Kevin Sousa has left the bodega.
The chef, who opened Mount Oliver Bodega (M.O.B.) in October with his wife Meg and General Manager Chris Clark, announced his exit from the business on Dec. 2.
The boutique wine shop, bar and eatery will continue to operate with Clark and Executive Chef Jonah Frazier. Frazier is a longtime friend and associate of Sousa’s who returned to Pittsburgh after a 10-year stint in New York City’s to helm the massive M.O.B. kitchen.
The building, a former bakery located at 225 Brownsville Road, is owned by real estate company and M.O.B. collaborator RE360.
“M.O.B. was created out of love … and out of a passion for what we do — bringing people together over a delicious plate of food, a unique glass of wine, in a beautifully curated space,” Meg Sousa said in a statement. “Bringing M.O.B. into existence was a labor of love between myself, my husband Kevin and our partner Chris Clark. RE360 hired us to open a restaurant – and that we did. While we would have liked to have remained on board with this project beyond just opening consultants, the relationship between our vision and RE360’s were no longer aligned.”
M.O.B. raised some eyebrows for initially charging $40 for a Sicilian-style, thick crust, rectangular pizza. The price was eventually lowered to $30.
Sousa, the chef behind the former Salt of the Earth and Union Pig & Chicken as well as Superior Motors, the Braddock restaurant where Clark served as general manager, launched the Tribute Hospitality Group earlier this year as an homage to past culinary experiences and the rise of new ones.
The company was slated to open Arlington Beverage Club, a church social hall-turned-bar, in Allentown this year. RE360 is still associated with the project, but no opening date has been set.