Alvin Gonzalez was a corporate pilot on a mission to find the best Philly cheesesteak. He discovered the only way to do that was to open his own restaurant in North
Aurora
and make his own sandwiches.
“I flew to Philly and Delaware for 20 years. A lot of it just tasted dry, no meat flavor. Like they expect to get the flavors from the cheese,” Gonzalez said.
By using fresh steak every morning and marinating the meat and using only Amaroso’s Rolls from Philadelphia, Gonzalez feels he’s perfected the Philly cheesesteak sandwich.
And while “cheesesteaks” is in the name, Bruno’s sells other items, too. “We specialize in cheesesteaks but people are not eating cheesesteaks every day of the week,” Gonzalez said. “They come in three to four times a week and they come in because we have a lot of things to offer. One day they might have a cheesesteak, which is 70 percent of our business, then a burrito, or a hot dog.”
Each of the seven varieties of the eight-inch cheesesteak sandwiches uses a half-pound of steak and customers can add even more steak for $2.99. His personal favorite is the Philly South cheesesteak with grilled onions, mushrooms and cheese sauce: “There is no better sandwich.”
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About the owners: Bruno’s Philly Cheesesteaks opened in 2016. Bruno is the name of a family member on Deliana Gonzalez’s side of the family, who came from Italy to Nicaragua. Her husband Alvin and son Alvin Jr. thought “Bruno” made a good name for the restaurant. “We put all our expertise in the restaurant business,” Gonzalez said. “When I was in flight school I managed a lot of restaurants. I left the business but I always had this idea.”
Philosophy: “Each one of us has a responsibility,” Gonzalez said, adding that he runs product development, his sister in law manages ordering and the kitchen, his wife oversees quality control and his son handles customer service. “We get together and create new ideas. We encourage suggestions from customers. We have very deep connections to the area and we ask them what they want to see on the menu. Listen to your customers and give them what they want.” Gonzalez said his family hopes to open more locations and is looking in Naperville for “another good location.”
What makes us different: “The quality of products that we serve is superior to what’s out there. It’s not the same bread and steak. All those things make a difference,” Gonzalez said.
Prices: Cheesesteaks from $8.49-$9.49. Sandwiches and salads from $2.99-$6.79. Sides from $1.29-$5.99. Burritos and wraps from $6.49-$7.49. Kids’ meals are $4.99. Desserts from 99 cents-$4.49.
Logistics: Bruno’s Philly Cheesesteaks is at 17 S. Lincolnway St., North Aurora. Hours are 10:30 a.m.-8 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays, 10:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Fridays, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturdays, and 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Sundays. Call 331-301-5574 or go to facebook.com/brunoscheesesteaks/.
Shonda Talerico Dudlicek is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.