[ acordian ] i took a walk through this beautiful world felt the cool rain on my shoulder found something good in this beautiful world i felt the rain getting colder sha, la, la, la, la, la, sha, la, la, la, la, la, sha, la, la, la, la, la, sha, la, la, la, la anthony: pittsburgh is a city of neighborhoods. each with it s own rights, and rituals. a patchwork of cultures that took shape over a century ago. back then, the city was a beacon of hope and possibility for people from all over the world, offering the promise of work, prosperity, a new life. pittsburgh could have been another company town gone to beautiful ruin. but something happened. the city started to pop up on lists of the most livable places in america. it became attractive to a new wave of people from elsewhere looking to reinvent themselves and make a new world. and so we find ourselves asking the same questions we ask in other cities in transition. are the new arrivals, new m
cure was all about satisfying me. like, 100%. anthony: if i m running a high-end restaurant in pittsburgh, who am i employing as porters, dishwashers. sonja: students. justin: honestly, like, our dishwashers are white kids. anthony: no way. justin: pittsburgh, pa, is a big bright shining star of an example of what blue-collar america was a hundred years ago. sonja: when we are looking at who is applying, we also need to look at neighborhoods. the topography of pittsburgh is such that neighborhoods are separated by bridges and ravines. and this sort of thing means that people stay within their neighborhood. anthony: everybody is talking about a pittsburgh renaissance. there are artists coming, there are hip, new restaurants. somebody is making money. sala: yes. anthony: money is definitely coming in. is it lifting all boats? sala: no. it is not. the new pittsburgh attracts new
restaurants, whether you were in the restaurant business or not. and that wasn t pittsburgh. when i opened dinette in 2008, you know, i m expecting people like me to be coming in. i m 29, that s who i m building this restaurant for. and everyone was. justin: 56. sonja: yea, my parents age or older. justin: you know, i thought to myself, i m going to this neighborhood that s basically desolate. i m going to take this building that s, it s a restaurant that s been closed for seven years. and i m going to do something nice here. you know i didn t expect the reaction i got from the actual people that lived around me. anthony: right. justin: you know, which was not positive. they liked it the way it was. you know, that was their life. and then i move in and all of a sudden, i open this restaurant and people with nice, fancy cars are taking their parking spaces. and now i m a yuppie gentrifier.
anthony: are there typical, iconic pittsburgher qualities? maggie: i d say you probably worked here and brag about working here. you complain about millennials. you complain about the people in the street harassing you. you don t like anything new, at all. anthony: you re describing me. anthony: the menu is looking good. right in my happy zone. racks of pork rib, grilled hearts of escarole and turnips. a sauce made from the pork drippings. and, four types of sausage. anthony: wow, look at this.. maggie: this is amazing. anthony: that s titanic. i don t want to speak about pittsburgh in a dismissive way, but it was not known for being what it is today. people are talking a lot about the food scene here. twas not always so, what were people eating before? justin: you know, steak and potatoes. sonja: you know, living in san francisco, as a young person in your 20s, you were going out to eat. that was really important. and we all knew about the
you know what i mean? anthony: well, you know, own it. sonja: sometimes it kind of hurts, right? as a restaurant owner or small business owner, because there are always haters out there. and you feel like, okay, so somebody wants me to be a small business owner, and take care of my employees. and then also on me, they are going to talk about gentrification. like you re just trying to do your thing. you re just trying to do something good. anthony: right. justin: and you re trying to do it for you. and you should. sonja: yeah, but, i don t know, i mean for me it s different. like, i definitely was thinking about the neighborhood when i did it. like i m not some egomaniac who thinks that just putting out my food is a reason. so that everyone can enjoy the artistry of my food. that s why i m opening a restaurant. that s not the point. justin: not to disagree with any of what you just said. but i didn t open cure in lawrenceville because i wanted to change the neighborhood. i h