A Philly-style cheesesteak joint is taking root on Santa Fe Drive, where co-founders Chris Sempeles and Kyle Pellman are turning a building in the Art District into both a restaurant and a commissary kitchen. The business, now called Jawnie's Cheesesteak Co., was then aiming for a spring 2026 opening, with a menu built around cheez whiz, hoagie rolls and a $16, nine-inch Philly cheesesteak.
The name is new. As The Denver Post reported, Sempeles and two friends purchased the building at 674 Santa Fe Drive earlier in October 2025 for $690,000, according to public records. At the time, the business went by Guilty Pleasures Grub, but it has since changed its name in advance of the restaurant's opening. Jawnie's Cheesesteak Co. describes its sandwiches as authentic Colorado cheesesteaks.
From a Food Truck Rental Side Hustle to a Brick-and-Mortar Build
Sempeles, 37, and childhood friend Kyle Pellman launched a food truck rental business in 2019 and have spent the past six years running it under the name ProtoTaste. The venture has been modest but steady: the station's report noted that the company's single food truck took in $50,000 from 10 different users in 2024, nine of whom rented more than once. That side business is what put Sempeles in position to take on a sit-down restaurant and commissary kitchen at once.
The project involves permits and a restaurant build-out. Per the original Denver Post report, the project had carried a $250,000 buildout budget as the owners aimed for a spring 2026 opening.
A Menu Built on Pennsylvania Roots
Sempeles traces his cheesesteak obsession back several generations. He is from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and has said his great grandfather came over, started a restaurant back in Harrisburg, and then his grandfather had a diner. That family history shows up in the sourcing: Jawnie's uses bread from a local baker with Pennsylvania roots, pairing it with cheez whiz shipped in from back east for the signature sandwich.
At the time, the full menu was still being determined, with plans for a $16, nine-inch cheesesteak.
Grab-and-Go Design Meets Late-Night Hours
Jawnie's is planned to offer late-night grab-and-go service through an alleyway. Per the restaurant's plans, Jawnie's will open at 11 a.m. Wednesday through Sunday and close at 9 p.m. most of those nights, staying open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.
That kind of after-dark availability would put Jawnie's in company with a scattered but real late-night dining scene around Denver. Visit Denver notes there is a surprisingly diverse late-night food scene in the city, spanning tacos, pizza, burgers and Chinese food, though hours can change and many restaurants extend them only on weekends. Spots like Gaia Masala & Burger stay open until 3 a.m. every night in LoDo and Capitol Hill, while a South Broadway pizzeria serves slices and 19-inch pies until 3 a.m. seven nights a week — a reminder that true late-night options in Denver still tend to be the exception rather than the rule.
Commissary Kitchen and a Food Truck Still Running
While the storefront build continues, Jawnie's cheesesteaks are already available from a food truck parked outside Meier Skis on South Broadway, where the business operates during dinner in the latter half of the week. The company previously rented out its food truck to other vendors, an earlier part of the ProtoTaste model that built Sempeles and Pellman's track record.
Once the Santa Fe Drive building is finished, the property is slated to include a commissary kitchen.
