A Plum couple’s food truck is now doubling as a sign for their new storefront.
Paul and Jennifer Marckisotto launched their food truck, PGH EATZ, in 2020. They opened their storefront Friday at Boyce Park Center off Saltsburg Road in Plum.
Their truck, parked beside their storefront at one end of the plaza where Q&M previously was located, is doubling as a billboard.
Before opening for the first time Friday, Paul was making smashed redskin potatoes while his father, Tony Marckisotto of Delmont, was cutting, mixing and seasoning cucumber, grape tomatoes and mozzarella for a salad. Nicole Rings, their neighbor, was helping.
“Everything I do is simple,” said Paul, who previously tended bar and cooked at Eighty Acres in Plum. “It’s basic cooking like your grandmother would do.”
But Paul gives a lot of the credit to his wife.
“She’s the heart and soul of the business,” he said. “There’s no way I could do it on my own.”
Featuring homemade food and a menu that changes weekly, Jennifer said they want to be a healthy alternative to fast food. The storefront is takeout only.
The first-day menu included a caprese panini, meatball bowl or sub, Italian beef and Italian sausage sandwiches, and a pulled-pork sandwich. In addition to the cucumber salad and smashed redskin potatoes, there were Brussels sprouts and wedding soup.
“We try to target vegetarians and meat-eaters. We try to incorporate all the eaters out there and have at least one option for them,” Jennifer said. “We can customize to dietary restrictions.”
Jennifer, who works as a senior project manager for PPG, said she and her husband, a stay-at-home dad who was tending bar at Eighty Acres at the time, decided to start their food truck during the covid pandemic.
“We call it our midlife crisis,” she said.
Rather than focusing on one type of cuisine as many food trucks do, the Marckisottos have a large menu that can change for the audience. Their claim to fame is the Marckisotto family’s Italian sausage, made by Tony, the former butcher at Giant Eagle markets owned by his late brother, Frank.
Frank’s son, Frankie Marckisotto, launched Frankie’s Sausage in Sharpsburg in January.
With their truck, Paul and Jennifer now focus on catering, parties and events where they’ll know just how much food to prepare.
“For our truck, less events is more,” Jennifer said.
The storefront fell in their lap, Jennifer said. It is now the commissary for their truck, replacing Eighty Acres.
“We have such a good reputation out there with the food truck. We’ve established a clientele. We’re going to toss the dice again and give it a shot,” she said.
The couple decided to open a storefront because it won’t be weather-dependent like the truck, where the business slows down during the cold months but the demand for their food remains.
“We’re all so busy, and life can be so crazy,” Jennifer said. “We want to offer a healthy alternative to fast food. You’re getting a home-cooked meal, but we’re doing the legwork. You can bring a healthy, home-style meal home to your family versus going to McDonald’s or Burger King.”
Instead of having seating, Jennifer said they plan to use the space to have a selection of dry goods.
“We’re just excited,” she said. “We’re looking forward to the new adventure.”
