I Tried Every Jersey Mike's Cheesesteak & the Best Packed a Punch

If you're a fan of deli-style submarine sandwiches, you're probably familiar with Jersey Mike's. Founded in 1956 as a small sub shop on the Jersey Shore, the Garden State-launched franchise has mushroomed into one of America's fastest-growing sandwich chains, with some 2,800 locations now open or under development.

Famous for splashing its popular subs in red wine vinegar, oil, and spices—aka "the juice"—Jersey Mike's has been drawing customers away from sandwich giants Subway and Panera, and continues to make headlines in the restaurant business. Just last week, private equity titan Blackstone announced it would buy the booming sandwich brand in a blockbuster $8 billion deal.

Though perhaps best known for cold subs like the fan-favorite Original Italian, Jersey Mike's also makes cheesesteaks—a full dozen different varieties, in fact.

After all, the Jersey Shore isn't that far from Philadelphia, the birthplace of the legendary cheesy-beefy hoagie. Even so, Philly purists may get an addytood about the fact that Jersey Mike's uses neither provolone nor Cheez Whiz, as is customary, on its sammiches. Instead, the popular chain employs a mild, white American cheese. Heck, some of the so-called "cheese steaks" at Jersey Mike's don't even contain steak!

I wanted to see whether this fast-rising chain does the famed Philly foodstuff any justice and, if so, which of the various options does it best. So I shlepped over to my local Jersey Mike's to try every single cheesesteak on the menu. I ordered each one just as it came—no substitutions, additions, or deletions—and asked for them all on the same standard white roll to maintain the proverbial level playing field. Then, I judged them all by looks and taste.

Here's how every cheesesteak ranked in descending order, starting with my least favorite and counting down to the best of the whole cheesy bevy.

Grilled Portabella Mushroom & Swiss

Freshly sliced meat is one of the big draws at Jersey Mike's, but give some credit to the chain for offering at least one hot sub to appease the herbivores. This vegetarian-friendly grilled portabella mushroom and Swiss is probably the farthest thing from authentic on the entire cheesesteak menu. It's also the only item made with a cheese other than white American, making it even more of an outlier. The regular-sized version cost me $10.95.

The look: Flush with fungi. This sub came stacked with 'shrooms atop 'shrooms. A few slices of green pepper and onion intermingled but the veggies hardly registered amid all the grayish-brown portobella. Some gluey looking Swiss in the middle helped to bind everything together.

The taste: Ghastly. I don't mean to belittle the lone veggie option, but this sub was the pits. I didn't mind these same mushrooms as much when they were used as toppings on other subs, but isolated here in amplified abundance, they're just too much. Maybe if these 'shrooms spent more time on the grill, they'd develop some caramelization and more appealing flavor. Instead, these slippery slices seemed like they'd been soaking in a pickle jar or something—too slimy, squishy, and generally unsavory to enjoy. There wasn't nearly enough tangy Swiss or crunchy veggies to help balance things out, either. I feel bad for any meatless-leaning individual who makes the mistake of ordering this.

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Buffalo Chicken Cheese Steak

Another odd duck in the would-be cheesesteak category is this Buffalo chicken variety, which comes doused in the classic Western New York-style wing flavoring of Frank's Red Hot Sauce. It also includes the customary accompaniment: bleu cheese dressing. Lettuce, tomato, and white American round out the listed ingredients. The regular order cost me $11.45.

The look: Bleeding orange. Hands-down the messiest item in this survey, this sub simply oozed with vinegary hot sauce from below and gobs of blue cheese dressing from above. Toppings were all buried in between.

The taste: Bright and peppery. The unmistakable cayenne-spiced flavor of Frank's permeated the chopped meat and dominated the palate, with notes of funky, creamy blue cheese offering a slight cooling effect and at least some semblance of balance.

I've been known to indulge in a Buffalo-style chicken sandwich from time to time, but in most cases, the chicken is breaded. That crispy coating helps to soak up the sauce and allows you to actually taste the juicy meat within. This version is made with bare, thin slices of the bird, so the naked protein just drowns in the sauce. I greatly preferred this sub to the ill-fated veggie option, but it was mostly just a big mess—and hardly a cheesesteak.

California Chicken Cheese Steak

Confounding for completely different reasons, the so-called California Chicken Cheese Steak is a complete whitewashing of the Philly cheesesteak tradition: white meat, white cheese, white sauce, all on white bread. On its website, Jersey Mike's notes that this sub is "not available in all locations," which seems odd when you consider how incredibly uncomplicated it is to make: just chicken, cheese, lettuce, tomato, and mayo. Presumably, the California descriptor refers to the grilled chicken, a leaner answer to the fatty beef of the traditional Philly. It's one of six different chicken cheesesteaks at Jersey Mike's, and it's probably the most boring, albeit less of an abomination than the Buffalo rendition. This suboptimal sub cost me $11.05.

The look: Blushing. The rosy tomato slices beamed bright against the blank canvas of this mostly colorless sandwich.

The taste: Passable if uninspiring. Without the zesty punch of the Buffalo-style hot sauce, you can at least taste the chicken in this sub, but that's not necessarily a good thing. Heavily seasoned with salty, sweet, and somewhat gamey notes, the chopped poultry comes off like a typical processed cold cut. That's not entirely unexpected at a deli-style sandwich shop like Jersey Mike's, but it's a very different experience from the chain's more traditional beef cheesesteaks, which taste, well, like real sliced steak. (Tellingly, the list of ingredients for the chicken is a lot longer than the beef, as well.)

The best part of this sub was the tomato, which tasted remarkably fresh and juicy for a fruit that's long past its peak season.

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Bacon Ranch Chicken Cheese Steak

Conventional wisdom holds that bacon makes everything better, and that certainly rings true when it comes to chicken cheesesteaks at Jersey Mike's. The Bacon Ranch Chicken Cheese Steak is a modest upgrade on the California version, adding applewood-smoked bacon and replacing the mayo with ranch dressing. This sub set me back $11.45.

The look: Just as rosy as the California sub, thanks to that miraculously good tomato, with strips of reddish brown bacon adding a little extra color.

The taste: Smoky! The bacon flavor dominated both flavor-wise and texturally. Most fast-food bacon is regrettably flimsy but the strips on this sub were impressively crispy. Same goes for the tomato, which can be mushy and unpleasant in a typical quick-service environment, but turned out nice and ripe at Jersey Mike's. The tangy ranch provided enough of a twist to keep things interesting and also help compensate for the shortcomings of the chicken.

Portabella Chicken Cheese Steak

The Portabella Chicken Cheese Steak is built in a more traditional fashion, topped with onions, peppers, and mushrooms. Thankfully, the fungi is far less prominent here in than the full veggie version. At $12.15, this sub was tied for the most expensive cheesesteak in this entire survey.

The look: Drab. This sub is perhaps the least eye-catching of all, though the ruby-red peppers and grayish 'shrooms provided some contrast to its otherwise unpigmented facade.

The taste: Pleasant enough. The crunch and zesty flavor of the peppers were a good foil for the ho-hum chicken, and the earthy portabella proved far more enjoyable in this supporting role. Moreover, the creamy cheese made the total lack of sauce barely noticeable. This sub was the closest yet to a normal cheesesteak experience, but there were many better versions still to come.

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Chipotle Chicken Cheese Steak

Chipotle mayo is an increasingly common type of condiment, served with everything from fries to sandwiches. Featured here on Jersey Mike's Chipotle Chicken Cheese Steak, the spiced sauce tries to work some creamy magic on Mike's lackluster chopped chicken sub. This sandwich cost me $11.05.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

The look: Barely noticeable. If you zoom in, you can faintly see the light orange sauce amid a sea of pale-colored components. You wouldn't know at a casual glance but a few colorful peppers were scattered in there, as well.

The taste: Fairly zippy. Spread lightly along the top of the roll, the chipotle mayo brought some added pep to this sub, though no serious pepperhead would consider it even moderately hot. The added sauce was a benefit to the tolerable chicken, though, and I didn't miss the mushrooms at all. Still, a heavier helping of onions and peppers would have helped.

Mike's Chicken Philly

The most classic of the many chicken iterations on Jersey Mike's menu, Mike's Chicken Philly sticks to the basics: just meat, cheese, onions, and peppers. This sub was tied for the cheapest cheesesteak, too, at $10.95.

The look: More vibrant than its stripped-down ingredient list might suggest, this sub came packed with bright red and green veggies, making it relatively enticing for yet another chopped chicken item.

The taste: Zesty! The generous serving of onions and peppers elevated this sub above most of the other chicken varieties, providing ample crunchiness and a nice blend of grassy and sweet notes to complement the meat and cheese. If you eschew red meat entirely, this cheesesteak would make a suitable alternative, but it pales in comparison to one made with real beef.

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Big Kahuna Chicken Cheese Steak

Of all the chicken cheese steaks on Jersey Mike's menu, the Big Kahuna is the most fully loaded, piling on peppers, onions, mushrooms, and slices of jalapeño for extra oomph. Despite all the extra toppings, this sub was priced in the middle of the pack at $11.45.

The look: Verdant. This sub struck a more lush pose with all the dark green chilies poking out amid the mushrooms, peppers, and onions. For a meat-centric sub, this one actually packed a greater variety of veggies than the all-veggie cheesesteak itself.

The taste: Layered with flavors and a none-too-subtle kick. The jalapeño really made this cheesesteak pop with its bright zing and palpable, but not overpowering, heat. Of all the various toppings that Jersey Mike's has added to its chicken cheesesteaks, nothing amplified the experience the way that fruity, spicy pepper did. And as much as I've bemoaned the substandard chicken on these sandwiches, I found the meat most agreeable when paired with that punchy jalapeño.

Chipotle Cheese Steak

Finally! A cheesesteak made with real steak. The Chipotle Cheese Steak is one of four beefy iterations of the Philly-style hoagie on Jersey Mike's menu. It's a fairly traditional rendition, too, topped with the classics—cheese, onions, and peppers—with the only twist being a dose of chipotle mayo. The extra sauce adds 10 cents more to your bill than the regular cheesesteak, bringing the total to $11.05.

The look: Virtually indistinguishable from the regular cheesesteak. This sub came loaded with shaved beef, all coated in creamy white American. If you look close enough, you'll see a wafer-thin layer of orange, which is even less noticeable here than on its chipotle chicken counterpart.

The taste: Perfectly delicious, though definitely missing something. The difference between a cheesesteak made with real steak and one made with chicken is so stark that's hardly even fair to compare. The red meat is more rich, succulent, and natural tasting, and it's immensely satisfying when paired with the melty cheese, soft onions, and zippy peppers. The special sauce, however, is hardly noticeable. I had to pry off the top of the roll and dip my finger in the stuff to detect anything. A more generous slathering would certainly help.

Now, I'm not one to make much of a fuss over a measly 10 cents, but it's hardly worth handing over an extra dime when the defining ingredient is a total no-show.

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Portabella Cheese Steak

The Portabella Cheese Steak follows more or less the same formula as the beefy chipotle version. It's essentially your classic cheesesteak topped with onions and peppers, with one extra ingredient. In this case, it's mushrooms. And just like the 'shroom-topped chicken version, this sub cost me $12.15.

The look: True to its meaty billing. This sub arrived with a substantial serving of thinly sliced steak, laced with gooey white cheese intermingled with a modest amount of veggies.

The taste: Hearty as heck. One of the meatiest mushrooms around, portabella is a natural pairing with beef, and it showed in this combo. The steak and 'shrooms made for an extra umami-rich bite. Texture-wise, too, the soft fungi nicely complemented the chewy meat. Unlike the chipotle mayo, this addition actually brought something to the proverbial table, hence the higher ranking.

Mike's Famous Philly

New twists are often interesting, but sometimes it's best to leave well enough alone. Mike's Famous Philly is a case in point. It's the most classic cheesesteak on the menu, and surely one of the best, sticking to that time-tested formula of steak, cheese, onions, and peppers on a roll. This sub cost me $10.95.

The look: Perfectly proportioned with layers upon layers of browned steak, oozing with cheese and popping with both red and green peppers.

The taste: Luscious and lovely. This meaty sub ably delivered the desired rich, beefy taste in its purest, most satisfying form, with only the most essential toppings adding to the fun. I didn't miss the mushrooms from other versions, and I certainly didn't miss that forgettable chipotle mayo. Even so, there was one cheesesteak that actually topped the original.

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Big Kahuna Cheese Steak

Living up to its top-dog moniker, the Big Kahuna Cheese Steak one-ups the classic cheesesteak, offering all the requisite toppings, plus mushrooms and jalapeños. This fully loaded sub cost me $11.45.

The look: Just as beefy and creamy as the regular cheesesteak with bursts of green chilies luring you toward an expectedly snappy bite.

The taste: Divinely rich and peppery. Once again, the jalapeño stole the show, this time delivering a delightfully fruity and acidic kick that nicely balanced the fatty flavor of the beef. While not blazing hot, the spice was ample enough to keep the metabolism churning, which is especially helpful when chewing your way through a seven-inch, meat-packed sub.

As much as I loved the regular cheesesteak, the Big Kahuna was all that and more, making it hands-down the best one of the whole cheesy dozen.

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