Last week, Pittsburgh lost a legend in the restaurant business. Hartley King, founder of Kings Family Restaurants, has passed away at the age of 91. King opened his first restaurant in 1967 in North Versailles (under the name Kings Country Shoppes). His restaurant chain grew to over 30 locations, many of them located in the Pittsburgh area with a few locations up north (Meadville, New Castle, and Franklin) and east (Somerset and two in Altoona). Past locations included the PA Turnpike and Moon Township. Both of these restaurants closed in the mid-2000’s.
The first locations were North Versailles, Monroeville, Plum, and Upper St. Clair. In Westmoreland County, Delmont opened in 1980, Willow Crossing in 1989, and Hempfield Pointe in 1998.
I worked for Kings in the late 2000’s (upon graduating from college) at the Delmont location. While there, I built good relationships with my coworkers and higher ups. I also took part in some of their corporate functions including the company picnic at Kennywood and a junior golf tournament at Nemacolin Woodlands.
I had the opportunity to see Hartley in person at these events during the summer of 2008. I was the Frownie for both of these events as well. I also wish I would have had the chance to introduce myself.
Pittsburghers will remember King as the man they’d see in King’s television commercials enticing you to come by for a meal and some ice cream afterward. Their specialty was their breakfast menu, ice cream, desserts and homemade pies. After growing to over 30 locations at one point, only four restaurants stay open, including the location in Hempfield Pointe across from Home Depot. On the front of the restaurants was a sign that read “Fine Food and Ice Cream”.
When ownership changed in the mid-2010’s, that was when the restaurant went downhill. The five locations that closed in the Spring of 2017 signaled the beginning of the chain’s demise. Redoing the logo and the exterior was also a sign that things weren’t changing for the better, either.
The Delmont location, where I was employed, closed in the Spring of 2021, and I posted a blog about the closure of that restaurant.
I worked at Kings when the company celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2007 and saw a feature inside the menu with old pictures of Hartley. One of the promos on the actual day of their anniversary (September 25) was 45 cent Apple Pie with Cinnamon Ice Cream. These were probably from commercials and billboards back in the day. Our District Manager found some old menus dated from 1994 that also served as placemats. I was shocked by the both the prices and the dessert items. The Tons of Fun for Everyone really got me. I think that was 24 scoops of ice cream. They also had a smaller version of that called The King’s Castle. While I wasn’t around for those, I did enjoy The Angry Mob (which was a dessert that consisted of ice cream and mini-Frownies.
What Lou Pappan was to Beaver County, Hartley King was to Allegheny County. Both were icons in the restaurant business and the communities they served, and now both are gone.
I read a book on the history of Eat’n Park last year as Pittsburgh’s other iconic chain which celebrated 75 years in business. Kings will always be the little brother to Eat’n Park even as only four stores remain open, including Canonsburg and Kittanning. Maybe one day a book about Kings will be out. If and when it is, I will definitely purchase a copy.
Coach C and I will kick off our 2025 dinner series at Kings in remembrance of Hartley.
Stylish 🍒 