A few times I’ve passed by Johnny’s, a nondescript carryout restaurant at 14th and Meridian NW: they have the usual carryout staples like Chinese food, seafood, fried chicken, subs and the like. However, in their otherwise normal window, there’s a sign that reads “World’s best cheesesteaks.”
I thought that was pretty funny, not “famous cheesesteaks” or anything like that, but the world’s best, so I decided to give it a shot. And while there may be better ones out there, I wasn’t disappointed. It was damn good.
I got the combo, which is about $7 for an 8″ regular cheesesteak, fries and a drink, though I had to buy a second soda to make it enough for them to take my credit card. After a few minutes of waiting, my dinner was ready. When I got home, I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn’t super greasy or gooey, there was a ton of tasty meat, a good amount of cheese (but not too much, letting the beef shine), tomatoes, sauteed onions and lettuce. That’s it, pretty simple. And it was good.
I devoured the thing in no time flat, and unlikely many cheesesteaks I’ve gotten, like Manny and Olga’s, there wasn’t a tray full of grease afterwards. It actually seemed like, Heaven forbid, a relatively healthy cheesesteak in that sense.
So maybe Johnny’s is on to something. They were also mentioned by a commenter in the post on the best Chinese food in the area recommending them (though the commenter also said she doesn’t have high standards) but hey, two good recommendations for it. Give them a shot if you like cheesesteaks.
