Years ago, glimpsed through a book a friend recommended, titled “Don’t eat lunch alone”. It’s not that hard to understand this concept/practice in China because of the food table-centered culture we have. But I am kinda excited to learn that having lunch with friends, colleagues, or business partners seems to be a genuinely valued thing by somebody in Pittsburgh as well. It made me feel even closer to the people here.
Mike actually is the muse who made me think of this aspect much more in depth because of his position. In the past four months we have worked together on the China-focused regional marketing initiative, I have observed that he builds his team over lunch, shares his vision with business partners over lunch, makes introductions to connect other people over lunch,.... and he even have business dinners occasionally with Chinese to talk things through. What’s really unusual is that he always pays the bill for everyone, which is not that much commonly practiced here than back in my home country.
I have the fortune to be part of those lunches with Mike and felt very special. Because also of the project we were working on, I want to remember those conversations over those lunches. The first time I actually misunderstood the word Porch as Torch, I thought it might be a good sign that our lunches at the Porch Restaurant would serve as a Torch in some kind to move forward our efforts in forming this regional marketing plan to bring Pittsburgh more visible for a Chinese audience and beyond.
Dr. Suzanne Laurich-McIntyre from CMU is actually the first person who introduced me to the Porch in Oakland. She treated me a lunch there after my graduation to celebrate. She was kind and encouraging and let me share many stories and hopes as if I just throw a hat over the fence and now I have to work hard to cross the fence to get the hat. That lunch was a good experience and Suzi is much missed and within my thoughts during those lunches happened there later.
….I haven’t gotten chance to really talk about Proch yet but the length of the article seems to have reached my ideal limits. However, this little “digression” seems to be the reason why I want to talk about the lunch experience to begin with. This would be a perfect manifestation of a Chinese saying, “The wine doesn’t make you drunk, but the people you drink with actually do.” With the same token, it is not the Porch restaurant makes those lunch experience special but the reason why I was there and those companies I had while there do.
Beer winning trivia @ Porch
1. Porch restaurant, often referred as “Porch at Schenley” or simply “Porch”, is part of Eat'n Park Hospitality Group, a portfolio of foodservice concepts focused on personalized dining and winner of the National Restaurant Association’s 2011 Restaurant Neighbor Award for community service. In addition to The Porch, its restaurant division includes Eat'n Park Restaurants and Six Penn Kitchen. Its contract foodservice division includes Parkhurst Dining Services, a provider of contract dining services to businesses, higher education institutions and cultural centers; and Cura Hospitality; which enhances life around great food through contract dining and management services for regional hospitals and senior living facilities. Eat’n Park is also home to SmileyCookie.com, the online gourmet cookie delivery company.
2. Porch is a casual eating spot, no reservation is needed. It has a pick up window. The service styles of lunch and dinner are different at Porch. During lunch you grab a menu and place an order, find a seat, then take a cup of fancy water yourself, the waiter would deliver the meal. In the evenings, the service is more fullsome and patrons are more sit-back and relaxed and let the willing staff do most part of the work. The produces the restaurant uses are all from local partners. Chef Kevin would even grow some produces on the rooftop during growing seasons.
ID@Porch
When did Porch first open in Oakland neighborhood?
