Recently, while finishing up on some errands on a Sunday, I was craving a Cheesesteak. I decided to had to the Wise Ox since I was in the area. I thought it would give me some other options in case I changed my mind….yes, I still remember the recommendation for the bologna EW and Dave! I should have known better; it was close to noon on a Sunday and of course, there was no parking to be found; sigh. So, I needed a plan B. I had recalled reading that a pizza shop on the corner of ECB and Louisiana named Gnarly Girl that served up cheesesteaks. So, I decided to see if I could actually find some parking. Which I did rather easily on Mississippi…there's some huge building going up on ECB, but there was a ton of parking right past it.
I walked over to the colorful shop, it was five til noon, and there were a couple of groups; all with kids in tow waiting outside. I thought about doing an about face, but in the end, I decided to stick it out. Apparently, there were two large parties, one with reservations for 20 waiting! So actually getting in a placing an order was a breeze because all the pizzas had been preordered.
The interior is quite colorful….Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles rule one wall, this guy is on the fridge.
I walked up to the register and the friendly guy, who was soon overwhelmed with kids running around took my order.
There's an interesting sign at the register.
And then I walked over to the corner and watched the action!
My order took about 15 minutes. The woman, who I think runs the place handed me my sandwich and I wished her "good luck"……which cracked her up! She replied, "yes, thanks, we're going to need it!" As another party of at least 8 walked in with kids in tow!
The cheesesteak ($15) was quite hefty and long. And this is what it looked like when I opened it up.
A lot of meat. Which had been chopped too finely; it was headed toward "hamburger land". It had been seriously mixed with the White American Cheese. Didn't care for the mushy-mealy texture, though the flavor was ok…..mostly beefy, couldn't really make out the cheese or the onions.
The bread, faced with a daunting task of surviving all the mushy-damp protein had held out quite well.
I prefer my cheesesteak to have thinly sliced beef, not chopped too finely like this was. One could not complain about the portion size nor price. Looks like a great neighborhood place to take the family for some slices and maybe enjoy the art, but perhaps not for a cheesesteak. Looks like I'll be headed to Evans or Wise Ox soon…..boy do I miss Monkey Paw and Pop's. And if you'd like a good laugh, you can check out this this old cheesesteak collection from almost 15 years ago! Man does time fly!
Gnarly Girl Pizza
2302 El Cajon Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92104
Current Hours:
Sunday, Thurs 12pm – 9pm
Mon – Wed 3pm – 9pm
Fri – Sat 12pm – 10pm
I think I need me some Gaglione Bros
bummer
I look forward to some more reviews. That sandwich looks pretty good if I am in a beef mode though.
We hit the Hungry Bear in Vista a few weeks ago after seeing that on some YT channel claiming it was the best. We left not very impressed.
Hope you get your fix ST!
Yeah, kind of disappointing Kat!
I’m wary of those “Influencer” things Dereck!
Wow it’s been a while since I heard about Monkey Paw. They had some really good cheesesteaks and beer. Bock just opened in the former Hamilton’s space in South Park but the food and beer is now German centric.
there’s always a couple Reddit (FoodSanDiego) thread on the best San Diego Cheesesteak. Some people mention Philadelphia Sandwich Company in Miramar and Giorgino’s in Golden Hill. I’ve only had the Wise Ox, but that was VERY good. I think I need to go back.
I’ve heard about Bock, so am interested in what you think Junichi!
Hi Jeff – I thought Giorgino’s was pretty good, but that was a loooong time ago. You can find that one in this post:
/2010/07/14/say-cheesesteaks-a-comparison-of-cheesesteaks-in-san-diego-gaglione-bros-alexs-brown-bag-eddie-phila/
The Philadelphia Sandwich Company changed ownership about a year or so ago. Was never a fan, and am still not:
/2024/06/02/revisits-philadelphia-sandwich-company-and-tadian-cafe/
And, in case you want some laughs; I’ve got like 21 posts on Cheesesteaks….
/category/cheesesteaks/
Nice hearing from you and hope all is well!
I had to search the site for Wise Ox to see if I was the one who recommended the bologna. Turns out I was! How do you remember all these recs haha.
I will say I’ve never actually had the bologna sandwich from W.O. I’ve only gotten a 1/4 pound at a time kind of thing, but the roast beef sandwich is one of my favorites, and I’ve heard good things about the cheese steak.
Speaking of roast beef sandwiches, I recently had one from Wicked Rare Beefs, and, holy moly that is good. They are a pop up who appear at various breweries (Fall, Burgeon, maybe others).
I do try to remember recommendations from folks Dave, though it’s getting harder as I age! ;o) That roast beef sounds good…need to track them down! Thanks as always for the great recommendations!
Hopefully you get to try the Wise Ox soon! Their parking lot for that little shopping center on ECB is crammed, I’m usually able to find a spot about a block over near the dog park.
I’ve also enjoyed Giorgino’s, and friends who used to live on the East Coast seem happy with their cheesesteaks, too!
I did have the cheesesteak at the Wise Ox before Mar, which is why I wanted to return!
/2024/02/04/sunday-sandwiches-the-wise-ox-north-park-and-evans-deli-brew/
And I did like Giorgino’s as well…..I need to return! Thanks for the reminder!