Review is for the bar only.
Advertised as a great sports bar. No pool table, disco/funk music blaring. No audio on the baseball game on tv.
At 5 pm, no beer specials.
Business charges tax on top.
Worst of all, the pint ordered isn't a pint. Another cheap-ass bar that seeks to gyp me out of a few ounces of beer.
1 star for the bar. Perhaps I'll one day try their Philly cheesesteak, but I don't want to come back.
Yes I am on a diet. Â Yes, I'm not suppose to drink BUT I had a long day. Â Anyways, since I am on my diet, I ordered the Vegetarian Hoagie (hot).
SWEET JESUS!!! Â I thought I was going to hate it but it tasted like a folded veggie pizza....WOW..I don't know if it can be considered low cal but from this point forward, whenever I promise my GF that I'm going to eat low cal..I'm coming here!!
Mmmm, I just love the sandwiches at Philly West Bar & Grill!
I'm not much of a barfly, although this place looks mighty cozy. Â I just happened to see their sandwich menu one day -- and now I'm hooked!
The sandwiches, or "hoagies", are huge! Â They're the size of a giant at Jersey Mike's Subs, and at 2/3 the price. Â Plus Philly West makes their tuna and egg salad hoagies WITHOUT celery or onions! Â It's tough to find any tuna or egg salad sandwiches without celery or onions or black pepper these days, so thanks to Philly West! Â Their cheesesteak sandwiches are great, too! Â And the kitchen stays open till 11 pm.
I'm officially over this place. As a neighborhood joint, it's suppose to be easy. BUT it's like these guys love getting your order wrong. I mean, over 50% of the time!! It's so frustrating that I'm done with them.
You pay more for mozzarella or provolone, which makes the sandwiches taste better, but good luck getting what you order.
It's like the dysfunctional version of Cheers! Â This joint is down the street from me & I've walked passed it for over a year before I checked the reviews & decided to give it a go. Â Good, inexpensive beer selection & full bar (I don't recommend the bloody mary's though). Â The sandwiches are good too. Â I like the the tuna, the mushroom/pepper cheesesteak & the grilled chicken breast sandwiches. Â Some of the regular patrons have been coming here for over 20 years & are all very nice folks. Â I've been a regular here for the last couple of months & met some nice people & now like to call it my local watering hole. Â Cheers!!!
Review Source:I've never been to Philadelphia so I can't attest to authenticity BUT they do have a very good cheese steak sandwich.
Nice little bar. Â A real bar, not some tourist spot or TGI Fridays.
Places like this are getting harder and harder to find.
If you're in the area, I recommend stopping by for a bite and a beer or two or three  :)
BEST PHILLIES EVER, in LA at least.
The bread is fluffy, meat/veggies cooked just right, juice and sauce delicious.... these sandwiches are downright A-mazing. And if you get cheese fries they'll make you some SERIOUSLY cheesy fries. MM every time I eat here, my mouth throws a party!!
The service might take a little bit, but it's definitely well worth the wait, and I bet your stomach will love you forever!
I've always liked this place because it's close to work and it's a good sandwich. Â I love sandwiches.
I usually get the Philly with mushrooms and peppers. Â It's a great sub - I would like the bread a little more toasted but they use cheese whiz and the food is cheap. Â Beer is cheap. Â It's a good place to watch sports and it's never too crowded to have a good time.
The fries are soggy. Â The last few times I've had them they have been. Â I like cheese fries to have a crispy base and then drenched in cheese. Â These are drenched but not crispy. I recommend just regular chips over the fried, they're cheaper and single-serving.
Cheap beer, good food, and no pretension whatsoever.... what more could you want. Seriously!! Â The cheese steak is definitely legitimate, although I normally order mine sans marinara sauce -not that I'm biased against marinara sauce but it doesn't seem right to drown a steak and cheese with the stuff. Â The Hoagie also deserves a thumbs up as does the Italian Sausage sandwich- mmmmm yum.
Note to the pretentious, this is not five star dining, no white table linen, no crisply pressed waiters, and no valet parking. Â Don't come here with high heels or all yuppied out unless you want to get snicked at. Â Its just a neighborhood bar with pretty good grub
Sooo good! Â semi-dive (think old sonny's, not old del's), not dingy, but very laid back.
Good prices and ammmaaazzing bar food. Â Regular order me: cheese sandwich with lettuce, tomato and mayo (vegetarian), boyfriend: cheesesteak: onions, peppers, cheese, no sauce. Â Really really good bread! Â surprising very very high quality food for this type of bar. Â pitcher (about $15/$16) we usually get heff. Â Make sure you go in the back and get yourself some fresh pickles and pepper mix to put on your sandwich. Â Cheese fries there a guilty pleasure! Â Sometime boyfriend and I will get tasty cakes, but not really my favorite thing. Â Really one of the only places that's chill, not gross, serves great food that's cheap, decently priced beers, has tons of tvs for any game you may want to watch (and, they do try to accommodate what you want to watch, if possible).
Guy behind the bar knows how to run it. Â Even when he's the only one taking food and drink orders from 30 people, he gives better service than most other full-staffed bars in Los Angeles.
Never too crowded or too empty. Â writing this review is making me hungry for their sandwiches.
Are you stuck choosing between high-end cocktail bars where drinks are $15 apiece in Brentwood or rowdy college student-ridden bars near UCLA? Do you miss the low-key, comfortable sports bar atmosphere where food and beer are reasonably priced??? Are you from the East Coast??????
Well, this could be the place for you! Right near UCLA, but just far away enough, this place has become a chill go-to spot for me after a tiring day.
The sandwiches are tasty. I am no Philly cheesesteak connoisseur, but I definitely enjoy anything with meat, mushrooms, and peppers in it, and there are several versions of such deliciousness here. The beer selection is fantastic, they are patrons of the New Belgian brewery which means there's always Fat Tire and depending on the season, Blue Moon, Hoptober, etc.
Also, they'll put on most any game you want to watch, even if it's not the "big game" of the evening (though you may not get sound). I've come here just to chill with co-workers and occasionally to watch a game (I don't really know much about sports, but I can pretend).
I initially came here with a buddy to try a Philly cheese steak. Â I tried and found out that I am not a fan. Â It tastes like a meatball sandwich, in fact I can't tell the difference. I am not a meat ball sandwich fan either. Â
However, I did try tried their Hoagie. Â It is one of the best that I've had but it could be a great sandwich if they lightly toasted the bun. Â The veggies were prepped or marinated with a vinegar dressing which makes it very tasty. Â A far superior sandwich than Subway's or Quizno's. Â And the price was reasonable, I believe it was about $8.
This place also has some craft beers, which is always a plus. Â They had Fat Tire on tap. Â
The only real negative was the waitress/bartender. Â She was an older lady and at times can be fairly sarcastic. Â It's funny how a negative thing will keep you away. Â Once a year, I usually come here to pick up sandwiches for Super Bowl Sunday. Â I haven't been there in a while, maybe for this years Super Bowl.
Thank god for Philly West. Â
Low-key, cozy dive/sports bar with kickass philly cheesesteaks, hoagies, chili cheese fries, and a full bar with Fat Tire on tap. Â If that doesn't sound like a little patch of heaven to you, you're...you're...I can't even look at you.
Cons? Â The kitchen closes a little too early--10pm I think--but it's a common bar malady, unfortunately. Â The place is also on the small side/hole-in-the-wall-y but never cramped or so loud that you couldn't hear yourself talk.
The owner, who waits the tables and pours the dranks himself, carries an appropriately surly air to match his robust frame. Â Don't let that deter you though: he's actually rather attentive and will even soften up a bit for you, especially if you're a regular. Â
Philly West is no Penn Station, but it's about as good as it gets in LA for cheesesteaks. Â The crowd is usually laid back and wonderfully unpretentious: clusters of blue-collar, beer-gutted dudes who keep mostly to themselves, poor grads having fun with nothing to prove, the requisite solitary barflies casually enjoying the latest game. Â
There's veggie hoagies & sammiches too for you (wusses, just kidding) fauna-averse types and an old school arcade machine stationed by the door. Â Philly West, with its good grub, good beer, relaxed environment, and pointed lack of ne-er-do-wells, hipsters, and sleaze balls, kept me sane and entertained and hopefully will continue to do so for the rest of the west side populace for generations to come. Â Viva la Philly West!
Aighttt I went here two days in a row because I work right next to it lol. It's pretty empty at lunch time because who wants to be seen in a bar in the middle of the day right?
Anyways, I digress. The first day, I had their cheesesteak. The portion isn't as you'd expect (like the picture on the wall), but it was unique. When I read the marinara sauce on other ppl's reviews, I was like wha? But it gives a unique flavor. I do wish that they had bell-peppers on the cheesesteak though :/ (~$5)
Of course I had to try both their bread and butter, so on the second day, I had their hoagie. Their hoagie is much bigger than their cheesesteak and filled me up. I much prefer eating their hoagie with their insanely melted cheese rather than the boring subway sandwiches that are the same no matter where you are in the country. (~$6)
The worker there (i refer to her as 'the' worker because she was the only worker there both days) may come off cold at first, but is really nice and friendly when you converse with her.
I definitely want to try this place at night to see how the bar scene is.
Just be aware that you can't split the tab on multiple cards.
I can't keep this place down at two stars after the amount of times I've been here. It wouldn't make sense to frequent a two star joint so I'm here to fix it.
It's still not my style for say, a Friday or Saturday night, but I've found my way here more than I can recall. To watch this NFL game, or that NBA playoff game. To grab a quick beer before heading out or have a whiskey or two after work. I'm a Packer fan 'til death and I've never caught any flack for cheering for my team here, even when they played the Eagles. Yes, I cheered against the Philadelphia Eagles in a Philly bar. Works well when my Packers beat the Eagles twice this last year, including the playoffs (continual Vick karma). Hah! Good place to find people to talk sports with, any day of the week.
It seems to be my standard 60 minute or less bar, where I just want to have a drink or two. Yes, maybe it's because I live 4 blocks away. Yes, maybe it's because there are zero other bar atmospheres within a mile. But either way, I've been here time and time again, so they must be doing something right.
This is a great local bar. If you live walking (or stumbling) distance, it's the place to go. Cheap drinks, friendly bartenders, pretty good food.
This is not an LA bar in the sense that everything is overpriced and the food is locally grown, hand crafted by master artisans and served on plates of golden petal leaves. So their food is what you'd expect at a regular bar.
I got the burger, which was well prepared, had plenty of meat, good bread to soak up any juices, and enough plenty of melted cheese. The fries are steak-cut, and also pretty good (especially with cheese dipping sauce).
This is a typical hole-in-the-wall dive bar, but the difference is that they serve tasty Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches!! Yum! Â We came here when we couldn't get a table at Gyu-ka-ku for their Monday Happy Hour. Â Granted that Philly West is not cookin' your own meat status, it definitely holds it own ground with their sandwiches! Â Our group of six had a great time chillin' here. Â
One philly cheese steak sandwich with mushrooms and a pear cider later, I left here with a big smile on my face! Â All the sandwiches here were less than $6!! Â Did I mention that they were yummy? MmMmmMm. Â If I am ever in this part of town again, I will definitely make a stop for a sandwich and a pear cider!
Oh Travis L, how misguided you are. Philly Cheesteaks have mayo and marinara. At least, that is how I always get mine from Genos on 9th in Philly. I have gone here a few times. I am still on as quest for a REALLY good cheesteak. You see the, secret is in the oil and the bread. This place is so close, but it is still missing that special something. Maybe it is the water? I dunno...
The other thing, I am a die hard NY Giants fan. I hate the Bird poops with a passion. Oh yes, I called the loser Mike Vick having Eagles the bird poops. I think I may have some sort of indigestion while I am eating here and being forced to endure all that green and white. Boooo! But, seriously.... I think they are priced a little too high for what they offer. Plus, the steaks are so-so. They are, however, the best I have found in L.A. so far. But to be honest, that isn't saying much.
On the staffs suggestion, I tried their house Philly Cheesesteak. It had marinara sauce, people... Marinara sauce! WTF?!?!?
After all the reviews I've read, and after all my friends advising me to go to Philly West for a Cheesesteak, I was so fuming pissed at the whackness of this Cheesesteak experience that I haven't gone back.
As for beer, it's beer. And I like beer. Thank god for beer, or I'd have blown a gasket in this place. I mean, marinara??? Please...
I might go back if my friends drag me there to watch a game, but I won't be indulging in their C-steaks. No sir'ee. Instead, I'll head to Great Western Steak and Hoagie; at least they don't front like their "genuine Philly."
I've lived around the corner for over a year and just recently discovered this place! Awesome place.
I'm by no means a Cheesesteak connoisseur, but I am an Eagles fan and glad I can come here to watch games. The manager is down to earth (and gave my friend free Provolone cheese upgrade for being a Trojan. Boo!), and the customers/regulars there are chill and down to earth.
The Philly Cheesesteak is good and juicy! I wish the bread was more toasted because it does get soggy if you take-out. But the meat they use is well cooked and seasoned. The fries w/ cheese are delicious. Everything is so well priced, too!
I will definitely come back here and try their hoagies and sausage sandwich. Philly fans are welcome!
Philly West is as close as I can get to Philadelphia since I've never been there before and probably never will. Â I don't know how a "real" philly cheese steak is supposed to taste. Â All I know is that what I've had here has tasted really good to me! Â
It's very divey and chill. Â I really like the Philadelphia decorations and the flat screen TVs. Â Service is usually a hit or miss for me; it's sometimes fast, sometimes slow as molasses. Â I've ordered both the hoagie steak and the pizza steak sandwiches and never been disappointed. Â The prices make me even happier because everything is pretty cheap AND delicious. Â The only thing I don't like about this place are the Phillies pictures since they beat my DODGERS!
Recommendations: Â If you don't plan on dining in, I'd highly recommend calling in and ordering in advance. Â Again, the wait can be forever depending on how many cooks they have... which I think has usually been 1 during the times I've been.
I really can't understand how this place has stayed alive after all these years. I used to live blocks away and longed for local place where I could down a few cold ones, watch a game and stumble back home on foot. Philly West came in and made that all possible. Heck, that's worth 5 stars right there!!
But since I am no longer biased by proximity, I need to take off a star for the skeevy people who frequent this place. Where do they come from?? Rent and home prices in this semi-posh 'hood makes this question a real stumper. Alcohol's lost pilgrims from the Delaware valley perhaps.
Nice beer selection and reasonable prices. No, the cheese steak ain't all that, but it's good. Don't hate on them because the Times over-hyped them!
Don't forget to pick up some tastycakes for the ride home.
Despite the lack of knowledge of Philly cheesesteaks by the writer of the LA Times article (C. Thi Nguyen). I have had countless REAL Philly cheesesteaks in Pennsylvania. To even put the term Philly on your actual restaurant name and not serve it the ways we do it in Philly is just asinine. Â Yes you don't have to use Cheese Whiz, but Cheez Whiz is the "sine qua non of cheesesteak connoisseurs." This is why we seek out the establishments that give us that special ingredient to remind us of home. The top cheesesteak spots in Philly give you the option of Provelone, Cheez Wiz, and White American. The fact they offer mozzerella for a steak sandwich just shows their ineptness at really understanding what cheese works best on a grilled steak sandwich. It's laughable how the writer mentions this too.
"Some may immediately protest: "What? What about the Cheez Whiz? A Philly cheese steak has got to have Cheez Whiz!" Not so, says owner and chef Mark Lifland. "I get yelled at for not using Cheez Whiz. People think it's traditional and it's not."
Well for over 1/2 of us from Pennsylvania, it's the quintessential ingredient that separates a Cheesesteak sandwich from a Philly Cheesesteak sandwich. Perhaps removing the world Philly from your bar name and menu can save you some grief, and save all the searching customers for a 'REAL' Philly Cheesesteak some time by not coming here.
attitude doesn't come with Philly, their attitude is a head up your ass mentality and I would never come back into this place. Kinda makes you wonder why someone has to write an article on this place to get some exposure, to be mislead into a BS establishment.
Don't waste your time if you are looking for the 'REAL PHILLY CHEESESTEAK' for now I'll have to just wait for my next trip to Philly to get a real cheesesteak from my favorite spot Tony Lukes or Geno's.
**edit: if you are looking for the "Whiz Wit", there is a good spot on wheels, The South Philly Experience. They're bread is straight form the east coast, Amoroso bread rolls, the best for a cheesesteak! Tasty Kakes, Pork Brocolli Rabe sandwiches, chicken, and the WHIZ! <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz/south-philly-experience-los-angeles">http://www.yelp.com/biz/…</a>
Before I explain how I came to Philly West, you should just picture the ragtag group I was with...
Me: short super loud girl in jeans and a vest
S: tall super hot rockabilly chic in a red jumper
J: tall super hot GQ dude in a suit
After a night of driving from here to there to find alcoholic bliss, we decided on the local joint suggested by my red jumpered friend.
Walking into Philly West, I felt like that scene in three amigos where everyone in the bar stares in disbelief at the group who entered. And when I say "everyone in the bar" I mean the couple sitting at the bar talking to the bartender.
We found ourselves sitting at a table with our drinks as mismatched as we were. Glass of water, Maker's Mark rocks, bottle of beer.
And sure, the place was empty, and sure it was a Thursday night. But the juke had good tunes, the bartender was friendly and attentive and the couple was nice enough to talk with us after a few sips of our drinks. All in all it was a good night.
Was this place the happening spot? Nope.
But sometimes, just sometimes, three amigos like to go to a bar to drink and talk, and this place is perfect.
I have been coming to this place off & on for about 13+ years now. Ever since then as soon as the awesome bartender/waitress Lori hears my name she knows exacly what I want.
I always get the cheese steak sandwich with the cheese fries and a side of cheese & marinara sauce. I use those to dip my sandwich in. Â
I consider the place more of a bar before I do a restaurant because it has the feel of a bar with lots of televisions & lot of liquor. Yeah, that sounds like a bar to me. Â
It's a small cozy spot and I always feel welcomed when I go there.
I COMPLETELY agree with JVR's review on this place. Â If I could give this place negative 5 stars I would. Â Never have I experienced such downright rudeness and terrible hospitality in my life!
My co-workers came to this joint to watch the Barcelona-Chelsea game and so we kindly ask if she can switch it on since nothing else is really on.
Her: Are you ALL gonna eat?
Us: Yes we're all gonna eat.
Her: I will ONLY put the game on if you're ALL gonna eat so are you ALL gonna eat.
Us: YES LADY WE'RE ALL GONNA EAT.
THEN we move to sit at an empty table that was positioned perpendicular to the TV so that we could all have a view of the TV. Â
Her: You can't sit there that's a 5-person table. Â
Ok it's only a 5 person table because you added an extra seat to the table. Â Any of the other tables could easily become a 5 person table. Â She made us sit at another table where two of us had our backs facing the TV. Â And of course no 5 person group ever came in to sit at that precious table.
As I didn't have cash I wanted to pay separately so I asked her if we could do separate tabs.
Her: We don't do separate tabs here. Â We're understaffed and too busy that would take up too much of my time.
OK really?! Â Honestly if you can't do it, don't be so f*ckin rude about it!! Â Just say, "I'm really sorry we don't do that here" would suffice. Â But she had such TUDE like how dare you ask me that question.
Lucky for her my co-workers are much nicer than her and still tipped her, although I refused to. Â She will never see me in there again and I will make sure to tell EVERYONE i know NEVER to step foot in this awful place.
Man yelp is good for unloading your dissatisfaction with service!
I so wanted to love this place. Â I've driven by for years, always making a mental note to give it a try. Â That day finally came.
Note that this review is only for the food. Â I didn't have any drinks, and didn't pay attention to the selection that they offered.
I had a mushroom cheesesteak (hold the sauce). Â The meat was ok, a little dry. Â The cheese was good in some parts of the sandwich, but a little overpowering in other parts. Â The meat to cheese ratio was definitely a bit off. Â The most disappointing part of my sandwich was the huge chunks of mushrooms. Â I expected them to be more mushroom slices cooked in with the meat and onions, but they were more like 1/2 mushrooms that were shoved in the sandwich as an afterthought. Â Fries were ok, but they were very thick (like steak fries, but not as good - I don't know, hard to explain)
On a positive note, the guys working there were really nice and friendly. Â They were quick to take our orders too.
If I lived around the corner from this place like Simonster does, then it might be my local go-to place. Â It has a friendly atmosphere and you can tell they have a loyal following. Â Its like drinking at a more grown up fraternity house. Â Which isn't a bad thing. Â A place to come in jeans, flip flops and your college t-shirt in Westwood, who knew. Â
I definitely want to try a philly cheesesteak from here,... but being I have never had one - I am holding out for an original one from Philly. Â I gotta go there eventually for a work trip, right?
Yum yum yummy! Â I loved my philly cheesesteak (hold the marinara) from here. Â I wasn't as impressed with the fries, Â which were too thick, Â resulting in a bit of an uncooked texture/taste. The cheese fries are a bit ridiculous too -- you could make them yourself at home by dumping some heated Doritos nacho cheese on some frozen fries. Â Eat the sandwich alone maybe? Â Or just eat two. Â : ) Â
For sports watchers and drunkards alike, Â good sandwiches are accompanied by flat screen tvs, Â blaring a range of sports commentary and events, Â as well as a full service bar with regulars parked on the stools throwing back some cold ones. Â
I only know of one other cheesesteak place on the westside, and Philly West is better for sure; if cheesesteak what you're searching for, Â here's your spot.
I'm going to tell you Yelpers a story of three hungry girls:
Girl #1: Famished Girl
Girl #2: Starving Girl
Girl #3: Hungry Girl
Famished Girl was on her way to pick up Starving Girl and Hungry Girl. Starving Girl and Hungry Girl did not know what they wanted to eat, so Famished Girl had to take initiative and think of places to go.
Famished Girl suggested Upstairs 2 (above the Wine House) and all the girls said, "Yeah!" We soon found out that Chucks and Jacks were not appropriate dining wear for Upstairs 2, so brainstorming began once again.
Famished Girl then suggested we drive down Westwood Blvd. and hit up some of the restaurants there. "Okay!" the other girls yelled! "How about Wakasan?" Disappointment soon set-in as we were informed of a 20-minute wait. Hmm..where to go? Where to go...
Bright neon lights flashed in our weary eyes as we saw the sign for Philly West Bar & Grill. Should we go eat Philly cheesesteaks? "Yayyyyyyyy!!" We ran across the street and entered into the establishment. No wait!? Yes!!!
Our two other friends joined us at Philly's West as our hunger began to ease and our bellies were filled with delicious sandwiches and cheesy cheesy fries. This dive bar satisfied all our needs and Famished Girl, Starving Girl and Hungry Girl all were able to ease into blissful philly cheesteak happiness.
The end.
****************************
P.S. If you order a philly steak, hold the tomato sauce, tastes much better without it. Enjoy! :)
Dive bars ain't my thang thang.
But I'm from Philly & my 2nd UYE took place here.
As all the other reviews said - it is a hole in the wall place.
We were there from 10:30pm to close to midnight. It was pretty quiet. A few regulars (older men) sitting at the bar who seemed to be friends with the bartender.
Our group sat at the tables & chatted & chatted & drank.
After he learned I was from good ole PA, Jonathan L. & I got into a discussion on how we eat our cheesesteaks. He asked me with provolone or whiz. I said provolone but come to think of it - I usually eat mine with American cheese. He eats it with cheez whiz - which is what all the tourists eat. Pffffffffffft. Â Anyways, he was disappointed he didn't get to try a cheesesteak due to Ricky's Indonesian UYE dinner beforehand which I missed out on.
I'm not sure if they have Amoroso rolls here (the bread we use for cheesesteaks - without it - trust me, it just isn't the same).
I did notice they say that  they bake fresh Tasty Kakes in their menu. Ummm, this confused the hell outta me. For those of you who don't know - tastykakes are superior and are infinitely better than any other snack brands. Tasty kakes are the Philly equivalent of Little Debbies, Twinkies, Entemanns, etc. These kakes are what I grew up on & shouldn't even be classed with the aforementioned brands.
So I have no idea what they meant by saying - it is baked fresh here (Unless they have a tasty kake factory in the back that they are hiding) but I ain't mad at ya. Ma Philly peeps hustle. Keep on keepin' on. heh.
I can't really say it reminded me of Philly much. Well...a little bit - maybe a little Northeast Philly-esque.
What would make this more Philly is if it threw up Eagles paraphernalia - which was seriously lacking.
I have yet to try the cheesesteaks in LA - and I know there are at least 4 spots - here, South St, a place on Washington Blvd & Sepulveda, & a hoagie place also in Culver City. Â At the same time, I have no desire to - in fear that I will be disappointed and I would hate to be a sell out and diss anything that is Philly. But maybe one day...
Peep the pix
Forget about Southstreet, PHILLY WEST is the place to get great cheese steaks and beer!
I remember my boss telling my director,"Don't go to South Street... You'll be disappointed for sure..." My director did the mistake of going to South Street and low-&-behold, he wasn't satisfied with the cheese steaks there at all (despite it being praised by most people and media).
The journey of Philly West started out because the IT Team was cravin' CHEESE STEAKS... and BEER! Haha! Mmmmmm... beer. :P *hiccup* Anyways, me and the bossman mentioned Philly West one time, since we ALWAYS seem to drive past it on our way to work here in Westwood. Little did we know, our beloved IT Director knew about Philly West long ago, because him and his wife used to get their grub & drink on here when they were getting loads of laundry done at the Laundromat next door.
So we took the entire team there. It's a chill sports bar and grill- got tables for the sit-down people or you can sit at the bar. There's a whole assortment of alcohol to your liking, which of course includes beer. There are several TV's capturing various sports channels to keep you checkin' out scores and such. If you head near the back, there's a small bar, loaded with jalepenos and pickles, just stuff to snack on before or during the downing of your cheese steak. We tend to go here on fridays (paydays) since it's very chill and quiet at work, and it's great to kick back, unwind, and taking a slightly longer lunch with grub and beer.
Sandwiches- most of the guys like the pizza-steak, a few like the mushroom cheese steak... I on the other hand can get either, but make mine DOUBLE MEAT for a fee (forgot how much, maybe like $1.50 more?). Fries are freshly cut and fried, I can say that these are thicker cuts of "in-and-out" fries, but much better... So hot they can burn the roof of your mouth. You can have cheese fries, which is essentially fries w/ nacho cheese on top, which is very good by the way... simply good. :)
Alcohol- Pabst Blue Ribbon is our beer of choice. We can easily down 2-4 pitchers of this stuff, leaving us red when loose when head back to work to finish off the day/work-week. *hiccup* ;) I used to not like the taste of beer, but I have grown to like it, trying out different kinds. PBR has definitely become a favorite. I think one time our director bought us a round of patron silver shots- MAN! was I toasted!
Specials Board- There's a chalkboard that lists specials, whether it be beer on tap or food. They have Chili con carne, which I might add is very tasty. Mmmmm, onions and cheese... You should probably save some chili con carne to dip your cheese steak into.
Philly West- it's A-OK with me! The cheese steak is definitely better than what South Street has to offer. Philly West seems more authentic (even though this is SoCal and not Philadelphia). If you want a great cheese steak, fries and a fine selection of beers- go here... this is one kick-ass 'hole-in-the-wall' places.
One of my favorites in LA.  A  true hole in the wall with good, cheap food (cheaper for a sub than the Quizno's down the street).  They have some nice beer selections as well.  The service varies depending on who is working as there is almost always only one person manning the bar and the dining area.  It's not the greatest place to watch sports and you may not even be able to get your game on one of the four TVs  unless you're watching a Philly team (to be expected).
You'll be hard pressed to find a better casual experience in the area.
I haven't reviewed this place yet because my lunch crew has always referred to it as "Sketchy Cheesesteak". It's a hole in the wall that would easily fit into downtown Philly. Only recently I walked by it and made a mental note to remember the name.
Is it as good as a cheesesteak from Philly? Not even close.
However, the food is satisfying and they have cheese whiz fries (yeah I can see you cringing but you knew you loved it when you were a kid). Oh, and I always love CHEAP. Â
Park in the back of the building and walk through the laundromat.
The magic of Philly West is having an un-petite, mustached man in a skin tight, orange Wheaties bike racing jersey serve you a piping hot cheese-steak sandwich in a red plastic basket, or at least that's the conclusion I came to this evening. Â Not that that's necessarily what you'll get here every time, but you will encounter a good collection of local characters at this very unpretentious sports bar. Â And yes, they occasionally wear jerseys. Â Skin tight ones. Â
I've been coming here for years when the urge hits for a good dose of cheese-steak, a pitcher of beer and perhaps to catch a game or two on one of the many televisions hanging around the room. Â The sandwiches are pretty darned good if you're a fan of the cheese-steak. Â You get your usual blast of molten orange cheese of dubious provenance mixed with a slivered and grilled meat of your choice, all stuffed inside a decently scrunchy french loaf. Â You can dress it up with onions, peppers, mushrooms, or sauce... It's all pretty good. Â
They also have a few other hoagies and burgers on the menu, but I've never been tempted to stray from my cheese/meat/carb prize. Â The fries are thick and of the "steak" genus, but offer up a good surface area of spud to absorb a splash of ketchup between bites of sandwich. Â Altogether a solid mouthful best washed down with a frothy gulp of cold Anchor Steam. Â Or Bud.
Low carb and low fat it's not, but if you're going to indulge in cheese-steak and take in a game, you cold do a lot worse than Philly West.
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