
“I’ve seen the same faces here for over 30 years,” says Haggerty, who also has two brothers, a niece, a sister-in-law, and her daughter who works with her. “I love to deal with the people and I know many of them on a first name basis.”
While she has helped Patrinos open up other locations, she says that the Strip location will always remain her favorite.
“I love it here in the Strip,” she says. “I think everyone loves this particular location the best because we kept it original.”
Future Plans
As he looks ahead to the future of his restaurant, Patrinos has no plans for expansion to other cities, despite the dozens of calls per month inquiring about franchises.
“Our growth has been very happenstance,” he says. “We don’t have a plan to expand at the moment, but maybe the next generation will take us to the next level. I’m sure the Primanti family is surprised at the level we took it too. For now, we like to keep it special and keep it unique.”
For more information on Primanti Bros., visit www.primantibros.com.
Originally published in the Strip District Magazine in 2012
