Staci Johnson has been working in the restaurant industry since she was 15.

She managed restaurants and loved everything about it: cooking, baking, and creating unique homemade dishes that family and friends raved about.

“I worked at Subway for about eight or nine years and always wanted to own my own business,” Johnson said. “My husband always told me to stop working 80 hours a week for someone else.”

He told Johnson she needed her own restaurant and was confident she would succeed. He took money from his retirement fund and they began looking for a location.

As luck would have it, Johnson drove past the old subway in Uniontown, where she had worked during her school days.

“The landlord remembered me and was willing to let me rent the building,” Johnson said. “Plus, it was the perfect environment for what I wanted to do.”

Now all that was left to do was decide to create a menu.

“Years ago, I made homemade pierogi for Lent at a store I worked at, and we always sold out. My husband likes gyros, and we would drive to Pittsburgh to get those. We thought, why don’t we make these two, they’re something that doesn’t exist in Uniontown,” Johnson said.

Pierogies are Polish dumplings filled with meat, vegetables or fruit and then boiled or fried or both. Gyros are also unique; a Greek dish served in a pita bread with meat and vegetables and a creamy sauce. Hoagies are, of course, most closely associated with Johnson’s sandwich history.

Gyros, Hoagies and Pierogies (GHP) opened in August 2023. In addition to the brick-and-mortar store at 524 Morgantown Road, Uniontown, Johnson and her husband also took their food on the road, hosting events and festivals to raise awareness of their offerings.

“I offer a special every day. One day it might be turkey and the next it might be meatloaf,” Johnson said. “We also offer catering. We do complete meals like rigatoni, chicken, salads – a full range of catering options.”

Johnson hopes to purchase a food truck to reach more customers during the community’s annual celebrations and expand her baking offerings.

Over the years, she’s learned how to decorate cakes, and at Christmastime, people line up for the platters of cookies sold at GHP. They’ve even considered opening a breakfast, lunch and dinner concept at the restaurant.

“I love it. I love cooking and the more I have to do, the more motivated I feel,” Johnson said. “A lot of people like to cook for themselves and some people just call me to tell me how good the food is. (It’s) so cool to get a call because someone wants to tell you that our food reminds them of their grandmother’s or that they hope we never go bankrupt.”

GHP is open Monday to Saturday from 10:30am to 7pm. Follow them on Facebook to receive daily special offers.