Lillo’s Tomato Pies, Hainesport, NJ
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
This is still a top cheesesteak. They slice the meat thick so you can taste it. There was a good amount and a good melt of the cheese. I think the onions have gotten bigger. Upon further review, I don’t think I am a fan of the bigger onions. My same old concern is the roll. It is a very good roll. They put a lot of effort into getting the roll right. I think it needs to be scooped. I would like the meat, cheese and onions to fit in the roll better. I think it is a great candidate for scooping. I would love for the scoopage to be made into bread pudding. I love bread pudding.
Mama’s Meatballs & Pizzeria, Pennsauken Twp, NJ
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
This isn’t the cheesesteak I remember from Mama’s. I think they have a new ‘bigger is better’ mantra at Mama’s. This is a big boys cheesesteak. In small portions, the meat was tender, juicy & flavorful. It has a big bready roll. I think the big roll combined with a lot of meat was cumbersome to eat. Still good but cumbersome.
Amato Bros., Oaklyn, NJ
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
Last year’s Peoples Champion. Denise put together a great trophy presentation party. At the party I had an amazing Chicken cutlet Gabbagol sandwich. This year, Wednesday afternoon with a few regulars at the bar. This wasn’t their best day. I ate my cheesesteak there. The bottom of the roll was wet. It had a thicker slice of meat which gives it a nice meat flavor. The onions added a nice flavor. It was hard to get past the wet roll.
Ry & Howie’s Steaks and Hoagies, Medford, NJ
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
This cheesesteak is good looking, well made, and easy to eat. No mushrooms in March Cheesesteak Madness this year. I miss their mushrooms. With no mushrooms I am really seeing the importance of the fried onions to add flavor. These fried onions were prepared nicely and added a very good flavor. I mention my limited and nit-picky concerns in the video.
Chick’s Deli, Cherry Hill, NJ
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
I say it every year. I am surprised at how much I like this cheesesteak. Getting to that section of Rt 70 puts me in a bad mood. Chick’s is in an alley that the rudest people visit. The cheesesteak looks small. It looks small because they scoop the roll. I’ve become a fan of scooping but I am always surprised when I see a scooped cheesesteak. The cheesesteak comes on a good seeded roll. It has a sneaky good amount of meat. I would like more cheese and a better melt. I need more flavor from the onions.
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
Italian Kitchen, Pennsville, NJ
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
When I started my Philadelphia Cheesesteak Adventure I got a lot of, ‘you’re wasting your time, everyone knows where to get a good cheesesteak’ and ‘how different can a roll, meat and cheese be.’ When I posted pictures of my cheesesteak from the Italian Kitchen the tides (see what I did there) changed. I heard, ‘ohhh, that’s a good-looking cheesesteak.’ I always get myself an Italian kitchen-made treat. This trip was ‘free french fries with every cheesesteak’ day. You know I love free. And they were very good french fries. The cheesesteak had a lot of flavor but needed more cheese.
Nick’s Pizza Parlor & Bar, Wilmington, DE
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
New place. They have been open for 5 days and still a line to get in. 4:30 is more of a target opening than a hard open. I usually don’t wait in lines but I am glad I did on this day. Very well made cheesesteak. It passed the eye test. Nick’s made roll. Nice and crispy on the outside. Scooped on the inside. The onions complimented everything well. Good amount, at $15, of easy to eat meat. The cheese was good. Nice melt. I would have liked more cheese. I sat next to Debra Heffernan. I’m gonna pester her until she gets Delaware to name a day after me. 50 cents for onions???
Donkey’s Place, Camden, NJ
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
Bucket List item. Only cheesesteak to have a sitcom episode dedicated to it. 1st, Donkey was a person. There is a picture of him with Jim Thorpe hanging on the wall. 2nd, I love that Rob has changed nothing. I highly recommend going when they are not busy so you can sit in the back and soak in the history. 3rd, the Cheesesteak. Not the way I would make or order a cheesesteak. BUT, I would put a hot juicy Donkey’s cheesesteak up against anyone’s.
Cafe Scalessa’s, Wilmington, DE
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
I always think I am being a homer when I put Scalessa’s in March Cheesesteak Madness. Then I eat there and realize they deserve to be in March Cheesesteak Madness. Scalessa’s is best known for their meatballs. My daughter loves their porchetta. I always get a piece of butter cake. Like everything else at Scalessa’s, the cheesesteak is made with great ingredients and a caring chef.
Carmen’s Deli, Bellmawr, NJ
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
They half read my review from 5 years ago. They now have inside seating (and a bathroom) but took away the chocolate covered pretzels (and farm animals). This is a very good cheesesteak. They are having a cheesesteak special, $11.99. I would have liked it at full price. Big seeded roll. It was not cut well so we had a blow out. Very good amount of cheese. The cheese could have been distributed a little better. They seasoned the meat with something. I would have liked more flavor from the onions. This is a couple tweaks away from being a top tier cheesesteak.
Brooklyn Original Pizzeria, Haddon Heights, NJ
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
Thank you for Saquon and this amazing roll. I went to BOP early in the adventure before they had cheesesteaks so I knew their pizza was very good. I was delighted (delighted; was grammarly recommendation) when I heard they added cheesesteaks. The roll is amazing and they toast it. I would have liked more from the meat. It had a good amount of cheese but needs a little better cheese distribution. This roll deserves better from the rest of the team.
Dar’s Steaks, Haddon Twp., NJ
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
$12, you know I love that. When I opened the box this cheesesteak smelled good. I got Dar’s-made cheese sauce. My bad. I think it is cheddar based. The sauce was made well. It was on the roll and on top of the cheesesteak. I liked my roll. I think it had an artesian quality. Good mix of fried onions and meat. This was a well made cheesesteak. I have to stop ordering their cheese sauce.
Claymont Steaks, Claymont Steaks
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
When my dad said we were getting cheesesteaks, this is where we went. When my cousin John and I got caught cutting school, this is where we were. After we moved my sister into her first apartment, this is where we went. I was sitting in Claymont Steaks when I decided to go on a Philadelphia Cheesesteak Adventure. Unfortunately, this is not my father’s cheesesteak.
Sully’s Irish Pub, Middletown, DE
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
I wanted to love Sully’s. Thomas Jefferson and George Washington ate here. They, Sully’s, make beer cheese. We got it on our cheesesteak. It needed more of that. Sully’s makes their own hot peppers. I’m not a hot pepper fan but I am a fan of Sully’s hot peppers. I was definitely not a fan of the owner rubbing the waitress’s hair and telling us we had to get her beautiful eyes in our video.
Cockadoodle Dan’s Wings and Steaks, Moorestown, NJ
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
This cheesesteak was a pleasure to eat. It starts with a nice seeded roll. The roll was a little softer than I normally like. The meat was sliced thin, chopped, and easy to eat. The cheesesteak had a good amount and a good cheese melt. The onions added a delightful sweetness. To be a top tier cheesesteak, I would like to see the roll, meat & cheese get up to the onions’ high standards.
322 BBQ & Butcher, Wilmington, DE
2025 March Cheesesteak Madness
NJ/DE Region – Contestant video
322 BBQ makes candied bacon. According to my cousin, candied bacon is crack for meat eaters. Candied Bacon makes everything better!! Candied bacon, egg and cheese on everything bagel – that’s how you start your day!! Candied Bacon old fashions – yum!! Candied bacon and chocolate donuts – absolutely!! Cheesesteak with candied bacon, I haven’t fallen in love with you, yet.