Where is Nothingman?

PHOTO COURTESY OF NOTHINGMAN

Troy Beck and Katie Peric are putting everything into Nothingman — again.

After a brief stint in Bloomfield, they’re reopening one of Pittsburgh Magazine’s Best New Restaurants of 2024 on Shiloh Street in Mount Washington.

The menu, like the location, is at its peak.

Beck and Peric will continue to sling Nothingman’s to-die-for wings, deli sandwiches, steak frites and desserts, along with chicken sandos and crab rangoon fries from Given to Fly, the concept they ran for four years at Federal Galley on the North Side. They’re also putting an upscale spin on the pub grub staples offered by the building’s current tenant, Shiloh Plate & Pour.

An official rebrand is expected to take place by July 4, but you can experience a test run of the foodie fireworks now. As my tummy can attest, Nothingman 2.0 is booming.

“It’s a perfect hybrid,” Peric says. “We’re taking simple things, but making them better. We use fresh ingredients, smoke our own chicken, break down the steaks, patty-out every ounce of meat and make the cheese sticks by hand. We want to have the best bar food in the city, while paying homage to what it used to be.”

In late 2024, longtime friends and business partners Brian Hess and Joey DeMarco transformed Redbeard’s, a landmark Mount Washington watering hole, into Shiloh Plate & Pour. When Hess heard Nothingman was homeless, he recruited the couple to team up with his veteran staff to give the establishment a gourmet upgrade.

PHOTO COURTESY OF NOTHINGMAN

There’s a lot of history in the space, including local sports memorabilia, but the kitchen’s filled with shiny, new equipment and the antiquated TVs and sound system have been replaced. Whether you sit inside or on the patio, it’s the perfect spot to grab a post-game pint and a Pappy Mel, a sandwich with ham off the bone, pepperoni, hard salami, provolone, pickled banana peppers, mayo and homemade Italian dressing.

I ate the enormous Bacon & Bleu Burger, a Cajun spice-dusted patty topped with pig strips, Bleu cheese crumbles and bleu cheese dressing, and a pile of fries right before my staycation and it sustained me for the whole week.

PHOTO BY KRISTY GRAVER

And while sports bars aren’t typically known for their sweets, this one will be.

Peric, a pastry chef from West Virginia, has perfected Pittsburgh’s favorite summer treat, strawberry Jell-O pretzel salad, and will offer various cannoli creations and different takes on tiramisu. The Neapolitan version of the layered dessert features vanilla mascarpone, Nutella and chocolate mascarpone and strawberry jam and strawberry mascarpone. I’ll take three pieces and a side of pretzel salad, please!

Beck, whose family ran an Altoona tavern for generations, has worked in fine dining restaurants throughout Pittsburgh, from Poulet Bleu to Meat & Potatoes.

Later this year, another culinary duo will move into the former Nothingman space in Bloomfield; Lilith owners Jamilka Borges and Dianne DeStefano are planning to open an Italian coastal restaurant called Giulia.

Nothingman is named after a Pearl Jam song, but, after years of playing musical restaurants, Beck and Peric will be happy to hear the sound of bellies growling as customers enter their new home on the hilltop.