Paul Kengor: Things that aren’t there anymore

Remember as a kid listening to old people reminisce about this or that thing that isn’t there anymore? You figured you’d probably be doing the same someday. Increasingly nowadays, I’m surprised at how often I’m doing that, and just how many places are disappearing. I do wonder if that’s unique to my experience, or if perhaps things generally in our chaotic, throwaway culture (to borrow a term from Pope Francis) are closing sooner than they used to.

In my case, I’m 57, and the places I have in mind in this column are favorite haunts from the Oakland section of Pittsburgh, namely, the Pitt campus, and only about 30 years ago. The things already gone — many of them iconic — are rather stunning. I was reminded of that yet again when reading in the Trib that the popular ice cream shop, Dave & Andy’s, is shutting down after four decades of fabulous homemade ice cream.

I have the sweetest (pun intended) memories of Dave & Andy’s. My girlfriend at Pitt — now my wife — worked there starting in 1987. I have fond memories of walking in, seeing Susan’s perky, pretty face and ordering cookies & cream in a warm waffle cone (with M&M’s at the bottom). If I got lucky, the long line fizzled and I could steal a smooch from Susan on my lap on a milk can in the storage room.

Dave & Andy’s was popular to all comers, whether students or working professionals. My former boss, Dr. Thomas Starzl, who pioneered organ transplantation at UPMC, was a Dave & Andy’s addict. He daily strolled inside and winked at Susan behind the counter, and she would grab his regular. I asked her while writing this column if she remembered Starzl’s order. She didn’t hesitate: “Chocolate milkshake, with vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup.”

Susan, of course, laments the news of Dave & Andy’s shuttering. In fact, she’s the one who alerted me. She knew both Dave and Andy, recalling where they came from, how they honed their craft and more. “They were nice guys,” she recalls fondly.

But alas, what they founded is ending — on Sunday.

For me, I now add Dave & Andy’s to memories like The Decade, Niko’s Gyros, Winner’s Restaurant, Gus Miller’s Newsstand, the Electric Banana and, of course, “The O” — The Original Hot Dog Shop. As to the latter, few items from these parts were as famous as O fries. If we had to place bets in the 1980s on which local spot would survive the longest, it would have been The O, hands down.

But sadly, even The O closed. It was almost as much of a Pitt landmark as The Cathedral of Learning. Or Pitt Stadium.

And yes, even Pitt Stadium is gone. When the decision was made to raze Pitt Stadium, and the wrecking ball came so swiftly, we were aghast. I have not gone to a Pitt football game since.

These places themselves carried such memories. I recall at Niko’s a framed photo from Sports Illustrated of the incredible late ’70s Pitt offensive line (which included future NFL Hall of Famers) eating gyros at Niko’s.

As for The Decade, it was said that Bruce Springsteen would visit there before he was the Springsteen of history. My wife and I went there on our first date.

I ask all of you reading this: What’s your list of things gone? And is my experience unique, or are things closing quicker than they used to? I’m sure that’s something impossible to measure. Nonetheless, it saddens me, and surely you as well.