Years in the making, Lawrence Hall, a monumental 6,000-square-foot food hall smack dab in central Lawrenceville, is poised to revamp the city’s culinary landscape when it officially opens tomorrow. This repurposed 1890s warehouse, standing tall and brimming with history, promises to be both a gastronome’s dream and a relaxing space to unwind. Behind this ambitious venture are founders Brett Minarik and Phoebe Fraser, joined by the director of operations, Adam Harvey.
The genesis
The journey of Lawrence Hall traces back to a casual neighborhood stroll. Founders Brett Minarik and Phoebe Fraser chanced upon the 6,000-square-foot warehouse at 4609 Butler way back in 2017, a moment etched vividly in Minarik's memory. "We stumbled across the warehouse one day while walking in the neighborhood and were taken by the beauty, size, and location," he recalls. "We considered several ideas, including a parking garage, a market, and even self-storage, before settling on the idea of the food hall."
Besides entrepreneurial spirit and a penchant for adaptive reuse, the founders have a profound appreciation for the neighborhood's potential. "We felt strongly that a food hall would be a great fit, provide a sort of 'central hub,' and be the perfect combination of form and function to preserve the history of the space," says Minarik.
Behind the scenes
The trio at the helm — Fraser, Minarik, and Harvey — bring a mosaic of skills that shape the identity of Lawrence Hall. Minarik elaborates, “Phoebe, Adam, and I have unique and complementary skill sets that hit all the major facets of an operation like this. Phoebe, with her eye for detail and design, has designed a space that catches people's breath upon entry and leaves them with a new appreciation for what a food hall can be. Adam, our director of operations, has spent his entire career in hospitality and restaurant/bar operations and has experience in high-volume and fine-dining restaurants. He has pretty much done it all — from dishwasher, whole-animal butcher, fishmonger, line cook, executive chef, barista, and bartender through to independent restaurateur and bar owner-operator. My experience in business and finance allowed me to execute the fundamentals of the business, hopefully in a somewhat proficient manner. “
The repurposed 1890s warehouse has a storied history as a motion picture theater and later an automotive service center. A zoning dispute that kept it from being a restaurant space posed a significant hurdle for several years, but since overcoming that, the momentum has been unstoppable.
The open-concept food hall idea emerged as one that would preserve and highlight the structural beauty of the space while making it maximally available and enjoyable to the public. The defining architectural feature, the original wooden truss and beam system, became a focal point in the preservation efforts.
"Except for some cleaning — ok, a lot of cleaning — and minor repairs, they were in remarkable condition,” says Minarik. “As our structural engineer said, ‘They just don't do woodworking like that anymore.’ So, we wanted to design a space that would emphasize the trusses and bring people up close and personal with them on the mezzanine. Spacious yet intimate. We saw the rich history of the space as the perfect bridge between old and new Pittsburgh. That's also why [the bar] Dear James will have only local beers on draft — including IC Light."
Food and drink offerings
One of the distinctive features of Lawrence Hall is its array of local restaurateurs, each offering a unique culinary experience. The selection process was meticulous, notes Minarik, "We took an 'all of the above' approach and spoke with more potential operators than we can remember — everyone from food truckers to seasoned pros. Our criteria for selection were pretty simple; we wanted to find good people who could make great food and who would work with us collaboratively. The one rule? No two kitchens serve the same cuisine."
The result is a culinary cornucopia: LOADED with heaping burgers and inventive takes on American classics; La Palapa offering authentic Mexican street food; Cuddy's Soul Food providing a haven of heartiness and familiar goodness; and TOMA introducing refined Italian dishes. All in all, It's a delightful dilemma for food enthusiasts.
Central to Lawrence Hall's narrative is the aforementioned Dear James, the bar paying homage to Captain James Lawrence, the neighborhood's namesake. "Naming the bar Dear James was the inspiration of our partner Adam, who imagined the bar, as the focal point of the hall, as a 'love letter' to the history of the space, the neighborhood we all call home, and its namesake. It ties into the ethos of perseverance embodied by Captain Lawrence," Minarik says.
Drawing parallels to Lawrence's final words, "Don't give up the ship," Minarik confesses, "Our struggles were real, and it may sound cheesy, but it’s true nonetheless — we saw through all the obstacles with a dash of Captain's grit."
A community-centric vision
In a city teeming with dining options, Lawrence Hall aspires to set the standard for what a food hall can be. "What sets us apart? It's not just the food; it's the experience," Brett emphasizes. "We're on a mission to set a new standard for food halls, not just in Pittsburgh but beyond. Lawrence Hall is a beautiful space, steeped in a distinctive history, and exuding a robust personality. It offers phenomenal food and beverages overseen by individuals who take the guest experience seriously. These are our core tenets — it's up to the people of Pittsburgh to say if we got them right!”
Lawrence Hall envisions itself as a "central hub" beyond being a culinary destination. "LH will be a place people decide to meet before heading out for the evening or a place they stay for several hours to enjoy each other's company. We will also be partnering with the Boys and Girls Club of Western PA — whose office is literally right across the street — to offer a workforce development program for teens who need real-world experience to build up their resumes.
As for the future, Brett quips, "Ask us again in three years. For now, the goal is clear — to build the best damn food hall Pittsburgh has ever seen.”
