Jim's Steakout - Steak Hoagy

I was in Buffalo for Oinktoberfest again this past weekend and was in the mood for a Philly steak sandwich. I'd heard good things about Jim's Steakout in a newspaper article about the best places to eat in the Buffalo area. Jim's was recommended for steak hoagies. They have multiple locations around the Buffalo area, I hit the 3336 Sheridan Drive location in Amherst.

I went in and saw what I was after, a 12 inch Philly steak hoagy ($9.25, yep almost ten bucks) which came with chopped sirloin steak, cheese, fried onions and topped with Jim's secret sauce.

It was interesting to see them chopping the meat directly on the grill with a couple of spatulas, it was prepared very quickly, placed on the bun and doused with the secret sauce.

Eating it was a messy affair. Once wrapped, the sauce oozes everywhere soaking the bun, the paper it was wrapped in and forcing the eater to hunch over significantly to save their clothing from drips.

The taste of the sandwich was hit and miss for me. The meat, although heavily sauced was very bland, it was well chopped and very tender but didn't bring any spice to the table. I'm assuming the sauce is supposed to spice it, I would have rather had some pepper and garlic sprinkled on it. I'd say the sandwich needed salt but the cheese was incredibly salty. I'd take a bite of a meaty section and it'd be bland, then I'd hit the cheesy section below and my tongue would send signals of salt overload to my brain.

The bun was excellent. It was fresh and stood up well to the moisture filled meat and toppings that were piled into it.

On the whole I was a little disappointed with the sandwich. The disparity between the bland meat and salty cheese (which would have probably been great if they were combined better) made for a tale of two sandwiches. I don't know what the sauce brings to the table other than making a mess.... While the sandwich was very large I don't think the price of this sandwich was justified, I wouldn't order it again.