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Ever since they caught wind that their go-to neighborhood bar, Giordano Bros., may shut, Rudi Rughoonundon and Ollie Pender realized they weren’t able to let it go.
And so, when Giordano Bros. announced its closure officially in February, the 2 bar-goers shook arms and determined to enter enterprise collectively.
“It’s been a dream of mine to open a bar,” mentioned Rughoonundon, a pc chip engineer who, like Pender, rapidly grew to become a daily on the Pittsburgh-themed sports activities bar when it first opened 10 years in the past at 3108 sixteenth Avenue close to Valencia Avenue.
Rughoonundon and Pender have been neighbors within the Mission District for the reason that early 2000s, however met and have become mates over beers and hoagies and the hum of ballgames on screens across the bar.
And though they don’t have any connection to Pittsburgh and have by no means even visited — Rughoonundon was born in the UK and raised in Mauritius, and Pender hails from Eire — Rudi’s Sports activities Bar and Restaurant will preserve its ties to Pennsylvania’s second-largest metropolis.
“We each really feel like that they had a very good product right here, that they had a very good following,” Pender mentioned. “And lots of people come from the East Bay and throughout simply to be right here for the video games.”
A lot of Giordano’s Pirates and Steelers decor, workers, and even its menu featuring french fry-filled sandwiches will stay intact, and Rughoonundon and Pender count on the Pittsburgh-loving regulars to return.
“The Pittsburgh crowd that is available in right here, they’re like mainly an enormous household,” Rughoonundon mentioned. However he mentioned he desires to make it clear there will probably be some adjustments: The 49ers will probably be featured extra prominently at Rudi’s, and a hamburger is making its debut on the brand new menu.
Finally, he and Pender plan to introduce a full English breakfast — eggs, sausage, grilled tomato, beans and toast — as a small homage to their birthplaces.
Pender will handle the day-to-day operations of the bar; he’s an trade veteran who educated as a chef in Eire, managed Murphy’s Pub downtown for 20 years, and has co-owned Scarlet Lounge within the Richmond District for six years. Rughoonundon, in the meantime, says he’s the “cash man.” He will probably be on the bar just like the outdated days, just below a bit extra stress.
Giordano Bros. first opened in North Seashore in 2004 ultimately shifted its operations to the Mission location, which opened in 2011 within the former Ti Couz location. In February, the owner gave it up to spend extra time together with his household, and Rughoonundon and Pender have been at work ever since, getting the brand new place up and working.
The switch of possession to the 2 mild-mannered 50-year-olds may deliver a shift within the dynamic of the traditionally bro-centric bar run by huffy workers.
“They’re mates of ours,” mentioned Jeff Jordan, who initially based Giordano Bros. together with his spouse and mentioned he’s identified Rughoonundon and Pender for 10 years. “It’s simply good that it’s in good arms and we’re joyful for neighborhood individuals to hold on the legacy.”
The mushy opening of Rudi’s Sports activities Bar and Restaurant is Thursday night. The bar will probably be open Mondays by means of Fridays from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. and weekends from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.
