The Re-Opening of the Manor Theatre

On Thursday night, DB~ and I were invited to attend the pre-opening party at the Manor Theatre in Squirrel Hill.  The renovations were completed by loca l restauranteur Richard Stern and his daughter Alexa Stern.

The Manor Theatre on Murray Avenue was a theater in need of sprucing up.  It had just not been renovated and given the care that a cool little neighborhood theater should have.  It wasn't bad; it was just dated.

The Sterns put 4 months and who knows how much money into the renovations.  They went with a combination of art deco (they used a framed picture of the Manor from the 30's as an inspiration) with some modern touches, as well.

The Manor will have a full bar, in addition to a snack bar, and I sampled one of the 8 house-made cocktails that they were advertising.  Most of them had movie-related names, so I went with a Pulp Fiction.  I can't remember what all was in the drink, but it had some cherries in it so it must have been healthy for me.

The event was catered by two of the restaurants that Richard Stern owns -- Willow and Spoon.  The executive chef of Spoon, Brian Pecarcik, was there so DB~ and I said hi and congratulated him on his win of Chef of the Year from Pittsburgh Magazine.  We had some good crab cakes from the Willow section, plus great cheese and charcuterie in another area.  Spoon made some tuna tartare/ceviche in little serving spoons, plus some "tuna fish" on a cracker appetizer.

The Manor has 4 theaters and they seem to be going with a combination of super-popular movies (Avengers, Dictator) and indie movies (two I've never heard of).  With its location in one of the most-populated and culturally diverse neighborhoods of Pittsburgh, I'm thinking it will do well under the ownership of the Sterns.