Steak sandwiches specialty of new north-side restaurant

A Springfield man is bringing the Philly cheese steak to north Springfield. Roni Lewis is opening Philly's at 834 E. Division St., the former home of New York Pizzeria.

Lewis got the idea to open Philly's after driving by the empty building on his way to work as a bail bondsman.

"It came to me that Springfield doesn't have anything like this: a place to get real Philly steak sandwiches," he said. "The sandwich has steak that's lean, and cut real thin, with Philly sauce. The sauce is sweet and brings out the flavor of the meat. Then, if you want, you can have lettuce, green peppers, onion, tomato and American, Swiss or mozzarella cheese added."

The sandwich comes on a hoagie bun.

The menu also offers a catfish basket, a veggie sandwich and the buddy burger, something Lewis invented himself. No item on the menu costs more than $5.

The 1,200-square-foot restaurant seats 35 and there are three additional tables outside.

Lewis took possession of the building about two months ago and has been remodeling with Manager William Scott. Lewis plans on hiring three more people to operate the restaurant.

Joe and Rosa Barone, whose sons Paul and Kevin ran the New York Pizzeria, own the building.

The Barones moved New York Pizzeria to 2710 S. Campbell Ave. and closed the Division Street location.

"We closed it because we didn't want to spread ourselves too thin," Paul Barone said. "We wanted to be able to focus on one location and keep it strong."

Galen Pellham and daughter Melanie, Realtors with CJR Commercial Group, are the leasing agents for the East Division Street property. Pellham believes Lewis will do well on east Division.

"There are very few restaurants in the area," Pellham said. "It's near Cox, Drury, (Ozarks Technical Community College) and the Assembly of God headquarters."

Lewis said his goal is to have the restaurant open by Memorial Day weekend. Philly's hours will be 11 a.m.-1 a.m. Monday through Friday, and noon-10 p.m. Saturday.