EVANS City — Chef Scott Hammond likes to “push the envelope” with his cooking, but don't be intimidated. Hammond and his co-chef, Patrick Sellner, pride themselves in cooking homemade, affordable meals for the community they love.

Both men bring a history of running restaurants to their work serving meals at the Evans City VFW Post 499. And while an almond croquette with a spun sugar dome is well within their capabilities, the pair will focus on simple, fresh favorites in this new endeavor.

From the kitchen at 408 N. Washington St., Hammond, 40, of Portersville and Sellner, 53, of Shaler serve VFW members and nonmembers Wednesday through Saturday. Hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

“It's a lot of just real good sandwiches, and we run nice dinner specials every night,” Hammond said. “Nothing too extravagant.”

Most meals are served in the no-smoking dining room at the back of the VFW, but members have the option to sit at the bar instead.

Current dinner specials include meatloaf, stuffed pork, fish and prime rib.

“We make virtually everything on our menu in-house,” Sellner said. “We get nothing pre-cooked or pre-made. It's made here. It's all homemade.”

Sellner and Hammond are the only cooks in this kitchen, making everything from the menu they created. Hammond said they designed their menu with the community's tastes in mind. Since opening around Valentine's Day, they've added and removed items based on suggestions from their customers.

“The specials we run in the early evening are the biggest thing and that's what people come for,” Hammond said. “They love to have nice sandwiches and things at the bar, but they come for the dinner specials. We have one that's set in stone for every night of the week, until we change them around.”

Hammond previously ran the Stone Soup Cafe on Main Street in Evans City. He was also a chef at Domenico's Ristorante in Cranberry Township for nine years and a chef in Portland, Maine, and Cape Cod, Mass.

He said working in New England gave him an appreciation for seafood.

“I have a passion for great fish,” Hammond said. “Something that we really strive for here is to make sure that we can serve the best piece of fish that I would like to say you're going to get anywhere.”

And with generous portions and a secret-recipe batter from Sellner's previous restaurant in Ford City, the Friday fish special at the VFW really might have patrons wishing for Lent all year round.

Sellner said he entered the food service business in 1977. An Army veteran of the 172nd Infantry Brigade in Alaska from 1980 to 1990, he even earned a bronze medal in cold buffet desserts in an all-Army competition.

Sellner and Hammond met while working together for John Marshall Catering on Route 8. When Hammond was approached in December about working at Post 499, he said Sellner was the first person he thought of to help him tackle the project.

“I thought he would be someone I could trust because we had worked that way together,” Hammond said. “It's pretty neat because we're comfortable with each other that this business will run the way it's supposed to. I feel like we have something special in this little town.”

That trust helped the pair navigate a crash introduction to the VFW. Hammond and Sellner said they still aren't sure who first invited them to take over Post 499's kitchen.

“I got a random phone call and that's about the best way I can put it because I don't know who called me,” Hammond said. “I was told if I have any interest in opening the kitchen up down here, to come down on Jan. 20 and bring a proposal to the board at 7 o'clock.”

Sellner said he and Hammond put their proposal together in two weeks. They anticipated it would take another few weeks for the VFW board members to make a decision, but their proposal was instead approved in minutes.

“Two days later, we were in here cleaning the kitchen,” Hammond said, adding the quick turnaround has been a welcome adventure.

“It came around very nicely. We've had a lot of friends and people that gave us a hand in the very beginning to make sure that we had everything we need, which was fantastic,” Hammond said. “That actually is what made it possible.”

Hammond said the reception he and Sellner have received from the people of Evans City and Post 499 is encouraging.

“There's a lot of great people in this town,” Hammond said. “If you do them right, they support you in a way that you'll never find anywhere else. I loved that before and now it's coming to us here, which is great.”

About 80 percent of their business comes from customers sitting down to eat at the VFW, but Sellner said they also offer takeout services. They might even expand to include delivery in the future.

“We're trying to keep prices in line with the community,” Sellner said. “We don't want to overcharge. We want to keep things within people's budgets.”

Bar manager Tina Eyth of Connoquenessing said she's noticed an increase in business since Hammond and Sellner began cooking.

“Our members frequent the place more often now,” Eyth said. “We had a kitchen staff prior, but it was all part of our organization. That was about four years ago.”

In addition to providing a venue and supplying snacks and drinks for customers, Hammond said VFW members and regulars have been quick to help at the restaurant whenever a table needs bussed or something needs fixed.

“We came in here with a lot of uncertainty and, to see that, was very settling. That in itself was acceptance,” Hammond said.

Eyth said she hopes having the chefs on-hand will open more opportunities for functions at the VFW.

“I'm hoping that it just keeps getting better,” Eyth said.

As for Hammond and Sellner, they said they hope to continue dishing out lunch and dinner at Post 499 for years to come.