Co-Owner Of Popular Pittsburgh Restaurant Chain Dies

PITTSBURGH, PA —The co-owner of one of Pittsburgh's most popular diner chains has died.

Gail Klingensmith, who co-ran the P&G Pamela's Diner chain with locations in the Strip District, Shadyside and Mt. Lebanon, passed away on Tuesday.

Her death was announced on Pamela's Facebook page by her longtime business partner, Pam Cohen.

"Today, I lost my business partner, best friend and my 'sister.' Gail was the soul of P&G Pamelas diners," Cohen wrote.

"She was the one the employees loved. She was the one most of you loved. We would often tease her 'everybody loves Gail. It would make her mad but it was the truth.

"I will miss my soulmate everyday until the day I die . We started the diners together 46 years ago , a lot of hard dirty work for many years but we did it together so it could be fun.

"Our number one rule,when we disagreed,was to defer to the other if it was important to them. Nothing was more important than our friendship. We made one complete business woman together. I would hide in the kitchen and she was the charm and personality. 'Everybody loves Gail!'…and so do I."

So popular is the P&G Pamela's Diner chain in Pittsburgh that Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, had pancakes at the Strip District location during his 2008 presidential campaign.

The Obamas enjoyed their food so much that they invited Klingensmith and Cohen to the White House to prepare their famous pancakes for a Memorial Day breakfast in 2009.

Funeral arrangements were not immediately available.