Justin Stull aims to provide a new breakfast and lunch option to residents of Penn Township’s Harrison City neighborhood.

Stull, 42, of Delmont, opened Cafe Somore on March 3 in a building along Walnut Street that formerly housed Hometown Pizzeria & Eatery and Aiello’s Pizzeria. He considered following in the footsteps of the previous business owners, opening a six pack and pizza shop.

“There’s so many pizza shops in the vicinity of this location that we decided not to do that,” he said.

The cafe’s menu offers a variety of breakfast and lunch options, but it’s best sellers are cinnamon rolls, eggs al forno (baked) and zucchini bread french toast, Stull said.

Almost every menu item is made from scratch, Stull said, except for the buns used for the hamburger and chicken sandwiches. He prioritizes local ingredients, such as eggs from Musser’s Farm Market in Salem, and tries to avoid cooking with seed oils — opting for alternatives such as beef tallow, clarified butter and rendered bacon fat.

“The food tastes better with the flavorings of the beef and the pork,” he said. “It just makes things better.”

After graduating from Jeannette Senior High School in 2002, Stull earned a culinary degree from Westmoreland County Community College. He moved to Erie County in 2005 to work for PennWest Edinboro’s food service group, a job he maintained until 2021.

Stull earned additional culinary experience as the executive sous chef of Cork 1794 — a high-end restaurant in Millcreek — and as a co-owner and chef for North Row Philly Steak Shop and Bricks American Steakhouse.

He decided to move back to Westmoreland County to spend more time with aging relatives and his hometown friends, particularly after the death of friend and former Jeannette classmate TJ Detruf.

Detruf, an assistant football coach for Penn-Trafford, died suddenly in July.

The community has welcomed Cafe Somore with open arms, Stull said.

“I’m not used to having the community so welcoming. Erie was not that welcoming. It’s different down here in the country,” he said. “It’s more communal down here.”

Cafe Somore, located at 1002 Walnut Street, is open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. For more information, visit cafesomore.com.