Philly Steak Depot

Photos: Courtesy of "Cutlass Supreme"

PHILLY STEAK DEPOT: (Located @ Santa Monica & Vine)

6254 Santa Monica Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90038

Telephone: (323) 467-1215

Business Hours: Monday-Saturday (10:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m.)

Growing up as a child, I would always hear, "When you eat food, you want it HOT - so hot it burns the roof of your mouth - you don't want food that's been sitting around..." Could this be true? Well, if you ask some people, they'll say it's all relative. A bit masochistic? Well, maybe a bit. LOL! So what's the point of all this, you ask? Simple. If you want fresh, hot, sizzling food, PHILLY STEAK DEPOT is your spot.

Situated at the corner of Santa Monica & Vine, this purveyor of "meaty goodness" serves a monstrous 14" Philly Cheese Steak sandwich for the glutton in you. Of course, there are variations which are left to the patron to choose. I, myself, opted to go with the "SUPER STEAK." (You got to love the use of superlatives... LOL!) And, just what is the "SUPER STEAK?" Well, if you listen, I'mma tell ya. SUPER STEAK is a 14" monstrosity filled with ribeye steak, provolone cheese, bell peppers, onions, and mushrooms. Hold on now. I'm not finished. I still have to give you the details...

Initially starting out as a brick of sliced ribeye, this bio-mass of beef manifested itself into a symphony of flavors, as the FOOD TECHNICIAN stirred in copious amounts of grilled onions, mushrooms, and bell peppers into a generous heaping of carmelized ribeye steak. The "pièce de résistance" of this hedonistic endeavor? 3 or 4 slices of Provolone cheese! Yeah, yeah, yeah... I know. I'm being trite. What can I say? It happens.

Anyway, all b.s. aside, this sandwich was delicious. It was hot. It was juicy. It was DEFINITELY meaty. What else could anyone ask for? Simple. A fork. There's so much residual meat pouring out of this sandwich, you can't help but to use it. AND, as you relish in the flavors of this masterpiece, you'll find yourself picking up on the subtle nuances of a grilled steak accompanied by the sweetness of mushrooms, onions, and pepper (The cheese just binds it all together). Yum? You better believe it.

Wait, wait, wait! What about the bread, "Cutlass"? Oh, yeah, the bread. It was fresh, crusty on the outide, and nice and soft on the inside. Let's just say, it sopped up ALL the juices of everything I just described in the paragraph above. Nice, huh? My sentiments exactly.

Now, I'm no connoisseur of Philly Cheese Steaks, but this sandwich did alright by me. If it's good, it's good. I'm not here to nit-pick and compare it to anything on the East Coast. With that said, STREET TREATZ gives "PHILLY STEAK DEPOT" a gut-busting 4.125 stars out of 5. (****.125) Let's just say that the next time I get a "jones" for some Cheese Steak, I'm going back to PHILLY STEAK DEPOT for more.

P.S. Request a lot of napkins. You're going to need it. Trust me. I know.

NOTE: If you look closely at the pictures, you'll see the hot steam wafting from these delectable "treatz"... All you have to do is click to enlarge.