Feb. 8—A small hoagie shop in Lackawanna County 140 miles north of Philadelphia makes a bold claim regarding its Philly cheesesteaks. "The ones Philly tries to copy," Steve and Irene's Hoagies, at 1110 Business Route 6 in Mayfield, declares on its website, with 'attytood' worthy of the steak sandwich.

Philly cheesesteaks have been Steve and Irene's bread-and-butter since the shop opened in 1976, said Katie Yerke, who has co-owned it for the past 20 years.

"We pump out a lot of steak and cheese. That's our top seller, for sure," Yerke said. "It's been the top seller since 1976. Italian hoagies are second."

And with the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl, many football fans will fatten up on game day with their "phavorite" Philly cheesesteaks from Steve and Irene's.

The Mayfield shop that operates 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays will open on Super Bowl Sunday. Yerke expects a hoagie blitz.

"It's the only Sunday of the year we're open so there's a lot of hype. Orders start coming in up to a month in advance," Yerke said. "Anytime there's a Pennsylvania team, too, in the Super Bowl, we see a boost. And especially if it's the Eagles."

Cheesesteaks in Philly characteristically ooze with Cheez Whiz. Some "Phillyphiles" insist that a Philly or Philly-style cheesesteak hoagie without Whiz does not deserve the name.

Not so, Yerke said. Steve and Irene's offers Whiz, if requested, and uses it in various cheesesteak varieties. But the default cheese topping at the Mayfield mainstay for Philly cheesesteaks is American cheese, she said. They've got provolone, mozzarella and Swiss, too.

The original owners started with about six hoagie varieties, one of which was a Philly cheesesteak. The shop still serves that original variety called The Special, which is topped with fresh green Bell peppers, fried onions, mushrooms and marinara.

The cheesesteak whizzes at Steve and Irene's, which has 25 employees, cook up nearly two-dozen other varieties. They include: the Quad Bypass (capicola ham, bacon, Texas sauce, fries and ketchup); California (lettuce, tomato, mayo); Pittsburgh (French fries and spicy ranch); Archbald Pothole (double meat, cheese, bacon, French fries, mozzarella sticks, Pitt sauce); Childs (onion rings and spicy ranch); Throop (mozzarella sticks and marinara); Krakow (pierogies, Whiz, cheese and gravy); Polish (potato pancakes and sour cream); and Polish Falcon (pierogies, fried onions and sour cream).

"We create crazy cheesesteaks and that's another thing people love about us," Yerke said. "All of our cheesesteaks are tested. We take it very seriously."

The shop since its opening has served hoagie rolls from National Bakery in Scranton, she said.

During a shift Tuesday, steam rose off a hot, flat slab of grilltop from steak, onions and peppers as cook Carl Conrad chopped and flipped the ingredients before placing the finished product onto a splayed-open hoagie roll. He loves slinging cheesesteaks.

"This is my favorite position, actually," Conrad said.

Not a typical sit-down eatery, Steve and Irene's mostly sells takeouts and delivers but has a few small tables.

There never actually was a "Steve and Irene" who opened or owned the shop, Yerke said. The original owners were "Tom" and "Sue" who picked the name "Steve and Irene's" because they had signs from family members' pizzeria by that name elsewhere in Pennsylvania.

Yerke's brother, Austin, and a friend bought the shop around 1993 when they were both 18 years old, Yerke said. Austin became sole owner about four years later, and had the shop for another six years.

Katie, who was 11 years old when her brother bought it, partly grew up in the shop — helping, working and learning about the business firsthand.

When her brother decided to sell, Katie and Steve Archer, her former husband, took it over and they have co-owned it ever since.

Given that Archer's name is Steve, "A lot of people think that we are 'Steve and Irene,'" Yerke said. "People call me 'Irene.' And if I'm here and I've got a huge crowd of people and they're like, 'Hey, Irene,' I just say hi (back). I just go with it. My mother calls me Irene," Yerke said with a laugh.

Prior to buying the shop, Katie and Steve both had backgrounds in hotel-restaurant management.

"Fast forward 20 years and here we are," Yerke said. "It's great. It's been good to us and we've grown it significantly. I love it. I can't imagine doing anything else."

emailto:Contact the writer: jlockwood@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5185; @jlockwoodTT on Twitter.