2 well-known restaurant families remembered

Funeral services were being held this week for two members of prominent restaurant families known throughout Western Pennsylvania.

Arthur J. McSorley, owner of the former McSorley's Restaurant on Babcock Boulevard in Ross, died on Monday, April 13, 2009. He was 77.

Rose Sweeney Melenyzer of Belle Vernon, who managed Sweeney's Restaurant for more than 50 years, died on Sunday, April 12, 2009. She was 97.

If you had a craving for potato pancakes, McSorley's was the place to go.

It was there that Mr. McSorley followed a family tradition of providing a nourishing meal at a reasonable price.

Mr. McSorley, who served as a captain in the Air Force, was respected for his hands-on management. In addition to greeting customers, he could be found working side by side with the cooks in the kitchen.

Mr. McSorley is survived by his wife, Carol Miller McSorley; six children; eight siblings; 16 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren; and eight siblings. He was preceded in death by a brother, Edward McSorley.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. today in St. Teresa of Avila Church, Ross.

Arrangements were handled by the T.B. Devlin Funeral Home in Ross.

Sweeney's Restaurant in Belle Vernon, known for its club sandwiches, was the place to go on Saturday nights after attending a drive-in movie or spending the evening dancing to the Big Band music at the Palisades in McKeesport.

Mrs. Melenyzer was preceded in death by her husband, Dr. Charles L. Melenyzer, and 11 siblings.

A funeral Mass was celebrated Wednesday in the Church of St. Anne in Rostraver.

Arrangements were handled by the James C. Stump Funeral Home Inc. in Rostraver.