Atria’s, the Beverly Road landmark, is rebranding and reinventing itself as a new bar called 1930 by Atria’s, an ode to when the restaurant first opened. Some of the beloved staples like the pot roast nachos remain, but a series of alterations should create a compelling new dining and drinking experience for Mt. Lebanon residents.
1930 by Atria’s, 110 Beverly Road, will have a Prohibition-era feel. As such, it makes sense to employ one of the best-known minds in the bartending and restaurant scene in the greater Pittsburgh area. Mt. Lebanon native Spencer Warren, owner and operator of The Warren in downtown Pittsburgh, will be 1930 by Atria’s beverage manager.
“It was a bar, and then they kind of made it into a little more of a restaurant feel,” Warren said. “And so they’re kind of trying to go back to more that tavern or bar kind of thing. It’s got food and great cocktails.”
Joseph Atria founded the bar in 1930. It started as a grocery and beer joint, and stayed that way until 1975, when it reinvented itself as primarily a restaurant. Nancy and Patrick McDonnell bought the bar in 1997 and opened several in the greater Pittsburgh area, including in Murrysville and Peters Township. Their son, Patrick, now owns and operates the store.
Patrick the younger met Warren during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Atria offered free food to service workers. From there, they developed a friendship, which led to the collaboration for 1930 by Atria’s.
Local cocktail historians have credited Warren with spawning the modern cocktail movement in Pittsburgh. He opened Embury Lounge in the Strip District, which brought creative flair and innovation to cocktails not seen in decades. He has maintained his stature by opening his downtown bar and running several pop-up bars, which are seasonally themed restaurants that open in empty spaces for a brief time.
The owners are keeping some of the original Atria’s menu items to continue attracting the old crowd. However, they also wanted to appeal to a younger crowd, so they brought in Warren to help design a cocktail menu that people in their 20s, 30s, and 40s would want to experience. They will have an extensive whiskey list.
“Everything’s made from scratch,” Warren said. “We’re trying to have our own old-fashioned and other cocktails. But we’re having very specific seasonal cocktail menus.”
The food will be geared more toward shareable appetizers than big main course options. They will add wings and sliders as an option.
Warren hopes everyone will find it appealing.
“Concepts get stale, I guess, is the way to say it,” Warren said. “You have to change with the times. Update, adapt, change, but still keep that old quality and the style of what is Atria’s. That’s why it’s 1930 by Atria’s. So it’s new and a combo of new and old.”