He brought a taste of Philly to the MS Coast. Now this favorite local eatery is closing.
A favorite Mississippi Coast restaurant that opened soon after Hurricane Katrina is closing Sept. 8.
Because of the overwhelming response from his customers, eager for one last taste of his cheesesteaks, the restaurant will be closed Thursday to prepare for the final day.
A sign in front of Tony Nelson’s King of Philly Cheese Steaks restaurant on Pass Road in Gulfport announces the closing.
The restaurant opened in 2006 and for 17 years has served Philly cheesesteaks and other hoagies to South Mississippi, along with burgers, salads and sides.
Tony Nelson is a native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where cheesesteak is king. Just as they do in Philly, he chops the steak while he grills, caramelizes the onions and serves the steak with creamy cole slaw.
“I was in the military for 22 years and retired,” Nelson told the Sun Herald after he opened. “In all those years, I never got a cheesesteak like I did back in Philly. I told myself, ‘If I can get South Mississippi eating cheesesteaks, they’ll love it.’”
Nelson said he struggled with the decision to close, but labor issues and food costs have made it difficult to stay in business.
“The labor force is just terrible right now,” he said, and food costs have soared.
A case of French fries that used to cost $26 now is $61, he said, and he isn’t comfortable charging customers $4 or $5 for a helping of fries.
The restaurant will close, but Nelson said he will still be cooking for the Coast.
He’s got a Philly cheesesteak outlet he subleases at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College in Gautier. He also has provided the food service at the Gulf Coast Research Lab in Ocean Springs for the last seven years and meals for the Air National Guard in Gulfport.
“Most people don’t know I cater,” he said, and it’s not sandwiches but full meals.
“We’re going to really expand our catering,” he said, and he plans to offer meal prep as well.
Nelson said he bought another building near his restaurant and will get creative in how he moves forward,
“Next year we may do cheesesteaks out of the new building,” he said, but more as a pop-up restaurant with pre-order so he knows how much food to order and cook.
Customers responded to the Facebook post announcing the closing, saying the restaurant has an awesome staff and lately had been closed at night.
“Gonna miss them for sure,” one person said.
