Advertisement Conflict Kitchen reopens while Pittsburgh police investigate threat Schenley Plaza kiosk restaurant in Oakland serves food from countries at odds with United States Share Shares Copy Link Copy

A restaurant in Schenley Plaza that serves food from countries at odds with the United States is open for business again while Pittsburgh police continue to investigate a threatening letter.The owner of Conflict Kitchen said the death threat was the first ever made against the restaurant. He declined to elaborate on it, but said he feels that his employees are safe now. Police were there Wednesday morning to check deliveries and monitor the area.VIDEO: Watch Jackie Schafer's reportConflict Kitchen was designed and run by artists hoping to start conversations with customers about countries in conflict with the U.S. Previous menus have included food from Afghanistan, North Korea, Iran, Cuba and Venezuela."The important thing to note is our project is about highlighting the voices of immigrant populations in Pittsburgh, as well as folks around the world who live in countries that the government is in conflict with, and we will continue to do that throughout our operation," Dawn Weleski said."We're excited to reopen. It's been amazing, the support we've gotten locally from the Pittsburgh community, and we really greatly appreciate it," Jon Rubin said.The takeout kiosk recently started serving Palestinian food and drew criticism from some, including the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, which said that Palestine wasn't in conflict with the U.S. and that the restaurant only presented Palestinian viewpoints on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.Conflict Kitchen criticized what it called "biased media and powerful political and lobbying groups" and said its mission is promoting understanding."We have demonstrated this in the past by presenting the food, culture, and viewpoints of Iranians, Afghans, Cubans, North Koreans, and Venezuelans," the eatery said in a blog post. "We believe that presenting the viewpoints of Palestinians promotes understanding of Palestinians."While Conflict Kitchen was closed, supporters posted dozens of positive notes and letters outside.Photos: Signs of support for Conflict Kitchen"I'm frustrated because it seems like people are just not understanding the mission," said a Pitt student who stopped by for lunch."It's unfortunate that a place that kind of encouraged hearing another side of the story is shut down," said another student.Students for Justice in Palestine at the University of Pittsburgh organized a sit-in rally outside Conflict Kitchen with signs showing their support."It's heartbreaking. There's no other word for it, especially as a Palestinian who has struggled with loss of identity," said the group's president, Hadeel Salameh. "I don't want to say it makes me afraid to be Palestinian, but it in a way inspires me to speak out more because I feel like I have to show locals this is what Palestine is about."