Downtown Restaurant Brings Pop-Up Trend to Mahoning Valley
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Don’t call it The Federal.
For the next three weeks, the restaurant bar at 110 W. Federal St., downtown, will be known as Miracle on Federal Street. It’s a pop-up bar with a Christmas theme, and it would be hard to find a place with more holiday spirit.
Twinkling colored lights glitter along the bar, gift-wrapped packages hang from the ceiling, and every surface is awash in holiday décor. Even the menu is new.
Sophia Martini, co-owner, said her establishment is bringing to town a trend that already is popular in larger cities. The Federal – make that Miracle on Federal Street – is the first restaurant in the Mahoning Valley to do it.
Some pop-ups are temporary restaurants in previously unused space, she explained. But Miracle on Federal is a way of giving an existing restaurant an entirely new identity for a limited time.
Martini said it’s a way to add spirit to downtown.
“We wanted to give the pop-up feel to Youngstown,” she said. “If you go to Cleveland or Pittsburgh, you will see pop-ups everywhere, and no one in Youngstown has ever done a Christmas pop-up. We want to get people to come downtown and enjoy the Christmas spirit.”
To make it work, the transition has to be total. It’s not just a look, she said, but a mindset.
“For three weeks, we are not The Federal, we are Miracle on Federal Street,” Martini said. “You get that feel of a new menu and a new drink menu. We are not selling anything from the old menus at all.”
Entrees on the Miracle on Federal menu include Center-cut Pork Chops with roasted apples, Southern Cola-glazed Ham, Rigatoni with Vodka sauce, and Chicken Caprese Milanese, with prices ranging from $16 to $19.
Sandwiches include Knife and Fork Turkey, the Italian Sandwich and a couple of others. There is also a fresh appetizer menu, charcuterie boards and salads.
On the bar side, Miracle has created a few specialty drinks with a holiday flair.
The concept has been an instant hit. “We’re selling out fast on weekends,” Martini said. Reservations are recommended.
Miracle on Federal Street will open seven days a week at 4 p.m. through Dec. 29, but will be closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
It will also feature entertainment on select nights, including a Christmas singer and holiday karaoke.
“It’s a winter wonderland,” Martini said.
Dan Martini, a co-owner, is already looking forward to next year.
“We got a late start this year,” he said. “Next year we will start after Thanksgiving.”
Dan said the The Federal is also considering the pop-up concept for the Halloween season.
Pictured at top: For the next three weeks, The Federal downtown is the holiday-themed Miracle on Federal Street. The temporary new identity is inspired by the pop-up trend popular in major metros.
Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
