GHP creates unique homemade foods
Submitted
Staci Johnson has worked in food service since she was 15 years old.
She’s managed restaurants, and loved everything about it: cooking, baking and creating unique homemade dishes that family and friends raved about.
“I worked for Subway for about eight or nine years, and I always wanted to own my own shop,” Johnson said. “My husband used to tell me to stop putting in 80 hours a week for someone else.”
He told Johnson she needed a restaurant of her own, and put money on her ability to succeed. He took out funds from his retirement, and they began looking for a location.
As luck would have it, Johnson drove past the old Subway in Uniontown, the one she began working in back in high school.
“The landlord remembered me and was willing to let me rent the building,” Johnson said. “Besides, it was the perfect set up for what I wanted to do.”
Now, the only decision left was to create a menu.
“Years ago, I used to make homemade pierogies for Lent at a place I worked for, and we’d always sell out. My husband likes gyros, and we’d drive into Pittsburgh to get those. We thought, why don’t we do those two, they’re something Uniontown doesn’t have,” Johnson said.
Pierogies are polish dumplings, filled with meat, vegetables or fruit and then boiled or fried or both. Gyros are unique too; a Greek dish served in a pita full of meat and vegetables with a creamy sauce. Hoagies, of course, are the closest to Johnson’s sandwich making history.
Gyros, Hoagies and Pierogies (GHP) was launched in August 2023. In addition to the brick and mortar location at 524 Morgantown Road, Uniontown, Johnson and her husband took their food on the road. They added events and festivals to let the public know what they had to offer.
“I run a special every day. It might be a turkey dinner one day and meatloaf the next,” Johnson said. “We offer catering too. We do full meals like rigatoni, fried chicken, salads – a full line of catering options.”
Johnson hopes to purchase a food truck to reach more customers at the annual celebrations in the community, and she would also like to expand her baking line.
Over the years, she’s learned how to decorate cakes and at Christmas time, the cookie trays sold at GHP create a line out the door. They’ve even considered a dine-in, breakfast, lunch and dinner concept.
“I love it. I love to cook and the busier I am, it makes me feel motivated,” Johnson said. “A lot of people like homemade cooking and I have people just calling to tell me how good the food is. (It’s) so cool to get a phone call because someone wants to tell you our food reminds them of their grandma’s or that they hope we never go out of business.”
GHP is open Monday through Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Follow them on Facebook for daily specials updates.