A Sandwich Quest to Cleavers Cheesesteaks in Center City

On a recent Sandwich Quest we visited Cleavers, a new cheesesteak shop a few blocks from Rittenhouse Square. According to Philly Insider, the four partners come from families who run a meat manufacturing company and have been in the restaurant business for years. Sounds like the fearsome foursome of cheesesteak creators!

Cleavers is a classic, made-to-order cheesesteak shop that uses prime USDA ribeye (most use a lower grade beef) that is neither sliced nor chopped to bits, but a sort of combo of the two. You'll be hard pressed to find a cheesesteak with more meat, except maybe Ray's in Lansdale. It's truly a monster that deserves kudos considering far too many shops skimp on the meat.

Overall, it's a high-quality cheesesteak, but still has room to improve as the meat was a bit stiff and the fried onions did not add enough of a sweet, caramelized flavor.  While it's nice to have an above average cheesesteak option in Center City, we'll continue to suggest John's Roast Pork and Spot Burger as our two favorite cheesesteaks.

As an aside, the Parmesan waffle fries were a hit, served in a hefty portion for only $4. The rest of Cleavers' menu includes a variety of more creative cheesesteaks, chicken sandwiches and veggie options, a variety of fries and other fried sides.

*Kid friendly? Yes fine for kids, ours ran around and made a mess!

Cheesesteak with ll fried onions from @cleaversphilly, the new cheesesteak joint on 18th Street in former Good Stuff Eatery. Hearty serving of meat and cheese served piping hot on a good roll. Onions missing a punch but Cleavers still a good addition for Center City. Also big selection of bottled beers!

A photo posted by 22nd&Philly (@22ndandphilly) on May 21, 2016 at 2:17pm PDT

Burger Grease: the Key to One of Philly's Best Cheesesteaks?

John's, Dalessandro's, Pat's, Joe's Steaks... Spot Burgers?

Yes, that's right. One of Philadelphia's best burger trucks also serves up one of the best cheesesteaks in town today. Philly Mag gave Spot Burgers a Best of Philly cheesesteak honor in 2014 and we could not agree more.

The sandwich is packed with a 1/2 lb of roughly chopped, seasoned rib eye inside a long, soft and chewy roll from Conshohocken Italian Bakery. Some might prefer a denser roll, but the softness here enables clean bites and soaks in the cheesesteak juice. We recommend ordering with American cheese and grilled onions.

Spot Burgers' secret ingredient in our minds is burger grease. Firing up the cheesesteaks on the same flat top as some of Philly's best burgers adds the slightest burger flavor you don't get at other dedicated cheesesteak shops. The inaugural bite of our Spot cheesesteak was one of the few "wow" food moments we've had in a while. And it stayed that good until the last bite. Gotta love that such mighty flavor comes out of the tiniest yellow box on wheels.

Spot Burger is looking to open a permanent joint with the help of a GoFundMe campaign so here's hoping they continue to serve up this cheesesteak! For now, follow Spot Burgers on Twitter or Facebook to know where they're headed next.

Cheesesteak from @spotburgers. Delicious and one of the best we've had. The flavor from the burger grease is a real kicker. This is the final #perfectbite.

A photo posted by 22nd&Philly (@22ndandphilly) on May 9, 2015 at 10:35am PDT

The Best Cheesesteak in Reading Terminal Market

Is the best cheesesteak in Reading Terminal Market not really a cheesesteak, or even a sandwich? It is if you ask me.

Regular on the left, chicken cheesesteak on the right.

The cheesesteak-stuffed pretzel from Pennsylvania dutch vendor Miller’s Twist is one of my favorite bites in all of Reading Terminal Market and something you have to try at least once. The cheesesteak devil on my shoulder tells me to get one on every visit to RTM, even if I've already had another sandwich.

Combing two of Philadelphia's most popular foods, the salted, buttery soft pretzel is pulled directly out of the oven and filled with a hearty serving of steak and cheese. Served all warm n' gooey, it is like heaven on earth. And at $4.50, it's a good deal, too. Miller's Twist also stuffs its homemade pretzels with chicken cheesesteak, sausage and broccoli rabe, ham and cheese, and hot dogs.

Shank's Chicken Cutlet Italiano: The Halladay of Sandwiches?

In 2010, WIP host Glen Macnow named the Chicken Cutlet Italiano at Shank's Pier 40 the best hot sandwich in Philly.

Three years later is today's version still like Roy Halladay in his prime or more like the aging 36-year-old pitcher losing his reign? That's what we wanted to answer on a recent visit to Shank's.

Some background in case you're not familiar with Macnow's famous food hunts. Each year, the radio host picks a category, like hot sandwiches, and embarks on an exhaustive search across the Greater Philadelphia region, trying as many as 50 different places to find the best. The contest makes for great radio as Macnow reports on where he's been and callers debate their favorites.

Past winners have included Rossi's Bar & Grill (burgers), Fat Jack's (ribs), Tacconelli's (pizza), John's Roast Pork (cheesesteaks) and Paesano's (hoagies).

Macnow is a good beacon for what the average person looks for in sandwiches. He's not a self-professed culinary connoisseur or food snob. Like me, he just wants to good sandwich.

Sandwich Quest: Bulgogi Cheesesteak at SK Pastrami & Things

I have walked past SK Pastrami & Things, a deli on 18th Street between Market and Chestnut, countless times and never once thought about entering. But my interest was piqued several weeks ago upon seeing a sign outside advertising a bulgogi cheesesteak. Memories of the Koja Truck’s bulgoki sandwich left my mouth watering so I went back one weekend to try it.

Verdict: while Koja still takes leads the Sandwich Quest category, the bulgogi cheesesteak at SK is a darn good sandwich worth stopping in to try.

The finely chopped bulgogi meat comes with their spicy house special sauce, grilled onions and sesame seeds. The spice was just about right although Koja’s offers a bit more kick to the get the forehead sweat going. The roll was average yet slightly toasted to give a nice airy crunch with each bite.

Three Observations of Vegetarian Cheesesteaks

The second stop on the vegetarian portion of Sandwich Quest was Blackbird Pizzeria at 6th and Lombard. Several people suggested Blackbird after reading about my disappointment with Govinda’s “chicken cheeseteak."

This post has been a battle to put into the right words and clearly articulate my feelings. I also expect to see some tough comments and reactions. Before you read on, know that I have a completely open mind to trying new things and put forth a lot of effort to understand the food of each culture and type of eater. We write this blog as a way to share some of those discoveries.

It's also one of the reasons why I wanted to tackle some vegetarian "cheesesteaks." I hoped for the chance to share a positive experience with skeptics and explain why you should try them. Sadly, that has not turned out to be the case after stops at two highly recommended places. The vegetarian cheesesteaks have been a disappointment.

The Best Cheesesteak in the Philadelphia Suburbs?

What’s the best cheesesteak in Philadelphia? It’s a debate that has raged for decades. We haven’t stepped into the conversation on this blog mostly because we do not have a strong opinion, plus enough other locals have opined ad nauseam.

However, I can tell you the best cheesesteak in the Lansdale, Pa. area - the one that I’ll plan an entire day around getting - the cheesesteak at Ray's Pizzeria & Restaurant.

My mouth waters just thinking about making the trip to my hometown to get one. Ray’s delivers on all the key attributes of a great cheesesteak, including a good roll, quality steak and being made fresh to order.

The amount of meat stuffed into the roll compared to other good cheesesteaks is what I love most about Ray’s, though. Nothing disappoints me more than when a cheesesteak is not filled with enough meat. This happens more often than you think. Come on folks, fill 'er up. And yes, that can even include the likes of Pat’s, Geno’s, Jim’s, etc.

Just look at this shot - it's stuffed to brim.

Cheesesteak from Ray's Pizzeria & Restaurant

As you can see, I order my cheesesteak from Ray’s with sauce and onions. It's how my family has ordered at Ray’s for as long as I can remember and I stick with tradition. The sweetness of the red sauce is a perfect complement to the American cheese. Ray's also uses a healthy dose of onions, cut thick instead of chopped thin.

Sandwich Quest: Govinda’s Vegetarian Chicken Cheesesteak

Vegetarian food has intrigued me in recent months. The interest mainly lies in expanding my cooking abilities by learning other techniques and recipes. What better way to learn which vegetarian food I like than by sampling some on Sandwich Quest.

Counter at Govinda's

So far, the only vegetarian fare on Sandwich Quest has been the falafel from Magic Carpet. This is not a real test of vegetarian food from my perspective. Give me the “chicken” and “steak” concoctions.

In the comment section of the first post about Sandwich Quest, reader Kristen said we had to try the “chicken cheeseteak" at Govinda’s Gourmet Vegetarian at South and Broad. You got it, Kristen.

This non-vegetarian was very disappointed. The consistency was fine, the bread was great, but the sandwich lacked all flavor. My food endorphins were nowhere to be found.

Sandwich Quest: Philly's Koja Food Truck

Who should start Game One for the Phillies - Roy Halladay or Cliff Lee? The reality is that it doesn't matter because you would be more than content with either taking the mound. Both pitchers are that good.

This is how I think about the question of which sandwich was the best so far on our Sandwich Quest. I emphasize so far because we still have many to try, such as Nick’s Roast Beef, Shank’s and McNally's Schmitter, to name just a few.

Japanese/Korean Koja Truck

The lasagna Bolognese from Paesano’s has been the clear front runner for quite some time. But then I went on my University City food truck tour, where I devoured the ridiculously good bulgoki steak sandwich from the Koja Truck. Some call it bulgogi, but Koja has bulgoki on its menu so we'll go with that name.


Which is better you might ask? I don’t know. Heads I win, tails I win. I could eat either sandwich at any time and be happy.



The debate is only fitting because both were on list of the best new sandwiches in the U.S. from Endless Simmer, the genesis for our sandwich quest. Endless Simmer, you’ve done your research!

Reader Contribution: Operation "Whiz Wit" Reveals the Best Cheesesteaks

Here's an idea for a party: Bring home eight different cheesesteaks from eight different places, hide the labels and conduct a taste test with your friends. Let the crowd decide: is Pat's really the King of Steaks? Or is there a hidden gem somewhere else?

22nd & Philly reader Sarah recently conducted this experiment with her friends and sent us her results. We've stayed away from reviewing cheesesteaks to not feed the stereotype about Philly's claim-to-fame, but this taste test party was a really cool idea. It covers some steaks we've never heard of and was done by regular joes like us. We appreciate the chance to share it with our hungry audience.

The competing cheesesteaks were chosen based on Yelp reviews, where Sarah is an Elite member. Her friends divided into small groups to pick up the cheesesteaks and get them all home within a 10 min. window, so none got cold/soggy. Labels were hidden and they started eating.

After trying each cheesesteak, Sarah and her eight friends rated them on a scale of 1-10 for six categories: visual appeal, aroma, roll texture, meat quality, toppings and overall taste. Each participant also jotted down comments/notes. Results were analyzed and the pro/cons of each are shared along with the rankings.

The overall winner was Cosmi's, which we've never heard of but according to Sarah, "you'll definitely have to give it a try -- totally unassuming little corner deli but man, that cheesesteak was delicious!" We'll have to add it to our Sandwich Quest (where, in case you missed it, we just reviewed Q.T.'s banh mi).

So, think about what's important to you in a cheesesteak - the quality of meat? the roll? the toppings? Perhaps the next time you're jonesing for the Philly classic, Sarah and her buddies can help you decide where to go.

Click here to open up this Google doc PDF of the competition results and analysis:


Where to find each of the competitors:

Cosmi's Deli - 1501 South 8th Street (at Dickinson)
Ishkabibble's Eatery - 337 South Street
Jim's Steaks - 4 locations (who knew?) but famous one is at 400 South Street
Kite & Key - 1836 Callowhill Street (random but only included because John's Roast Pork was closed that day)
Mamma's Pizzeria - 426 Belmont Avenue, Lower Merion
Max's Steaks - 3653 Germantown Ave
Pat's King of Steaks - 1237 East Passyunk Avenue
Tony Luke's - Multiple locations, original at 39 East Oregon Avenue