When architects and developers undertook a $100 million renovation of the iconic century-old Flemish-Gothic Union Trust Building, they endeavored to make it not just a enviable office space but also a Downtown destination spot.
And with two major restaurant openings in just over two weeks, it’s fair to say that the hallowed halls of Henry Clay Frick’s building have seen quite a few new visitors of late.
Last month, acclaimed Pittsburgh chef Derek Stevens’ new American restaurant, Union Standard, opened in the rectangular building’s northwest corner. Eddie V’s, an upscale seafood and steak chain, will open to the public Monday in the southeast quadrant.
“I like this pattern,” said Jonathan Davis, a Pittsburgh native, founder and CEO of the Boston-based Davis Companies and the building’s owner.
“Our vision for the property is to create a vibrant mixed use-facility we offer our tenants and the city a range of dining options that is unparalleled in any other property,” Mr. Davis said by phone from Boston. “Between Eddie V’s and Union Standard, we are well on our way.”
In contrast to the sleek open contemporary feel of Union Standard, Eddie V’s is a stunning throwback reminiscent of an established 1940s supper club, with banquette booths, a massive dining room chandelier and columns fashioned from original marble reclaimed from throughout the building.
During a soft opening Tuesday evening, white-coated bow-tied waitstaff hustled about while live music wafted in from the bar area. One might have expected the ghost of Bing Crosby to round a corner at any given moment.
Operated by Orlando, Fla.-based Darden Restaurants, whose major holdings run from the nationally ubiquitous Olive Garden to the higher-end The Capital Grille (its Pittsburgh location is a mere 2½ blocks away), Eddie V’s (not a real person) is a seafood-first sibling establishment, founded in Austin, Texas, in 2000.
The menu includes items such as Alaskan sablefish, Norwegian salmon and South African lobster tails by executive chef Flavio Oscar Garcia Alvardo, who came over from McCormick & Schmick’s Downtown location. An encyclopedic wine list includes everything from a $10 glass of California pinot noir to Champagne that pushes $800 a bottle.
Something of an irony: Although Andrew Carnegie and Frick were once allies in commerce but ended their lives as arch enemies, private parties (or perhaps breakups or contentious negotiations) can be held in the 30-seat Carnegie Room.
There are two more restaurant spaces to fill in the building, and Davis Companies is in negotiations with at least one operator, intending to have all four primary spaces, plus a lobby wine bar and breakfast and lunch fast-casual spot, in place by year’s end.
Eddie V’s is among an early 2017 bumper crop of Downtown restaurants slated for opening, including:
• Café 808, which will serve soups, salads and deli-style sandwiches and hoagies at 808 Penn Ave. It had its soft opening this week.
• In PPG Place on a corner of Market Square — the historic epicenter of St. Patrick’s Parade Day celebrations, City Works Eatery and Pour House intends to have its 90 beer taps flowing in time for the annual Celtic celebration on March 11. Roughly a year in the making, the third national location of the chain by Chicago-based Bottleneck Management will dedicate 25 percent of its taps to local brewers and another 14 taps to rotating seasonal beers, along with a full menu of pub grub.
• Talia Cucina and Rosticceria is owner Julian Valozzi and executive chef Steve Lanzilotti’s love letter to roasted Italian meats, set to open March 13 in the old Alcoa Building at 425 Sixth Ave., across the street from the Hotel Monaco. It is the sister establishment to Valozzi’s on Fifth Avenue, Downtown, which opened in 2012, and the flagship location in Greensburg.
• Venerable Shadyside watering hole and local kings of bacon night, the Harris Grill will open its third location in the former Tavern 245 at 245 Fourth Ave. later this spring.
• BRGR, the popular local burger chain by the S+P Restaurant Group, will open its fifth location at 535 Liberty Ave., in the site of the former G&G Noodle Bar, also later this spring.
• Columbus, Ohio-based Condado taqueria will open its first location outside of that city in May at 971 Liberty Ave., where the longtime restaurant and bar Tonic recently closed. The 160-seat restaurant will feature a full bar and a rooftop deck for outdoor dining and will join a crowded field for purveyors of tortilla-filled food, with Cincinnati-based Bakersfield just around the corner on Penn Avenue and Pittsburgh’s Tako in the Cultural District, as well as numerous mom-and-pop taco shops around the Golden Triangle.
Dan Gigler: dgigler@post-gazette.com; Twitter @gigs412.
First Published: March 2, 2017, 5:00 a.m.
