Michelle Maxson looks up and waves at her father each day as she walks into Henry’s Hoagies in downtown Greensburg.
A Hometown Hero banner, emblazoned with her father’s face, hangs from a light post at the top of Second Street — pointing toward the sandwich shop Michelle took ownership of earlier this month.
Maxson is buying the business from original owners Henry Johnson and Holly Hull, fulfilling the 51-year-old Greensburg native’s longtime dream of operating a sandwich shop.
The shop is home to one of several recent business developments in Westmoreland County — including a new owner at longtime Latrobe eatery Scotty G’s Pizzeria and the closure of the King’s Family Restaurant in Hempfield.
Henry’s Hoagies
Maxson has worked in a variety of businesses over the years —at PennDOT, the Montgomery Ward department store, Bobby Dale’s Restaurant & Lounge, and at a notary and an attorney’s office.
But for the past 35 years, food service has remained a constant.
“I always had other jobs in the evenings to help pay bills,” Maxson said. “It was always some type of food service — front of the line, back of the line, serving, bartending. I’ve just been everywhere.”
Her first restaurant job was at the former Lincoln Inn, a homestyle diner that sold hot sandwiches, soups, coleslaw and Southern fried chicken.
“That’s where I learned how to cook,” she said.
Most recently, she has helped her boyfriend, Zack Dreskler, operate DV8 Espresso Bar & Gallery in downtown Greensburg. Dreskler, 36, of Greensburg, purchased the coffee shop in 2022. It first opened in 2002.
When Maxson learned that Johnson and Hull were looking to sell the sandwich shop they opened in 2021, she jumped at the opportunity.
It closed for a few weeks in late December and early January before reopening Monday.
Maxson aims to make her own soups and side salads, switch to Boar’s Head deli meats, expand the bread options, offer more hot sandwich options and add coleslaw — the recipe she learned as a teenager at Lincoln Inn — to the menu.
“You can throw anything together,” she said, “but if it’s not with good intention, it’s probably not that good.”
Scotty G’s Pizzeria
The first time Scott Goodlin asked Stephanie Nolan to take over his 30-year-old pizzeria in downtown Latrobe, she thought he was joking.
“I said no,” Nolan, 34, of Latrobe, said with a laugh. “And then a week or two later, he was like ‘I don’t understand why you wouldn’t want to buy this restaurant. It’s great.’ ”
Nolan has worked at Scotty G’s Pizzeria, located on Ligonier Street, for about seven years. She started as a delivery driver before transitioning to other jobs in the restaurant. The Latrobe native stayed on part-time while working other full-time jobs, including as a therapist.
Looking to step away from managing the restaurant, Goodlin persuaded Nolan to take ownership of Scotty G’s. Goodlin told Nolan it will be a good business opportunity one day for her three sons.
“To be asked to take it over, it felt like a gift. I felt blessed,” Nolan said. “He could have just listed it in the paper for sale and anybody could have come in. I just feel lucky and honored to be able to take this over and grow it.”
Nolan has no plans to change the restaurant’s name or recipes, and Goodlin will continue making pizzas. She would like to introduce breakfast options over the summer and offer more specials to draw customers into the dining room.
“We have a dining room, but ever since covid, it’s been kind of slow,” she said. “We have been talking about doing spaghetti nights and wing nights and maybe half-off pizza specials.”
The restaurant also may update its storefront in the spring with the help of the Latrobe Community Revitalization Program, Nolan said.
“Owning a building in downtown Latrobe — it’s just a dream to be a part of the community in that way,” she said.
Kings Family Restaurant
Five years ago, Kings Family Restaurant had 14 locations throughout Western Pennsylvania.
Now, the chain is down to just two locations — in Armstrong County’s East Franklin and Venango County’s Sugarcreek, according to its website. The latest franchise to close was located along Route 30 in Hempfield.
A message indicating the Hempfield restaurant’s closure is posted on its message board. The restaurant’s owner, Kelly Companies, did not respond to multiple phone calls seeking comment.
The Hempfield restaurant was located on a property owned by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission. It was purchased during the construction of the Amos K. Hutchinson Bypass, according to turnpike spokesperson Crispin Havener.
The turnpike owns just two other properties housing businesses, Havener said — including at the intersection of Route 30 and Arona Road in North Huntingdon and along Rochester Road in Cranberry Township, Butler County. These properties were purchased for future turnpike projects, he said.
Kings founder Hartley King sold his 30 restaurants to San Diego-based Kelly Operations Group in 2015. Now under a new name, Kelly Companies, the owner maintains offices in San Diego and Pittsburgh, according to its website.
The Kings restaurant along Route 66 in Salem closed in April 2021 after more than three decades in operation. The chain was down to just five locations in February 2023 — one in Ohio and four in Western Pennsylvania.