Roads? Where Back to the Foodture’s going, they do need roads.
The South Side restaurant and pop culture museum, which is inspired by the 1985 film “Back to the Future,” is adding a mobile unit to its booming business. And you can bet there’ll be a flux capacitor on board.
Eddie Barnz and his wife Angel Magwood opened the original location in Pitcairn in 2019, but that space closed due to pandemic staffing shortages. The couple, who serve over-the-top burgers, hot dogs, wings and fries, debuted their second site on May 5, 2021, becoming the first Black-owned company in SouthSide Works.
And they’ve been running at 1.21 gigawatts ever since.
The food trailer will hit the streets the first week of June with a scaled-down version of the enormous menu that will feature the eatery’s bestselling burgers, dogs and fries. The mobile menu will include the Chef Angel Burger, a beef patty topped with Colby cheese, mayo, egg, bacon, crispy onions, sautéed mushrooms and onions and pickles. Your taste buds will scream, “Great Scott!”
Additionally, the rolling restaurant will offer gut-busting sausages and hoagies that would make even Biff Tannen smile. It will operate seven days a week, making stops at events throughout the region.
Barnz says the couple plans to open additional locations near Monroeville and the North Side and, soon after, will start franchising across the country.
On June 8, from noon to 7 p.m., say “Hello, McFly!” and celebrate Back to the Foodture Day (the City of Pittsburgh deemed the day as such in 2021) at 2767 E. Carson St. A real DeLorean — which Dr. Emmett Brown uses as a time machine in the classic flick — will be parked outside the eatery, along with local celebrities and folks dressed up as the movie’s iconic characters. Diners can chow down while they peruse a collection of vintage toys and other baubles.
“We came from a working-class environment,” says Barnz. “Once we were able to start our own business and be our own bosses, we wanted to do things differently. We wanted to have fun!”
On her days off, Magwood experiments with different recipes in the kitchen. Her latest creations include funnel cake fries, chicken and waffles, and Dorito-flavored wings. Her children, who are always willing to lend a hand, must give the grub a thumb’s up before it goes on the menu.
Barnz, a local rapper, often brings audience members on stage to make them feel appreciated. At the restaurant, he snaps photographs of new customers in front of the Back to the Foodture logo for the same reason. He’s even thinking of publishing a yearbook-style tome to celebrate their success in the South Side.
“We are never done trying new things,” he says. “We want to keep you coming back.”