Hoss's Steak and Sea House
Encyclopedia
Hoss's Family Steak and Sea (commonly known as Hoss's) is a restaurant chain based in Duncansville, Pennsylvania
.
, and later another one in Johnstown
. Western Sizzlin' was a cafteria-style steakhouse. However, Campbell wanted to design a new concept, eliminating the cafeteria tray and allowing customers to place their orders at the counter and receiving full service. He wanted to diversify the menus to appeal to families and become more health-conscious, doing away with red meat. Therefore, he added seafood and a salad bar to the mix. He opened the first Hoss's at the end of 1983 in Dubois, Pennsylvania
. In the beginning, only this restaurant and a second Hoss's followed this concept. He then converted his Western Sizzlin' restaurants to the Hoss's format and the chain began opening 3 to 4 new restaurants a year, growing to 21 by 1988 and 32 by 1994. Today, Campbell still serves as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Hoss's Steak and Sea House.
Today, Hoss's can be found in 40 locations; thirty-eight in Pennsylvania
, and two in West Virginia
.
The chain previously had a restaurant in Winchester, Virginia
, but it closed in 2007.
The restaurants feature a variety of cuts of beef
, seafood dishes, and chicken
dishes. Vegetable
side dishes are served, and a soup bar, salad bar
, and dessert bars are also available and included with all dinner entrees.
and brick
. Walls are decorated with antique American
advertisements and objects, especially those local to the area the restaurant is located in. The restaurants also typically feature a stone
fireplace
, usually lit during the evenings. Lighting is provided to each table by a makeshift chandelier
made from a wagonwheel and several electric candles.
Duncansville, Pennsylvania
Duncansville is a borough in Blair County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Altoona, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area. Duncansville is one of the communities that comprises the Altoona Urban Area...
.
History
The restaurant chain began in 1983 and was founded by Willard E. Campbell, who was a former Western Sizzlin' steakhouse franchisee with a restaurant in Duncansville, PennsylvaniaDuncansville, Pennsylvania
Duncansville is a borough in Blair County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Altoona, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area. Duncansville is one of the communities that comprises the Altoona Urban Area...
, and later another one in Johnstown
Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Johnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States, west-southwest of Altoona, Pennsylvania and east of Pittsburgh. The population was 20,978 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Cambria County...
. Western Sizzlin' was a cafteria-style steakhouse. However, Campbell wanted to design a new concept, eliminating the cafeteria tray and allowing customers to place their orders at the counter and receiving full service. He wanted to diversify the menus to appeal to families and become more health-conscious, doing away with red meat. Therefore, he added seafood and a salad bar to the mix. He opened the first Hoss's at the end of 1983 in Dubois, Pennsylvania
DuBois, Pennsylvania
DuBois is a city in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, northeast of Pittsburgh. It is the principal city in the DuBois, Pa Micropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
. In the beginning, only this restaurant and a second Hoss's followed this concept. He then converted his Western Sizzlin' restaurants to the Hoss's format and the chain began opening 3 to 4 new restaurants a year, growing to 21 by 1988 and 32 by 1994. Today, Campbell still serves as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Hoss's Steak and Sea House.
Today, Hoss's can be found in 40 locations; thirty-eight in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, and two in West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
.
The chain previously had a restaurant in Winchester, Virginia
Winchester, Virginia
Winchester is an independent city located in the northwestern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the USA. The city's population was 26,203 according to the 2010 Census...
, but it closed in 2007.
Menu and ordering
Unlike a typical restaurant, where orders are taken by a waiter at a table, orders are taken by greeters using computers at the entrance. A greeter than takes the party to their table while the kitchen begins to prepare meals and the waiters and waitresses get drinks.The restaurants feature a variety of cuts of beef
Beef
Beef is the culinary name for meat from bovines, especially domestic cattle. Beef can be harvested from cows, bulls, heifers or steers. It is one of the principal meats used in the cuisine of the Middle East , Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Europe and the United States, and is also important in...
, seafood dishes, and chicken
Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
dishes. Vegetable
Vegetable
The noun vegetable usually means an edible plant or part of a plant other than a sweet fruit or seed. This typically means the leaf, stem, or root of a plant....
side dishes are served, and a soup bar, salad bar
Salad bar
A salad bar is a buffet-style table or counter at a restaurant or food market on which salad components are provided for customers to assemble their own salad plates...
, and dessert bars are also available and included with all dinner entrees.
Design
The interior of a typical building is mostly exposed woodWood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
and brick
Brick
A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
. Walls are decorated with antique American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
advertisements and objects, especially those local to the area the restaurant is located in. The restaurants also typically feature a stone
Rock (geology)
In geology, rock or stone is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...
fireplace
Fireplace
A fireplace is an architectural structure to contain a fire for heating and, especially historically, for cooking. A fire is contained in a firebox or firepit; a chimney or other flue allows gas and particulate exhaust to escape...
, usually lit during the evenings. Lighting is provided to each table by a makeshift chandelier
Chandelier
A chandelier is a branched decorative ceiling-mounted light fixture with two or more arms bearing lights. Chandeliers are often ornate, containing dozens of lamps and complex arrays of glass or crystal prisms to illuminate a room with refracted light...
made from a wagonwheel and several electric candles.