Bars of Gold (and Black)
The Far-flung Outposts of Steelers Nation
By Melissa Rayworth
On game days each fall, you'll find Shaun Horrigan and his buddies dressed in their lucky Steelers jerseys, their eyes glued to the TV above the bar. Cold mugs of beer in hand, they're talking offense and defense. Steelers logos festoon the walls. Everyone in the room wears black and gold.
It's the same for Violet Pelc and her pals at their pub. They're decked out in jerseys and Steelers earrings. Some carry pricey Polamalu purses. They're wondering: With more than a hundred Steelers fans already inside, can we squeeze in a few more? And when the game is on at John Niggle's neighborhood tavern, it's the same scene: cold beer, raucous crowd in Steelers gear and hopeful talk of Super Bowl victories to come. Niggle, proud son of a Heinz Field maintenance worker, can hear plenty of "yinz" and "n'at" echoing around him.
Don't be fooled. They're about as far from Heinz Field as diehard fans can get. It's September, and it's 80 degrees outside that bar where Pelc is standing - she's in Tampa, Fla. Horrigan's hangout is a Hooters out in Tacoma, Wash., practically spitting distance from the Pacific Ocean. And Niggle? He's a dozen time zones away in Shanghai, catching Steelers games at the Big Bamboo, where Tsingtao stands in for Iron City and cashew chicken is served up along with the burgers and wings.
For many generations, Pittsburgh has been a community that prizes its localism - its neighborhoods, its distinctive foods and drinks, its pugnacious us-against-the-world populism forged in mills and mines and immigrant row houses. But the shot-and-a-beer Pittsburgh that we prize - the one that built Steelers Nation with sweat and dedication and lots of greasy, starchy foodstuffs - has burst through its boundaries since the 1970s glory days. The local economy has changed, gone global, and Pittsburghers have gone with it. And - no surprise - many have brought their corner bar with them, though these days the corner is as likely to be in London as in Lawrenceville, as likely in Shanghai as in Shadyside.
Steelers Nation? That goes without saying. But it's only part of the picture. Let's talk about the bars of Steelers Planet, where everybody knows your name - or, at least, Ben Roethlisberger's.
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6 Things You Never Knew About Steelers Bars
- Melissa Rayworth |
Most Frequent Sightings at Steelers Bars: Visitors from other Steelers bars: Violet Pelc's Steelers bar in Tampa makes room for refugees from other Steelers outposts. "We always keep two tables open for them," she says. And when the gang from Shaun Horrigan's bar in Tacoma, Wash., goes on the road, these die-hards always search for new Steelers bars to visit. Ditto for Tom Tansey: In L.A. for the 2006 Super Bowl, he stopped by a bar in Santa Monica the day before the game. "There's a bunch of European rugby/soccer type guys sitting in there, and I just go in to find out what it's like," he says. "I ask if it's a Steelers bar, and they start going, 'Here we go, Steelers, here we go!'"