The Isaly's sign is coming back to the Strip District. After more than a decade away, Jim and Leslee Conroy are reopening the beloved deli counter in a 3,500-square-foot space, restoring a neighborhood institution that locals had feared was gone for good.
Isaly's was a Pittsburgh staple for generations. The original location at Fifth and Alder served chipped ham sandwiches, hot dogs, and the kind of hand-dipped ice cream that built a loyal customer base stretching back to the 1920s. The Strip District location closed in 2008, and the brand retreated from public view. For nearly fifteen years, Pittsburghers missed it.
A Neighborhood Marker Returns
The Strip District has changed significantly since Isaly's closed. The neighborhood is no longer the wholesale market hub it once was. But it has become something else: a destination for food, shopping, and community. Isaly's fits into that evolution perfectly. It is a historic name that brings authenticity to the neighborhood's reinvention.
"This is about more than ice cream. It's about bringing back a place where the neighborhood could gather."
Jim Conroy, Owner
The Conroys have spent months restoring the Isaly's brand. They researched the original recipes, spoke with former employees, and studied the design of the original locations. The goal is not to create something new that wears the Isaly's name. The goal is to bring back the actual place that people remember.
Chipped Ham, Not Nostalgia
Isaly's returns with the items that made it matter: the chipped ham sandwich, the hot dog, the hand-dipped ice cream. These are not items that disappeared because they went out of style. They disappeared because the business closed. Now that the business is back, the items come with it.
The Strip District is ready. The neighborhood has proven it will show up for authentic local institutions. Isaly's is banking on the same principle. A historic deli counter, built the way it used to be, selling the food Pittsburgh remembers. That is the business model. That is the bet.