Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Maybe call it a California Cheesesteak?

El Cajon has one of the most revered dining scenes in the county

A Philly cheesesteak, of sorts — this one includes lettuce, tomato, and avocado.
A Philly cheesesteak, of sorts — this one includes lettuce, tomato, and avocado.
Place

Philly Steak Subs

312 Ballantyne Street, El Cajon

They say location is everything, and seeing as El Cajon doesn’t get a lot of my business, I guess they may be right. Of all the communities in San Diego, the east county burg is probably the largest one I’ve spent the least amount of time exploring. Not for any particular reason — more like a lack of reason to go there, I suppose.

So when I found myself there recently and lunchtime rolled around, I had little idea where to eat. I turned to Yelp, which lists 40 restaurants doing business in El Cajon. When I sorted by rating, I learned 25 of these restaurants rate four and a half stars or higher. That’s out of five.

So, according to Yelp users, El Cajon has one of the most revered dining scenes in the county. I know how to navigate Yelp better than I do El Cajon, so I know these numbers are subjective, typically inflated, and that even when you ask Yelp to sort by rating, it doesn’t. Yelp sorts however Yelp wants to sort, either explicitly with paid ads or subtly, with what I presume to be some lower tier of paid ads.

Sponsored
Sponsored
Philly Steak Subs is working to expand its dining room into the unused other half of the building.

Regardless, I was left to pick at random from the two dozen vaunted reviews, and the easiest pick to make was Philly Steak Subs. At least I knew what to expect. When I looked up a review by fellow Feaster Ian Pike I saw he’d finished an exhaustive cheesesteak series at this place a few years ago, back when it was open limited hours and the stand-alone building was yellow.

It’s under new ownership now, so the shop actually stays open through the dinner hour and has been painted a more appealing red. However, its signature dish hasn’t changed much. First of all, this place goes back more than 40 years, and for 30 of them carried the unfortunate name BJ Munchies. So while Philly Steak Subs reads decidedly generic, let’s agree the 2002 rebrand was a net positive. And while use of the word Philly suggests it goes for cheesesteak authenticity, that’s only partially true.

As Pike pointed out, this shop doesn’t go out of its way to ship in Amarosa rolls, relying instead on locally baked bread. It also doesn’t misconstrue cheez whiz as an OG alternative to provolone, which I greatly appreciate, and uses cross-cut ribeye for its steaks — a solid start. The place also implements a hoagie-style sandwich, including lettuce and tomato by default. However, the boldest step away from Philly steak sticklers is the inclusion of avocado. Maybe a better name for the restaurant would be “California Cheesesteaks.”

I’m always down for some avocado, and I would even suggest that it saved the sandwich. The beef dried out a bit on the grill, while the cheese hadn’t thoroughly melted — both correctable issues, barely salvaged here by the creaminess of a smashed Haas.

Ultimately, El Cajon’s 4.5 stars translates to 3.5 for me, but if the longtime cheesesteak mainstay decides to live up to its potential with better preparation, it’s got the ingredients to succeed for a few more decades.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Will L.A. Times crowd out San Diego U-T at Riverside printing plant?

Will Toni Atkins stand back from anti-SDG&E initiative?
A Philly cheesesteak, of sorts — this one includes lettuce, tomato, and avocado.
A Philly cheesesteak, of sorts — this one includes lettuce, tomato, and avocado.
Place

Philly Steak Subs

312 Ballantyne Street, El Cajon

They say location is everything, and seeing as El Cajon doesn’t get a lot of my business, I guess they may be right. Of all the communities in San Diego, the east county burg is probably the largest one I’ve spent the least amount of time exploring. Not for any particular reason — more like a lack of reason to go there, I suppose.

So when I found myself there recently and lunchtime rolled around, I had little idea where to eat. I turned to Yelp, which lists 40 restaurants doing business in El Cajon. When I sorted by rating, I learned 25 of these restaurants rate four and a half stars or higher. That’s out of five.

So, according to Yelp users, El Cajon has one of the most revered dining scenes in the county. I know how to navigate Yelp better than I do El Cajon, so I know these numbers are subjective, typically inflated, and that even when you ask Yelp to sort by rating, it doesn’t. Yelp sorts however Yelp wants to sort, either explicitly with paid ads or subtly, with what I presume to be some lower tier of paid ads.

Sponsored
Sponsored
Philly Steak Subs is working to expand its dining room into the unused other half of the building.

Regardless, I was left to pick at random from the two dozen vaunted reviews, and the easiest pick to make was Philly Steak Subs. At least I knew what to expect. When I looked up a review by fellow Feaster Ian Pike I saw he’d finished an exhaustive cheesesteak series at this place a few years ago, back when it was open limited hours and the stand-alone building was yellow.

It’s under new ownership now, so the shop actually stays open through the dinner hour and has been painted a more appealing red. However, its signature dish hasn’t changed much. First of all, this place goes back more than 40 years, and for 30 of them carried the unfortunate name BJ Munchies. So while Philly Steak Subs reads decidedly generic, let’s agree the 2002 rebrand was a net positive. And while use of the word Philly suggests it goes for cheesesteak authenticity, that’s only partially true.

As Pike pointed out, this shop doesn’t go out of its way to ship in Amarosa rolls, relying instead on locally baked bread. It also doesn’t misconstrue cheez whiz as an OG alternative to provolone, which I greatly appreciate, and uses cross-cut ribeye for its steaks — a solid start. The place also implements a hoagie-style sandwich, including lettuce and tomato by default. However, the boldest step away from Philly steak sticklers is the inclusion of avocado. Maybe a better name for the restaurant would be “California Cheesesteaks.”

I’m always down for some avocado, and I would even suggest that it saved the sandwich. The beef dried out a bit on the grill, while the cheese hadn’t thoroughly melted — both correctable issues, barely salvaged here by the creaminess of a smashed Haas.

Ultimately, El Cajon’s 4.5 stars translates to 3.5 for me, but if the longtime cheesesteak mainstay decides to live up to its potential with better preparation, it’s got the ingredients to succeed for a few more decades.

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Coyote tracks in frail San Diego avocado grove

Second place winner in Reader neighborhood writing contest
Next Article

Tyler Farr, Blue Water Film Festival, Mustache Bash

Events March 21-March 23, 2024
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.