Figueroa Philly Cheese Steak — Restaurant in Los Angeles

We were pretty disappointed with this experience overall.

We thought that we were going to a store location based on the pictures from Google. It wasn’t a big deal actually, when we arrived to a depot to pivot for a different experience. We are flexible and open to new ideas. If the food was good it would have been just fine. However:

This depot concept was new for us but there is literally nowhere to park, it’s a depot of multiple restaurants. Hopefully you have another person in the car to drive while the other gets out to order. You walk up to a computer-like station to order food. At the station, you establish which place you’re ordering from, select items in your order, pay for it and then it sends a confirmation text to you with a timeframe. We selected Figueroas, picked our 3 phillies and added in an order of well-done garlic waffle fries, $73. $73 bucks felt steep for what we ordered but for “authentic” phillies, we were willing to pay it. We did everything that we needed to on the machine and then it sent a text, it gave us a range from was 13-33 minutes. Which seemed like a wide range, it was finished at about 22 minutes. We waited for the confirmation text, “checked in” with the lady at a booth, allowing us to pass through and then we drove up to the proper container where the food was going to be handed to us. We got our food and dug in right away. We were hungry and again, were not expecting the experience we got… to not have a place to park, sit and eat. We had to eat and drive. Unfortunately, unwrapping our meals we found multiple issues. 1- the waffle fries they serve are actually crinkle cut fries… not waffle fries. When we picked them up, we asked for ketchup and they said that they didn’t have any. Lame. We opened the box and not only were they not well-done they were barely cooked. They tasted like box frozen fries, which were still white in color, with none of that golden color you want to see on a fry. 2- all three sandwich hoagies were wet to the point of falling apart while holding even in their wrapping. 3- one of the sandwiches completely lacked cheese! The others barely had any cheese on it at all. Cheese is a staple on a cheesesteak; it was just meat and bread. Somehow it was both too wet on the bread and extremely dry on the inside. Meat wasn’t very good, overcooked and dry. 4- afterwards, I filled out their survey asking for feedback promising that someone would email back. No one did.

Overall: The depot concept was unwelcoming and difficult as a result of the lack of parking. The food was not good. The cost was very high. The experience is poor. Even with the hopes of connecting with someone to resolve any issues, there was no follow up. We drove up from San Diego to visit the area and had included this as part of the plan… it was not worth the stop. Wanted an authentic philly and ended up with nothing resembling that…...

So a lot of factors may have played out to my experience, I do not put full blame on the service, (since everyone was nice), however let me say that there needs to be better time management skills. I placed an online order at 7:10 (I actually did not know they closed at 8 so that would be my fault for placing an order 40 mins before closing). Even so, I received an email stating that my food would be ready by 7:40, I left my house and got there by 7:50 (USC was having one of their infamous events so I got there later).

I was greeted kindly, they mentioned they would be closing but I stated that I placed an online order so they said ok it would be right out. I took notice that they were cleaning up and nothing was on the grill or being cooked (again, this is understandable because they were closing), so I figured they may have already made my food and placed it somewhere else, but no, nothing was ready and they placed a bunch of frozen fries to cook right when I asked for my food.

As they handed me all my food I had initially believed that the sandwiches were ready, but the fries were not. But once I got home everything was a mess, the fries were stale and extremely greasy that the bag was soaked, I ordered three Cheese Steak Hoagie sandwiches and I only had steak with barely any cheese and onions with none of the other necessary components that would make it a cheesesteak hoagie.

Again, I reiterate that I understand it was closing so they most likely rushed to have my food ready, but if nothing was ready I would rather have been told that than be served something mediocre and just plain bad. Don't think I would want to...

So - I am from Philly and worked at the Nile Swim Club where Cheestesteaks and chicken cheesesteaks w/ the Amoroso rolls (fresh from the factory at 55th and Baltimore) were on the menu. I prefer real cheese over canned, cracked pepper, green peppers, onions, ketchup hold the mayo and the fingerprints. If you got some of those little green sweet peppers I'll take a couple of those too but don't make a sandwich out of it - please. Now - I give Figueroa Philly 5 stars because I've had cheesesteaks in about 20 different cities along the West Coast and all up and down the East Coast from places that rank between "disposable" to "the cook never had a Phillysteak - but it works" to "That was pretty good and close but -not quite a cheesesteak". Figueroa Philly is one of 2 of the closest you will get on the left coast of the cheesesteak capitol to the original - period. There is another spot, that I won't mention (because everyone has to create their own legendary status) within 7 miles that can even compete). So do yourself a favor and get yourself a "real" Philly Cheesesteak from Figueroa Philly. They have what you are...