Our article on the “Top Five Cheesesteaks in Philly,” originally published on May 12th, 2024, was a hit, snagging the title of the second most-read piece that year. Now, in this follow-up on National Cheesesteak Day (March 24th), we’re diving into the comments from Philly readers who decided to chime in. It turns out the opinions are as varied as ours were– everyone’s got their favorite, and let’s just say, not everyone agrees with our picks. Grab your cheesesteak, and let’s dig into the debate!
During an unforgettable four-day adventure in 2024, we embarked on a tasty quest through the cheesesteak capital of the world– Philadelphia, PA. Our mission? To sample cheesesteaks from 18 different restaurants renowned for having “the best” in the area, including the extravagant $140 cheesesteak from Barclay Prime. Below, we’ll share a glimpse into our tasting process.
These rankings came from a group of Montgomery County, MD natives who each have their own unique opinions on the best local steak and cheese sandwiches (we’ll clarify the difference between those and a cheesesteak below). While our very own Mr. MoCo’s favorite steak and cheese subs can be seen here, the cheesesteaks featured in the list below offer a completely different experience.
We scored each cheesesteak we tried in Philly on a scale of 1-10 and averaged the scores for final rankings. To ensure our taste was unbiased, we took just two small bites of each.
According to restaurant staff, the main difference between a cheesesteak and the steak and cheese (more common outside Philadelphia) lies in the toppings; steak and cheese often includes extras like tomatoes and lettuce. Cheesesteaks typically featured Amoroso’s rolls, but many have strayed from the rolls. They use shaved ribeye, and American, Whiz, or provolone cheese, with onions as the only widely accepted additional topping—though opinions vary. Our top five cheesesteak list can be found below:
5. John’s Roast Pork: 8.0/10.
John’s Roast Pork doesn’t use whiz. Instead, you’ll find American cheese. John’s had a long line that was on par with Dalessandro’s in terms of length, but moved much slower in part because they make their sandwiches in small batches of up to a dozen at a time. The roast pork sandwich was also tasty, but we all preferred the cheesesteak.
4. Dalessandro’s: 8.2/10.
Dalessandro’s was the most recommended place, mainly by those who either live in Philly now or frequent the area. At times, it wasn’t easy to distinguish between Dalessandro’s and Chubby’s- its neighbor across the street. At the end, we all blindly rated Dalessandro’s higher.
3. Angelo’s Pizzeria: 8.6/10.
Also known for its pizza, which was very tasty, we were on a cheesesteak mission and it didn’t disappoint. Angelo’s had the longest line (because most were there for the pizza and cheesesteak). We thought the bread was tied with Barclay Prime as the best. Can’t imagine anyone eating this cheesesteak and disliking it.
2. Barclay Prime: 8.7/10.
The Barclay Prime cheesesteak will run you $140. It consists of hand cut wagyu, black truffle, foie gras, fried onions, cooper sharp on a freshly baked sesame roll and is served with a ½ bottle of champagne. It was a great tasting cheesesteak, but none of us would say it’s “worth it” as you could enjoy 10 cheesesteaks form just about any other place for the price of this one. With that said, it was great and if you’re able to swing it, it’s something you can share with friend and family for years.
1. Woodrow’s: 9.1/10.
While a few folks did recommend Woodrow’s, it wasn’t mentioned as often as the other places that reached the top 5. It’s not as picturesque as some of the other cheesesteaks, but we also didn’t have the time to set up for anything fancy at many of these places. We all really enjoyed the truffle flavor and the cheesesteak earned two of the highest overall scores as well as the highest average score. Every one of us had the Woodrow’s cheesesteak ranked either #1 or #2 overall. It plays a role in our announcement below.
Notes:
• We ordered each restaurants’ most popular cheesesteak.
• We generally liked every cheesesteak we tried. Ishkabibbles was the only restaurant that didn’t live up to the “you have to try it” hype, but it was still just fine.
• The prices of the sandwiches all hovered around $15, except for Barclay Prime ($140).
• We aren’t going into detail on all 18 spots we tried because no matter which ones we went to, there will always be that other place we “should’ve tried” that’s someone’s favorite.
• This is all just for fun and everyone will likely have a different opinion.
• A few locals told us that Pat’s and Geno’s, known for their popularity amongst tourists, are gaining traction with locals again. Some were also completely against that notion.
Now, here’s what those who read from Philly had to say:
• The Best Is Cosmi’s at the corner of 8th & Dickenson St. Philadelphia Pennsylvania 19147
• Who came up with this list? My dog has better taste.
• I’m so glad to see that Geno’s, Pats and Jim’s are not on this list. Those steaks are the worst, straight up tourist traps.
• What is it with Dalessandro’s? It is not as good as Pat’s or Geno’s. Dalessandro’s is closer to where I lived.
The steak is way too chopped up. I took my daughter from NH to Pat’s. She said: “Dad this IS the best! In fact after 2 bites she sounded like Rocky Balboa.
• Steve’s is the best IMO and they don’t even have Tony Luke’s on here so I question the legitimacy of their list.
• Well done article for out of towners. Very spot on with history n your taste is good!
• Try Umbria gourmet in manayunk it’s a new local spot and the cheese steaks are exceptional!! I think better than delesandros hands down. It’s been open less than a year but definitely worth the trip.
• Any cheese steak that is made with “imitation proceeded cheese food”, ie: ” America Cheese” is no good. Use real cheese, like Provolone or Swiss.
• You can get absolutely any toppings you want on a cheesesteak. Onions, mushrooms, hot peppers, sweet peppers, garlic, tomato, pizza sauce, WHATEVER YOU WANT. People in Philly get ours with all sorts of stuff on them.
• Dalessandro’s? This list lost all credibility
• Dalessandros is by FAR the best.
• Cheesesteak bar has the best
• Barclay Prime is the best by far but nobody can afford it.
• Putting $150 cheesesteak in this list is insane and shows you don’t know cheesesteaks.
• Try Leo’s…Shay’s…Bubbas Sandwich shop…Oh Brother Philly!
• $140 cheesesteak lol. They are out their mind. I like johns roasted pork.
• New Comer FOODCHASERS KITCHEN! BEATS THEM ALL!!!
• Woodrow’s IS the best and that’s the only one you got right.
• Why is paganos never in the discussion?
• Angelo’s is the only right answer.
• Why is Angelo’s on this list? Maybe pizza not cheesesteaks.
• Joe’s in fishtown is the best IMO
• Little Sicily II is the only correct answer and you all did not even mention it so that shows what you know.
• gooey Louie’s or Jim’s on South Street are the top two anything else is a distant third and not worth it.
• Cafe Carmela’s, John’s Roast Pork, and Angelo’s are my top 3