Popular Pgh Restaurant Invited To Cook @ White House!
May 24th, 2009 | By Dave | Category: Dave's Commentaries, PittsburghWhen I originally landed here in Pittsburgh, the first 2 places my wife took me to were restaurants. First Primanti’s for their famous french fry sandwiches, and the next morning to Pamela’s for breakfast. Who is Pamela? It’s not a she, but rather a small chain family restaurants unique to Pittsburgh started by local entreprenneur Pamela Cohen. Actually, the first restaurant was started in a small town next door to where I live, in a town called Millvale. There is a pharmacy that has been around for ages on North Avenue, and a portion of it contains Pamela’s first breakfast restaurant. From there, one was eventually set up in the Strip District (known as Jojo’s), and 3 others in Oakland (which caters mostly to the university & hospital crowds, Squirrel Hill, and Shadyside. And simply put, they serve the best breakfasts I have ever tasted.
Well fast-forward to this week. Having once visited one with the Rooney Family during the election campaign, The Obama’s have personally invited the owners to send their chefs to the White House so as to serve up this year’s Memorial Day breakfast. Congrats to Pamela’s, a distinction well deserved!
The Obama’s & Rooney’s @ Pamela’s During ‘08 Campaign (Photo Courtesy Of NY Times)
Story courtesy of MSNBC & the Pittsburgh ABC Affiliate WTAE.
Pittsburgh Pancake-Makers To Serve At White House
Local Diner Owners To Serve President, Troops On Memorial Day
PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh is famous for many things, and now, the world will know the Steel City for pancakes, specifically, Pamela’s hotcakes.
The owners of the diner chain Pamela’s P&G Pancakes are headed to the White House for Memorial Day to serve their famous hotcakes to the president and some special guests.
Then Sen. Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, ate breakfast at the Strip District restaurant on the morning of the Pennsylvania presidential primary last year — and they said they’d be back.
“It’s probably the most amazing thing that has happened to us, and I can’t imagine anything being more of an honor,” said Gayle Klingensmith, co-owner of Pamela’s P&G Pancakes.
Klingensmith and her partner, Pam Cohen, will serve the president and dozens of American troops on Memorial Day.
“We’re going to make our classic pancake, and we’re also going to make the one we’re famous for, and that’s the pancake stuffed with brown sugar, sour cream and fresh strawberries,” Cohen said. “I’m pretty excited about it — and nervous, of course. It’s a big honor for us to serve the veterans and, of course, for Obama.”
“I just like them because they’re thin and they’re not real heavy and they’re just great,” said Gayle Johnson, of Highland Park.
“There he was on his busy, busy schedule, and he got to sit down and have some comfort food and really enjoyed them, and so did Mrs. Obama. So, life was good to us,” Klingensmith said.
Klingensmith and Cohen said they will make about 300 of their famous hotcakes for the troops, and that the president likes his plain. They may make chocolate chip pancakes for the first daughters Sasha and Malia.
