DINING FEATURE
BY JARRETT WHITENER
“I’MREALLYAMAZED AT HOWMUCH THE TEXANS LOVE AGOOD CHEESESTEAK. I DIDN’T THINK ITWOULDBE THIS SUCCESSFUL. IT IS AMAZING, IT REALLY IS. WE TOOKA CHANCE AND IT TOOKOFF.” JAMES DELAURENTIS, OWNER
The cheesesteak comes with an option of chicken or steak with a choice of cheese options and onions.
The Italian Hoagie is one of the most popular hoagies at Youz Guyz.
James and Kathy DeLaurentis celebrated 15 years of owning Youz Guyz South Philly Cheesesteaks on May 5.
PHOTOS BY JARRETT WHITENER COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
Youz Guyz South Philly Cheesesteaks Universal City eatery serves up authentic, customizable sandwiches J ames and Kathy DeLaurentis opened Youz Guyz South Philly Cheesesteaks in 2008 with the desire to bring real Philly cheesesteaks to and rolls from New Jersey’s Liscio’s Bakery, which also supplies Geno’s, James said.
FEATURED SANDWICHES All cheesesteaks are made with Liscio’s Italian Rolls and the customer’s choice of cheese. Cheez Whiz and provolone are the most popular, but white American cheese is also available. 8” $9.99 10” $10.99
Cheesesteaks (chicken or beef) : comes with a choice of provolone cheese, white American cheese or Cheez Whiz, and cooked, raw or no onions Pizza steak: a cheesesteak topped with pizza sauce Grilled Italian hot sausage (10-inch only) : topped with bell peppers and onions Meatball Parmesan (10-inch only) : topped with provolone, marinara and meatballs
“Everything we use is authentic,” James said. “My meat and bread come from Philadelphia, and that makes the di erence. We want to give true, authentic cheesesteaks.” Customers can choose from a variety of cheeses, with Cheez Whiz and provolone being the most popular, James said. “The cheesesteak was invented in South Philly, and the most popular cheese in South Philly is Cheez Whiz,” James said. “So we have three cheeses that we use here: provolone, white Ameri- can and Cheez Whiz.” With ingredients sourced from the East Coast, the restaurant recently faced some challenges ordering products due to increases in gas and prices. “It is great that my product is authentic, but now I am paying the price for it,” James said. “I just got a delivery for 180 cases of rolls from Philadelphia, and the price of fuel is up. I want to stay authentic and have everything from Philadelphia, but I am starting to see an increase.” Despite these challenges, the couple wants to continue providing high-quality sandwiches and other foods that the community has come to enjoy. “We want to have one location, and that is here in Universal City,” James said. “We will just stay right here for as long as everybody keeps coming. We are going through some hardship now with in ation and with employees, but we are going to keep going.”
the San Antonio area. For James, the passion for sandwiches came from his time living in Philadelphia, where he served as a police o cer for 20 years. “We came [to San Antonio] to visit my cousin who moved here from Philly, and we never left,” he said. With that visit, the couple saw an opportunity to bring a beloved restaurant and food to the area. “Cheesesteaks in Philly and Jersey are like barbecue in Texas,” he said. “They are on every corner. I came here because there just aren’t that many cheesesteak shops here.” After 15 years of being in business, James said he is still impressed at the amount of local tra c they receive and how much the community enjoys the restaurant. “I’m really amazed at how much the Texans love a good cheesesteak,” James said. “I didn’t think it would be this successful. It is amazing, it really is. We took a chance and it took o .” James said he received training and learned to perfect his cheesesteaks with help from his godfa- ther, who owned one of the top-rated cheesesteak restaurants in the country. “My godfather, Joey Vento, was the owner of Geno’s Steaks, and he taught me everything I know,” he said. Youz Guyz aims to provide an authentic experi- ence with ingredients sourced from Philadelphia
Youz Guyz SouthPhilly Cheesesteaks 316 Pat Booker Road, Universal City 210-659-8930 www.youzguyzcheesesteaks.com Hours: Mon.-Thu. 11 a.m.-7 p.m., Fri. 11 a.m.-8 p.m., Sat. 11 a.m.-7 p.m., closed Sunday
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NORTHEAST SAN ANTONIO METROCOM EDITION • MAY 2022
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