Chinese restaurant to open alongside Billybob's

This month, Silk road Chinese Restaurant will open for business in what had been the seating area of Billybob's. Hungry students eager for a Billybob's cheesesteak at any hour of the day will now have to eat standing up, as the fast food restaurant's seating area will be transformed into a new Chinese restaurant by mid-February. Silk Road Chinese Restaurant will take over half of the Billybob's site at 40th and Spruce streets, according to De Wong, who co-owns Billybob's and the new restaurant with his partner, Hideo Omori. Wong and Omori also own the adjacent Japanese restaurant Genji. Billybob's has faced criticism from University officials who claim the establishment -- open until 4 a.m. on weekdays and operating 24 hours a day on weekends -- attracts criminal activity to the area. The building that houses Billybob's is owned by the Schoepe family, who also own the nearby University Laundry and University Pinball. The Schoepes are currently involved in a legal battle in federal court with the University over those properties. The family sued Penn and the city of Philadelphia last April, accusing them of illegally shutting down the 24-hour businesses. The University countersued, claiming the establishments attracted criminal activity. After the Schoepes filed the suit, the businesses reopened under a court order stipulating that they close between 2 a.m. and 8 a.m. each day. Wong said he is opening the restaurant in response to student demand for healthier Chinese food than is currently available. "Students told me that Chinese food has a lot of grease," Wong said. "We are going to make healthier food by cutting the MSG and using less grease, salt and oil." The new restaurant, which will also offer alcoholic beverages, will compete for business with Won Oriental Restaurant at 216 S. 40th Street, the Hong Kong Cafe on the 100 block of South 39th Street and Beijing at 3714 Spruce Street. "We are trying to make better food," Wong said. He stressed that Silk Road and Billybob's will remain separate from each other. A door connecting the two restaurants will only be opened in the case of an emergency, he added. The new restaurant -- which will also have seating space in Billybob's basement level, which had housed the now-defunct 40th Street Underground club -- will also have extended hours on weekends, closing at 2 a.m. But with this addition will come a loss. Because the new restaurant will encompass the entire seating area of Billybob's, Billybob's will become solely a take-out establishment. Penn Managing Director of Real Estate Tom Lussenhop would not comment on the new restaurant because the University does not own the property. Also, the Schoepes' attorney, Ron Shaffer, could not be reached for comment yesterday. Engineering sophomore Mark de la Vergne, who lives in an apartment above University Laundry, said he thinks the owners will not make as much money from the new restaurant as they did from Billybob's. "A 24-hour place to get American food is going to make more money than another sit-down Chinese restaurant," he said. "They will not make as much money if you can't sit [at Billybob's]."