Nothing will stop Sarah Coppolo, the woman behind Brothmonger, from serving soup to Pittsburgh at her restaurant. Not even a robbery. Coppolo shared on Instagram that her not-yet-opened store was the latest target of a string of burglaries in Bloomfield in recent months. The store lost a shop vac, some food, and Coppolo’s power tools. But she still plans to open this Thursday.
Brothmonger has been hugely popular in the city, with her soups available at Linea Verde, Deutschtown Deli, and Thyme Machine. But this new space marks the first time she’ll have her own brick-and-mortar restaurant, after years of working in the industry. Coppolo also spent some of her career working in mortuary science, but eventually returned to working in restaurants.
Long-Awaited Brothmonger Restaurant to Open Despite Burglary
“I’m excited to open and share this space with my community. It’s something that I’ve wanted my whole life and it’s a little unbelievable that it’s coming to fruition this week,” Coppolo told TABLE. “As far as the break in goes, it couldn’t have come at a worse time. But it could have been worse. More than anything, I feel bad for the people who did this because they must be suffering a lot. And to support me, I would just appreciate people showing up to buy my food!”
Part of Brothmonger’s popularity stems from Coppolo’s multiple talents and community engagement. Coppolo is also a writer who attends local readings and open mics. She runs her own email newsletter called Brothmailer, where she shares personal essays and recipes.
A Soup Dream Come True
In one piece, “What Can I Get For You?” she reflected on how she kept coming back to the dream of opening her own restaurant. She writes: “At [a] steakhouse in my early twenties, my line cook boyfriend and I would talk about our future plan to own a funeral home and a restaurant right next to each other. We would feed the mourners and get them drunk, it’s honestly a great idea. I’ve always romanticized a place for people to come in hungry and leave happy at my hand. I never wanted to own my own funeral home but I’ve wanted my own restaurant for as long as I can remember.”
Now, Coppolo will get that dream, and losing a few tools won’t keep her from building it. Thursday October 24, Coppolo will open the doors at 4770 Liberty Avenue at 10AM with service running until 4PM. Her hot lunch service is set to go live in November. We can’t wait to see what she does in this new chapter, and her resilience and compassion show through in how she responded to a last-minute challenge.
Story by Emma Riva / Photo courtesy of Brothmonger