Downtown Pittsburgh restaurant Pork & Beans closes
After four years in Downtown Pittsburgh, the barbecue restaurant Pork & Beans is closing.
“We’ve made the difficult decision to retire Pork & Beans, but all the wonderful friends and memories will last a lifetime,” the restaurant posted on Instagram. “Thank you so much for everything.”
The barbecue joint opened to fanfare in fall 2016 as part of the Richard DeShantz Restaurant Group. Officials with the company didn’t return messages seeking comment.
For Pork & Beans, DeShantz partnered with Keith Fuller, who formerly owned Root 174 in Regent Square.
As its name suggests, the menu centered on pork and featured smoked and cured meats and dishes presented “like an art project,” according to one reviewer.
DeShantz, who grew up in Pittsburgh, has been a player in the region’s restaurant scene since 2011 when Meat & Potatoes opened to rave reviews in the Cultural District.
Other restaurants followed. Butcher and the Rye and Tako opened Downtown. The French-themed Poulet Bleu opened in Lawrenceville. Fish Nor Fowl took over the space of Salt of the Earth in Garfield. Coop De Ville just opened in the Strip District.
In 2018, DeShantz and Tolga Sevdik, a partner in the business, were semi-finalists for a James Beard Award for restaurateur of the year.
Pork & Beans had been offering a lunch menu for takeout or delivery since mid-August. It had been closed since March with the coronavirus pandemic.
The restaurant reopened for on-site dining Sept. 10 and had been offering a sandwich menu.
The other restaurants in the DeShantz group remain open. In September, a second Tako location was announced for Bakery Square in Larimer, opening next year.
Tom Davidson is a TribLive news editor. He has been a journalist in Western Pennsylvania for more than 25 years. He can be reached at tdavidson@triblive.com.
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