Downtown Pittsburgh’s restaurant scene is lining up another big play, as Balvanera co-owners Meredith Boyle and chef Fernando Navas plan to reel in a new coastal concept called Casa Anchoa for the former Nine on Nine space at 900 Penn Avenue. The Cultural District address, dark since the fine-dining spot closed, is set to trade vacancy for "shore-driven" flavors if the project comes together as announced.
The plan surfaced this week in the Pittsburgh Business Journal, which reported that Boyle and Navas are taking over the high-profile corner for Casa Anchoa. The duo is describing the new restaurant as a coastal-cuisine concept, though they are keeping quiet on the actual dishes and an opening date for now. The outlet credits reporter Jake Dabkowski with the initial scoop.
Balvanera’s Foothold In The Strip District
Boyle, a Pittsburgh native, and Navas, an Argentine-born chef with stints at Nobu and SUSHISAMBA, already have a solid local calling card in Balvanera. According to Balvanera, their Strip District outpost at 1660 Smallman Street opened in 2023 and leans into shared Argentine plates and a social, linger-awhile style of dining. That existing fan base gives the pair some built-in credibility as they pivot from parrilla to coastal cooking a few blocks away downtown.
A Familiar Corner Of Penn Avenue
The 900 block of Penn Avenue is no stranger to turnover. Nine on Nine, which previously operated at the address, shut its doors in 2019 after a rent hike, leaving the prominent space empty. At the time, Patch reported that roughly 25 employees lost their jobs when the restaurant closed. Casa Anchoa would be the first major new dining concept publicly tied to that storefront since.
What Casa Anchoa Will Be
The name Casa Anchoa leans heavily into seaside imagery, and the owners have been clear about one thing so far: the focus will be coastal flavors. Beyond that, the details stay fuzzy. As noted by the Pittsburgh Business Journal, the menu is still being developed, and there is no public timeline yet for when the doors might open.
Next Steps And How To Follow
For now, Casa Anchoa exists mostly on paper and in planning meetings. The owners have not announced an opening date, and both local coverage and the restaurant group’s own channels say they are still working through logistics. Balvanera lists contact information and event updates for its Pittsburgh operations, making it the most likely place for official Casa Anchoa news to land first. City permits and build-out work on the Penn Avenue space will dictate how fast that long-quiet corner flips back to a lit-up dining room.
