2 restaurants destroyed in early morning fire on Pittsburgh’s North Side

PITTSBURGH — Two local businesses, Nana’s New York Hot Dogs and El Burro on Federal Street, were destroyed in an early morning fire Tuesday.

A man and his dog who lived in an apartment above were not hurt, but now they’re without a place to live.

An Allegheny County dispatch official said firefighters and medics were called to row building on the 1100 block of Federal Street just after 6 a.m.

PHOTOS: Fire rips through row building on Pittsburgh’s North Side, destroying 2 restaurant

Pittsburgh Public Safety says when firefighters first got there, they found a porch fully engulfed in flames at the back of the building. The fire extended to the attic of the adjacent building.

A Channel 11 crew at the scene saw smoke pouring from the roof of the two-story building. Firefighters were also on the roof trying to vent the fire.

Danielle Fest, whose parents own Nana’s, says everything inside is destroyed.

“Pretty bad, pretty bad,” Fest said. “We’re going to have to completely rebuild.”

Her parents were absent from the clean-up. That’s because they’re both at Mercy, as her dad, Richard Fest, is treated for second-degree burns to his hands from trying to put out the fire. On the ground out back was the fire extinguisher Fest says her dad used to try to save the family’s business.

Tuesday was also their wedding anniversary.

“It’s been truly devastating,” Fest added. “We’ve had a lot of customers come by and give us their blessings. We just want to get it started back up as soon as possible. This is a hot spot of the North Side.”

Fest spent the morning cleaning and coordinating with a company to get all the windows boarded up. The owner of the company that came out to help is a loyal customer who stops by Nana’s to eat lunch every day. For so many who support the local businesses on Federal Street, it’s a blow to lose a North Side staple, but, they trust Nana’s will be back.

“I was just devastated,” Tom Magana said. “I grew up in this neighborhood and ate here all my life. It’s sad to see it burn down. Hopefully, they rebuild it.”

El Burro, right next door, also sustained significant damage. On their social media pages, they said their location on the North Side will be closed for now and they’re not sure when they’ll reopen.

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