By Matt De Reno
Wingstop returns to Pittsburgh Monday with a store opening in Plesant Hills. Ross Township will get one at some point next year. The popular chicken wing restaurant chain has announced plans to open a new location in Ross Township, at what appears to be the McKnight-Siebert Shopping Plaza, since the address given for this expansion is 4855 McKnight Rd, reports the Pittsburgh Business Times.
This will be Wingstop's first return to the Pittsburgh market since 2015, and no doubt fans of this Dallas-based chain of over 600 restaurants, will be eagerly anticipating its opening in the Pittsburgh area. Moreover, Wingstop's ambitious expansion plan includes adding up fourteen Wingstops across Pittsburgh within the next three years.
Image: Wingstop
To kick things off, Wingstop will hold a grand opening celebration opening the doors on a new 1,845-square-foot restaurant at 10 Clairton Rd. Two more locations are set to open in January and February of next year: one will serve wings at 1609 Braddock Ave., and the other near 4855 McKnight Rd.
We believe that means McKnight-Siebert Shopping Plaza will now have a Wingstop to go with their current food options of Starbucks Coffee, Italian Village Pizza, Bruegger's Bagels, Aladdin's Eatery, and Chipotle. So, yes, a Wingstop is a nice addition.
However, before we spike the football, the first two Wingstop restaurants in the Pittsburgh area didn't fare so well.
A location opened on Carson Street and one in Crafton back in 2015. Both folded in 2017 with little notice. Those ill-fated restaurants were opened by former Pitt and San Francisco 49ers football star Shawntae Spencer. Spencer, a native of Rankin and a graduate of Woodland Hills High School and the University of Pittsburgh, played in the NFL for nine seasons as a defensive back.
Image: Wingstop
But times are different now. And we like to see a convenient wing place on McKnight Rd as a touchdown.
A Wingstop spokesperson expressed their enthusiasm for providing Pittsburghers with an opportunity to try the delicious eleven flavors that make them genuinely one-of-a-kind:
“We believe everyone should have a chance to experience our signature 11 flavors and become part of the Wingstop fan base," they said in a press release. "It's exciting seeing our brand receive such positive reception from locals!”
Now our assumption is that Wingstop will be serving up wings at the McKnight-Siebert Shopping Plaza. Exactly which shop front and what that shop front will look like has not been made clear yet.
Until then, here are chicken stops in our directory that might hold you over until the Ross Township Wingstop serves its first batch of wings.
Chicken Restaurants Across The North Hills
Sources
- Pittsburgh Business Times (2022). "Wingstop set to open several new locations in Pittsburgh region" Pittsburgh Business Times, https://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/news/2022/12/16/wingstop-several-locations-pittsburgh.html
- Pittsburgh Business Times (2017) "Wingstop restaurant closed in Pittsburgh" Pittsburgh Business Times, https://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/news/2017/02/03/wingstop-restaurant-closed-in-pittsburgh.html
- Wingstop.com (2022) Images.
Matt De Reno is the publisher of Across North Hills and a writer based in the North Hills of Pittsburgh.
