Funeral services and a wake will be held on Saturday, Nov. 30, for Chef Ria Pell. The service will be at noon at Westview Cemetery, with the wake immediately afterwards at Pell’s beloved restaurant Ria’s Bluebird, 421 Memorial Dr. Guests are being encouraged to wear “formal rockabilly and queer attire” and a procession of hot rods will depart from Bluebird at 9:30 a.m. for Westview.
A notice on the Bluebird’s Facebook page said Pell was found Sunday afternoon in her Grant Park home. The cause of death has been determined as an undetected enlarged heart.
Ria’s Bluebird is opening this morning at 9 a.m. and will serve customers until the food runs out. The restaurant will then close until Dec. 3. “On December 3rd Ria’s Bluebird will reopen with the same integrity you’ve come to know and respect. As always… No substitutions.”