Mitchell's Pub

With a name like Constantinos Michalopoulos starting our history off, you know this its going to be a good one The fact that Mitchells is currently celebrating 100 years in business is indicative of the steady growth that has been enjoyed since its inception in 1906. But before we get into that, lets get back to Constantinos. Constantinos Michalopoulos was born on October 12, 1882 in Vlachokerassia, Greece. He immigrated to Pittsburgh at the age of 19, on March 11, 1902. In those days, the dream of every Greek arriving in America was to someday own their own business. There was no such thing as welfare or government handouts. You came to America and worked with relatives and friends, saving every dime, until one day you could own your own business and send for the loved ones you left behind. This is exactly what Constantinos did. Upon arrival in the United States, he immediately went to work for the Capitas family, who had a restaurant at 6350 Station Street in East Liberty. In 1906, after four years of hard work, his dream became reality when he opened a restaurant on the corner of Washington and Wylie (directly above Mellon Arena). Originally, the restaurant was listed under dining rooms in the 1906 Pittsburgh and Allegheny phone books. Funny as it is, a Greek painter couldnt fit the entire name Michalopoulos Dining Room on the storefront window, so Constantinos went to the phone book and picked out a more American sounding, shorter name. Yep, you guessed it Mitchells was born. With the dawning of Prohibition in 1920, Gust (the American version of Constantinos) opened a butcher shop in the back of the restaurant. This is where, during the Great Depression, many people received meat on credit that Gust knew would never be repaid. When Prohibition ended in 1933, Gust closed the butcher shop and obtained a liquor license. In 1945, he moved to the corner of Court Place and Sixth. Five years later, in 1950, Gust moved to 511 Court Place, just a stones throw from the Al