Pushing away from the table
After 17 years as a restaurateur, Joseph Costanzo is hanging up his apron.
Costanzo, owner of The Primadonna restaurant in McKees Rocks, retired Thursday from his full-time duties. "But nothing will change. I'll just be gone. Like one of my busboys put it -- it will just be like the Rolling Stones without Mick Jagger," said Costanzo, who gave up a 13-year career with the U.S. Postal Service in 1986 to open the restaurant.
Costanzo has sold the acclaimed restaurant to John Welsh, 49, of Ross, who worked with Costanzo for a year before buying the restaurant. The pair met when Costanzo visited Welsh's former restaurant, Welsh's on the Rocks, to which Welsh said Costanzo was drawn by his wife's hot buffalo wings. Welsh has operated two other now-closed restaurants, Jocko's Chicago Style Hot Dogs and Deli in Mt. Lebanon and Welsh's Wagon Wheel in Avalon.
Welsh said he's not planning on making many changes to The Primadonna.
"The only change I'm making is who signs the checks," he said. "I'm going to keep everything the way Joe had it."
Welsh said Costanzo's sense of quality in food and service made Primadonna a success.
"It's a place you feel real comfortable coming into," Welsh said. "The staff is geared that way to make you feel comfortable. It's top-notch, first-class food with a touch of hominess."
Since opening, The Primadonna has won local and national acclaim. Pittsburgh Magazine and City Paper readers have voted it the best Italian restaurant in western Pennsylvania, and it has been featured in the New York Daily News and Mid-Atlantic Country magazine.
Costanzo said he learned the restaurant business by working in his father's Shadyside cocktail lounge, the Mardi Gras, now operated by his brother, Rich.
After having been a carrier, clerk and delivery supervisor for the postal service, Costanzo said he wanted to do something different, and went back to the restaurant knowledge he'd gained from his father.
"It just kind of evolved into this monster. I got a couple good reviews that brought a lot of people in. It went from a small neighborhood restaurant to a regional thing," he said, crediting marketing for his success. "A lot of places do have good food but don't market the product. You can have great food, service and ambiance, but if no one walks through the door you're going to go bankrupt."
Last year, Costanzo and his restaurant were selected separately as one of America's top 10 restaurateurs and top 10 Italian restaurants by the International Restaurant and Hospitality Rating Bureau.
Costanzo now is marketing his self-created house salad dressing in more than 80 locations. "He came up with the recipe," Welsh said. "It's just a little bit different than any Italian dressing I've ever tasted before."
Welsh said the dressing, all of the recipes and awards and even Costanzo himself were included in his purchase.
"He'll always be there as a sounding board offering any advice and encouragement I will seek," Welsh said.
The past 17 years have brought troubles for Costanzo. Two years after the restaurant opened, he was diagnosed with diabetes. His health has gotten progressively worse and he now is dependent on insulin to control his blood sugar. He also is starting to go blind in his right eye.
Costanzo, 49, relates his life as a restaurateur to his declining health.
"There's a trade-off with everything. I had a good restaurant -- but I would work 17-hour days, seven days a week," he said. "This (diabetes) was caused by stress, and as a result my health has gotten continually worse. That's why I decided to ease on out now."
As a retiree, Costanzo said he will work to take his signature salad dressing national, and may dabble in restaurant consulting. But mostly, he will spend time with his family. Costanzo lives in Robinson with his wife, Donna, and their daughters, Maria and Kelly.
"I have missed out on a lot of family things. I've lost a lot of time working at the restaurant. That's the problem with being a hands-on restaurant owner," he said.
In the beginning, it was just Costanzo as the bartender, his wife as the waitress, a cook and a dishwasher working in the restaurant. Now the restaurant, which seats 83, employs 25 to 30 people.
Many nights, Costanzo would be seen greeting customers. Famous people, including actors Jamie Lee Curtis and Danny Aiello, talk show host Pat Sajak, former heavyweight champion Joe Frazier and former Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda have visited the restaurant.
Costanzo also has traveled from table to table to chat with his patrons. That's what he said he'll miss most.
"I am already going through withdrawal. I need this place. I will still have a vested interest and visit every now and then -- for therapy," he said. "This is my little baby. But the great thing is that it's not closing down -- so it's still living on. My legacy is still living on."
Staff writer Brian C. Rittmeyer contributed to this report.
