Donkey’s Place New Jersey Cheese Steak

Donkey’s Place New Jersey Philly Cheese Steak – The Most Dangerous Cheese Steak in America

I have been hearing about and reading reviews of Donkey’s Place for years and how great their Philly cheese steaks are. Considering that it is located at 1223 Hadden Avenue in Camden, New Jersey, it is only a few minutes from most parts of Philly. But the thought of going into Camden, NJ just to try a cheese steak was more weight than my actions could lift. Finally, I got the nerve to go as it is a prerequisite for having the best Philly cheese steak blog.

Donkey’s Place was established in 1943 as a bar by the Matthew’s family. But its true origin began in 1947 when a man named Leon Lucas, AKA Donkey, bought the bar and started selling steak sandwiches. Leon was a champion boxer (light heavy weight) on the 1928 United States Olympic Boxing Team. Leon was also a champ fighter in his unit in World War 1. He received his nickname from having said to have a punch like a mule.

“Donkey” Lucas renamed his place after himself, Donkey’s Place. He ran the business for many years until his death in 1971. After his passed away, his son Bob Lucas took over the business and runs it presently. In 2003, Bob Lucas opened up another location in Medford, NJ (7 Tomlinson Mill Road) and in 2005 he opened a third spot in Ocean City, NJ (1018 Asbury Avenue).

OK…enough of the background…let’s get to the point. Donkey’s cheese steak has been ranked unbelievably high in my book. Its sandwich has characteristics of no other. Their cheese steak is a unique sandwich that is a twist of the traditional South Philly version in that its roll is a round, soft, Kaiser roll with poppy seeds. The steak used is thin rib eye stripped steak (not chopped) stacked high in the roll. The cheese is American cheese placed on top of the steak to melt from its heat. The onions are very unique.

Donkey’s Place used large strips of onions that are very stringy. These onions have been sitting in a big pile on the grill not too far from the meat for an hour or two. However, they are not browned at all. I believe that it is the steam that has created its unique taste and for a long period of time. There is a huge pile of onions that is placed on Donkey’ sandwich, their trademark.

Every part of Donkey’s Place’s sandwich is unique. I love the poppy seed effect. This is very different if you are used to the traditional soft long Italian rolls. It really makes you question what the future of Philly cheese steaks may hold. This style along with Grilladelphia’s pouch rolls have really made me think twice about what is a customary Philly cheese steak. I think a revolution may be underway. The poppy seeds effect though is much better than I thought.

The inside of Donkey’s place is very old fashioned. I question whether anything has been moved since its inception other than a routine cleaning. There is so much history to this place as well and this may be the reason that you may find very important politicians, etc. frequenting the place.

The hospitality was exceptional. Their menu was simple.

The biggest disadvantage, for those of you who don’t know anything about South Jersey, is getting there. Donkey’s place is in the middle of the most dangerous city in America: Camden, New Jersey. Although it is just a quick toss away from Philly, Camden is a very different place in that the crime is unbelievably high here. This is why a label Donkey’s Place the “Most dangerous cheese steak in America.” To get here, I should have brought a couple machine guns. You drive through tons of abandoned buildings and crime infested streets.

But let me tell you how it was worth it. I ate two sandwiches today ($6.50 each) and I could have sat there all day long and ate more. I still can’t get it out of my mind how good these sandwiches are. Not only do I put Donkey’s Place in the Best Philly Cheese Steak Club but they may just be the best of the best (maybe) (definitely one of the best New Jersey Philly cheese steaks). Although they are not in Philly exactly, for now I will allow them to be a special exception to get into the club even though I have originally designed it exclusively for Philadelphia cheese steaks only. If you have never been there, take a little risk through Camden County (bring the bullet proof gear), and try Donkey’s Place’s Philly cheese steak!

Chink's Steaks Cheese Steak Review

Chink’s Steaks in Northeast Philly is at minimum the best Philly cheese steak joint in Northeast Philly. Chink’s Steaks located at 6030 Torresdale Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19135 has been around long enough to be considered a historical Philly cheese steak shop. They are opened every day except Sunday.

Chink’s Steaks was established in 1949 by Samuel Sherman (his nickname was chink). Sherman originally worked at Pat’s King of Steaks before he got the idea to open his own place. He learned from the best steak place at that time and took his skill to a relatively untouched steak sandwich area in Northeast Philly. Sherman worked at Chink’s for 46 years before retiring. He then turned the business over to one of his long time workers, Joe. Chink died several years later.

Chink’s is extremely popular and has won many awards. In 2002, after Craig LaBan from The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Restaurant Guide published a complimentary article favoring Chink’s, their publicity grew. Also, in 2002 Best of Philly voted them “best cheesesteak”. They also received acclaim from AOL’s Citysearch, Sport’s Radio WIP 610 and many others sources. But as I keep telling you these awards don’t mean squat until it is reviewed here on the famous Best Philly Cheese Steak Blog. This is where real Philly cheese steak knowledge comes from.

I am extremely impressed by Chink’s Steaks in many ways. For starters, their sandwich is incredible. They use soft, golden, Italian rolls about 10 inches (not quite a foot). The steak is rib eye steak (if it is not rib eye steak then it is an immediate strike) that is stripped and layered maybe 2-3 thin strips on top of each other in the sandwich. The cheese is American cheese that is smoothed out evenly amongst the steak – paradise! The onions are small square chops that are lightly browned mixed well amongst the steak and cheese. The sandwich itself makes this a great cheese steak. But there is more…

Chink’s Steaks is situated inside of a old fashioned mom and pop cheese steak shop that still has the same look and feel of when it opened 60 years ago with its 1950’s decor. They carry a simple menu consisting of hot dogs, hamburgers, hot sausage, old fashioned sodas, milkshakes, and ice cream sundaes. This is a simple old fashioned menu that goes with their theme. Simple can be wonderful. Chink’s Steaks even has old fashioned jukeboxes (that don’t work) at each table.

I also like the cleanliness factor. It appeared that the place was well kept from the customer’s viewpoint (you never really know what is going on in the ceilings and basement). The steaks were cooked right in the front window. This is an opportunity to see your steaks being made to your standards. Always be leery when the cooking quarters is far away from the customer’s access.

The staff is very young, beautiful, friendly women running the whole place. There are several old fashioned booths where you can sit as well as at the counter. Although I didn’t eat any ice cream I plan to upon next visit.

Chink’s Steaks is a classic for Philly cheese steak fanatics. Chink’s is an original style joint as no other Philly cheese steak place will give you the same look and feel in addition to the excellent steak product it offers. They have been around for 60 years and with new, smart, self sufficient, forward looking management, I believe that they will be here another 60 years.

If I can explain the feel of this place with an analogy I would say that Chink’s Steaks is like Jim’s Steaks combining with Nifty Fifty’s Restaurant. Actually, with the pretty staff and the nostalgic atmosphere, you feel like you are being taken back in time to what the fifties were like (even if you weren’t born in that era).

Chink’s Steaks, I am honored to welcome you to the Best Philly Cheese Steak Club!

Campo's Deli Cheese Steak Review

Campo’s Deli is one of the most popular Philly cheese steak joints in Philly. Campo’s was established in 1947 and has 3 locations. The main location was the one that I am reviewing at 214 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Campo’s is also located at Citizen’s Bank Park and the Wachovia Center. That’s right, Campos is the official Philly Cheese Steak of the 2008 world champion Philadelphia Phillies Fans and the official hoagie and cheesesteak of the Wachovia Center, home of the Philadelphia Flyers and 76ers.

Campo’s Deli was started by Ambrose and Rose Campo and is still family operated many years later. The difference is that it is not a little corner luncheonette slash grocery store anymore. Campo’s has been elevated to new higher levels through its increased popularity. Campo’s has a very strategic location in Center City as it benefits from the high trafficked area especially in its Old City neighborhood.

Campo’s has a nice sit down place inside. The place is very clean looking and the workers are all very friendly. The best part is that you can sit by the window and just gaze outside of the beautiful neighborhood of Old City Philadelphia and its passersby.

Campo’s Deli also has an increasing online presence as they ship virtually anywhere in the world. Campo’s has been rated the best by many different sources but you all know by now that I am not impressed until I review it myself (and you should have the same attitude).

I really liked Campo’s Philly cheese steak. I ordered a cheese steak with bell peppers and mushrooms. The steak sandwich itself was $7, which is very reasonable. The mushrooms and peppers were an additional $.50 each. The bread used is the famous Sarcone’s bread from South Philadelphia. This bakery has a huge fan base as they are one of the biggest bread distributors in the area along with Amorosa. The rolls were nice soft golden Italian rolls. The problem with the roll was that it was a little too small (about 8-10 inches). They need to upgrade to the foot long to really impress me.

The steak was stripped steak as was sliced a little thicker than the average thin strips. Obviously it was well done as there was no sign of blood. This is the normal way to cook a Philly cheese steak though. If you see a drop of red blood from your steak sandwich in Philly then you better run because that is not how it should be cooked.

The onions were nicely cooked to a golden brown and chopped into small slices. The American cheese was mixed well into the steak and stayed in one place (as opposed to oozing out the sides. The peppers and mushrooms were also cooked Italian style and were mixed right into the sandwich. They were a nice complement to the meal. Campo’s Deli also has many varieties of the sandwich that you can try like the old fashioned Italian pizza steak. You can tell that these sandwiches are influenced by Italian culinary traditions.

Overall, I like Campo’s atmosphere, location, cleanliness, and their sandwich. They appear to be a very nice family run organization. The price was also right considering the location. However, my only suggestion for them is to think about using a foot long roll.

Campo’s is truly a Philly favorite that needs to be recognized by our cheese steak blog. Campo’s Deli, welcome to the Best Philly Cheese Steak Club!

Jim's Steaks Cheese Steak Review

Jim's Steaks South Street Cheese Steak Review

Today’s review will be of Jim’s Steaks South Street cheese steak shop. After many years of visiting Jim’s I have made a frequent visit to keep this review fresh. First thing that I will do today is to start out with an overview of Jim’s Steaks. It’s important that you understand its significance in the cheese steak world before I proceed with my review.

Jim’s Steaks has 4 locations as of this review. The location that I went to was at 400 South Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147. Jim’s Steaks’ history actually had its beginnings in 1939 in West Philly at 431 North 62nd Street by the owner Jim and his family. Jim’s expanded to the South Street location in 1976. Another expansion happened many years later in 1996. Jim’s had opened up a new location at Bustleton and Cottman Avenues (at the Roosevelt Mall). The last cheese steak shop opened in Springfield (469 Baltimore Pike).

Last week I had discussed Pat’s steaks and their significance to the cheese steak world. Specifically, because they were the first cheese steak hop in Philadelphia, they are a Mecca for cheese steak lovers. Well, you also have to give a place like Jim’s Steaks credit because although they are not the first cheesesteak shop they are one of the first. They opened approximately 10 years after Pat’s and about 30 years before Geno’s Steaks (the so called King of Steaks). With four stores under their belt, Jim’s Steaks’ history is extremely important for cheese steak lovers. They must be appreciated and relished because they are the foundation for the massive worldwide marketing of making Philly known for this type of food.

So on to my review…please recall that this review of Jim’s Steaks is of its location on South Street. Eventually, I may post a review of the other locations. Ideally, I would like to get in a nice review of the original location and make some comparisons to today’s review. There are so many good cheese steak places to cover in this blog that I don’t want to spend too much time on any given one.

Jim’s Steaks is a totally different cheese steak compared to Geno’s or Pat’s and in many ways. Geno’s and Pat’s have sliced steaks (extremely thin and layered on their steaks). Jim’s Steaks uses chopped steak, a completely different cheese steak experience. Sliced versus chopped both have very good tastes but yet very distinguished.

I ordered a plain cheese steak with onions at Jim’s Steaks. The steak was about 8 -10 inches (sorry I don’t carry a ruler). The great part about Jim’s is that as you wait in line you have to actually pass the frontline of the chef’s working quarters so that you see every move that is made. This is different than Pat’s and Geno’s where the grill is much more obscure. By the way, Jim’s is inside unlike Pat’s and Geno’s. This is a huge factor for those waiting in some ridiculous line in the middle of the winter. At least you can be a little warm inside. But I have also seen Jim’s Steaks‘ line wrap around the building outside on most weekend nights.

The inside of Jim’s Steaks is another interesting part of Jim’s history. There is pictures and autographs from many famous people all over the walls. Don’t forget to go upstairs to eat. Most people aren’t even aware that an upstairs exists but it does and there is many, many more pictures up there too. Upstairs they are even several tables for you to sit and relax while you eat (but don’t forget to feed the meter first because South Street ticket police are always on patrol).

Jim’s Steaks is also famous for its plaque that it has on its wall for the cheese steak record. This record is of the person who ate the most cheese steaks in one hour. The last I can remember it was about 13 but I didn’t check it when I went. If you can beat that record I am sure they will get your name up on that wall.

Ok…sorry I digressed (a bad habit). Back to the cheese steak review…While waiting in line you can watch your steak being cooked right in front of your eyes. There are tons of steaks on the grill. What makes Jim’s Steaks unique is that the cook is chopping your steak. I did not order whiz because I like American cheese (but I recommend it). By the way, Jim’s does not sell cheese fries unlike the other major stores.

Jim’s Steaks’ cheese steak was very good. My sandwich costs about seven dollars plus I ordered a root bear. The chopped steak is really tasty as it is cooked thoroughly. You very rarely find a Philly cheese steak place that has steak with a drop of red in it. This is uncommon as that is not what this steak sandwich is about. This needs to be distinguished from your usual bloody Mary Steak at a pure steakhouse (some served rare).

Jim’s Steaks puts the cheese under the steak in the sandwich. I got to say that this is one thing that I didn’t like. The ears of the bottom layer of cheese that were sticking out never got melted. I like cheese completely melted in a cheese steak. That is the way that it should be. If you want a sandwich with unmelted cheese then you would order a hoagie (subway or poor boy to many other Northeast folks).

The onions were chopped in large slices and were just lightly cooked. The ideal cheese steak would have onions thinly sliced and caramelized. You will rarely find this at any Philly cheese steak joint because it is too much work. However, when I cook them at home I will put any of these steak places to shame (the onion factor has a big reason to do with this). Try it at home and you will see what I mean. If you slice the onions really thin then it will result in much more flavor.

Overall, Jim’s Steaks is Jim’s. Whether or not I like it Jim’s is one of the oldest and most popular cheese steak places in Philly and will continue to be for a long time. I always wondered what would be the effect if Jim’s Steaks opened up a place right next to Pat’s and Geno’s. I think that they would help take some of that traffic off the streets and put them on the pavement. I don’t think their competition would appreciate this though and may have to retaliate by opening another one of their stores next to Jim’s.

I hope that you have enjoyed my review. If you get to Jim’s Steaks, please stop by our blog and let us know what you think about their cheese steak sandwich.

Pat's King of Steaks Review

Pat's King of Steaks Cheese Steak Review

What can I say about Pat’s King of Steaks? My first review on this blog must start out with an analysis of the greatest cheesesteak place on the planet (well, the oldest at least). Despite whatever I have to say in this review, I must give the credit to the king because without Pat’s Steak history, this blog wouldn’t exist and neither would the food that America loves today called the “Philly Cheese Steak.”

To start our review I would like to present some overview information about Pat’s steak house. Pat’s Steaks is located at 1237 East Passyunk Avenue, South Philadelphia, PA 19147 (where 9th street crosses Wharton and Passyunk Avenue). They are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve.

Next, let talk about the history of Pat’s Steaks. Pat’s was created by a man named Pat Olivieri in 1930. Pat Olivieri’s invention of the cheese steak actually began from a hot dog stand. Pat used to sell hotdogs in South Philadelphia near the Italian market. Olivieri tried something new one day and put together an Italian loaf of bread with some chopped steak that he put on the grill. He sold his first sandwiches to some taxi drivers from around the way. News spread quickly and this became a very profitable business for Pat.

Pat’s Steaks is truly the king in the sense that Pat Olivieri, the originator, started the whole cheese steak business with a little bit of serendipity. All those places that followed such as Jim’s Steaks and Geno’s Steaks had just hopped on the cheese steak bandwagon. Those other steak houses were successful as well because there was plenty a room for more vendors to make money. After all, a whole new great food was created. Just think of how popular the modern pizza must have been when it was created in Napoli, Italy in the 1700s (see pizza history from Blog Pizza).

So back to my review of Pat’s King of Steaks. The Pat’s cheese steak place that we know of today has evolved to become a multimillion dollar business. The same Olivieri family still runs the joint today (and very efficiently too).

For those of you who don’t know me, I am the creator of the famous pizza blog called Blog Pizza. I have a strong Philadelphia background in the food industry. Thus, the reviews that I make here should be taken seriously because I know Philly foods very well. Actually, this cheese steak blog will be discussing various cheese steak places. I am actually going to take you to the hidden cheese steak places that only the locals know of. Do you know why the lines at Geno’s and Pat’s Steaks are two blocks long any given time of any given day? There are many reasons but I bet you a major one is that the tourists just don’t know where the real cheese steak shops are that locals eat at. I started this blog to let this secret out of the bag. Why? I am a true believer in sharing. It’s not that I have anything against the big players in the cheese steak business but there are hundreds of steak shops all over Philly. Why should two businesses take all of the tourists’ attention and their business? Besides, most regular cheese steak shops in Philly provide a better quality sandwich, bigger cheese steak, a cheaper price, and a lesser of an attitude to the tourists (well, that’s debatable – Philly is Philly).

Although I have been to Pat’s Steaks many times in the past, I have gone once more the other day just to ensure that this review is fresh. It is interesting to note that this review would have been said the same way if it was made 20 years ago. Some things never change.

To start this review out about Pat’s I would like to put myself in the perspective of the average tourist. If I was a tourist and I am deciding on which of the two steakhouses to go, Geno’s or Pat’s, I would recommend that you try Pat’s first (a tourist is usually looking to visit the most historical anyway). I like Pat’s over Geno’s but will have to admit that these days there is a blur between the actual differences.

The dynamics between Pat’s and Geno’s steaks is very interesting. The two cheese steak places operate a stone’s throw across from each other yet both businesses have lines that block traffic in the street (sometimes the lines actually get connected by accident). Geno’s has all of the fancy neon lights and glamour of a successful business and Pat’s has more of a modest 1970’s look (recently updated a little). For all of the money the two have made, I am still surprised they haven’t bought the whole neighborhood and put up cheese steak museums yet.

To discuss Pat’s Steak is hard not to include Geno’s into the conversation. Over the years, the two businesses have created this interesting force that has helped one another. The air of competition has startled a friendly debate over who has the best cheese steak. Every tourist that comes to Philly now feeds into the debate by trying to sample the both of them.

Although Pat’s Steaks is still simpler in appearance, don’t let their looks fool you. They make money and a lot of it. This is the reason that the quality of their food has declined drastically over the past 20 or something years.

So the other day I ordered a regular cheddar cheese steak with onions. I also picked up a soda and some cheese fries at the next widow (the first window is for steaks and the second window is for fries and everything else). The cheese steak was $8 and the fries and soda was about $6. I was full for about $15. The cheese steak was on a loaf of bread (about 8 inches long) sliced in 2. The steak was a smooth layer about an inch high off of the bottom of the sandwich. The cheese was cheddar but has an appearance of a watery version of cheddar (the kind that drips quickly). This cheddar is almost transparent (you can see through it). The onions cooked well with a slight burn and had just the right amount.

Overall, the cheese steak is very good but compared to my standards for Philly cheese steaks, it is very poor in many categories. This is why many locals usually don’t go to these two steakhouses. Don’t get me wrong, Geno’s and Pat’s Steaks have a taste that is very unique in Philly and is rarely replicated. However, for the value and quality, there are many more places that will put these places to shame in a competition (Stay tuned). Either way, if you have never tried a Pat’s Steak than it is still a requirement in order to really understand the cheese steak experience. This place is the Mecca of cheese steak places (even though I complain about the value I still end up going there at least once a year).

Now that I have completed my review, there is a couple observations that I made while at Pat’s Steaks that I wanted to discuss. First, while in the line at Pat’s I noticed that a couple of people were getting attitude from the cashier about how to order a steak. After their order was complete, I overheard them make a remark that offended me. The one guy asked the other “what the cashier’s problem was” and the man responded “this is South Philly, all Italians are like that?”

I must clarify this for all of those who are reading. South Philadelphia is the birthplace of Italians in Philadelphia. South Philly has the famous Italian markets which were the thriving area for many new Italian immigrants about 100 years ago. There are still many Italians in Philadelphia, specifically, South Philly. If you are going to make you impression of what Italians in South Philly are like based off of what you experience was standing in the line at Geno’s or Pat’s Steaks, I will highly advise you to reconsider. Not only will that impression be highly inaccurate but it is also the exact opposite of the truth.

First, you must distinguish between the South Philly cheese steak business and South Philadelphian Italian Americans. I have heard similar responses one too many times before and this is why I am taking the time to clarify. The Philly cheese steak business has become a show over the years (every celebrity known has visited Geno’s and Pat’s, including every politician). There is a huge marketing strategy that keeps bringing the customers back. The major cheese steak players treat you like s**t and create all of these weird rules of how to order. Then you buy into it and keep returning because tourists don’t know any better. People, it is a game! The workers are f***ing with your head. They know that you are a tourist so they keep asking you silly questions like “Wit or Witout.” Come on! You know what the irony is? An average local Philadelphian who does his or her once a year pilgrimage to Pat’s or Geno’s don’t ever say “Wit” or “Wit out”. I would guess that the average local don’t even know what that means. These are code words for tourists. The average local Philadelphian would walk up to the counter and say something like “give me a regular cheese steak WITH onions.” It would be understood and the line would keep moving. The bottom line is to not act like an idiot or a tourist when ordering. If you take your time ordering you will piss them off and you will get treated poorly (just like any other food place that you visit except it is a little more extreme here).

Regardless of who was right and who was wrong between the tourist and the cashier, the remark of the tourist was definitely not correct. How can you say that all Italian people in South Philadelphia (one of the largest parts of one of the biggest cities in America) are miserable people based off the reaction of a cashier at one cheese steak place (who is actually a nice guy but it was a very hot day and he may have been overworked). Most Italian people in Philadelphia and other South Philadelphians are very hospitable and kind. There is hardly a correlation between the cheese steak business and the norm in South Philly. Please don’t stereotype and try to resist characterizing a whole population. The truth is that people in Philly are built tough. They may have a stronger façade than the norm but a generally very nice people.

The next observation that I made was the reaction of one of the tourists who commented after the negative experience with the cashier. He was wondering why people keep come back to these steak shops even though the cashier is rude. My answer to that can be written in volumes but I will try to condense it for you. These cheese steak houses make so much money that the loss of one customer will not hurt them at all. They know that no matter what they will always be busy because of tourists who don’t know any better (do you see the value in this blog now – I will be giving everyone more options).

There are many things that the cheese steak places do that many locals don’t approve of either (like Geno’s Steaks sign about ordering in English) but they just don’t like to interfere with other people’s business. The cheese steak world has highly evolved to become one of the most original characteristics true to Philly. Please don’t take it personally if one of these places gives you attitude (and don’t think it is an Italian or a Philadelphian thing either). Just like all parts of life, if someone gives you attitude just give it right back (but make sure that you can back up your words in case the other party is prepared for your counter).

I hope that you have enjoyed this discussion of Pat’s King of Steaks cheese steak shop! Below I have included a list of Pat’s Steak menu and prices for your convenience. Keep in mind that this is the prices as of 2009. I am sure that a cheese steak will be worth double in about another 5 years.

Pat's King of Steak 2009 Menu (Price Includes Tax)

Steak
7.00
Cheesesteak
7.50
Extra Cheesesteak
8.00
Pizza Steak
8.00
Mushroom Steak
7.50
Mushroom Cheesesteaks
8.00
Mushroom Pizza Steak
8.50
Pepper Steak
7.50
Pepper Cheesesteak
8.00
Pepper Pizza Steak
8.50
Mushroom Pepper Steak
8.00
Mushroom Pepper Cheesesteak
8.50
Mushroom Pepper Pizza Steak
9.00
Roast Pork
7.00
Hot Dog
1.50
Large Hot Dog
7.00
Fish Cake (Small)
3.25
Fish Cake (Large)
7.00
Lettuce
.50
Tomato
.50
Ex Cheese
.50
Mushrooms
.50
Peppers
.50
Sodas
1.50
French Fries
2.50
Cheese Fries
3.75