Jay's Beef

Delicious hot dogs and fries! Ordered Jay's Beef through grubhub last week and when we received our food, all the food was very warm besides the cheese sauce which was ice cold, which I found very weird. Also, ordered a chocolate shake and could taste that the ice cream they used was freezer burnt, which was a huge bummer. The best part of the meal was definitely the fries! Hot, crispy and very flavorful... some of the best I've ever had. Will give them another try and might do pickup instead in hopes for a better experience!

Pretty good beef Sando, but the hot giardiniera is weak. It's mostly made up of celery, instead of carrots and holla-Peen-yo's. They also don't really seem to passionate about their work. Kinda just sitting back there watching jerry springer until Someone walks in.

They seemed super bored and uninterested about being there.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I drove by and saw the shop closed with graffiti on the windows . Went back when they first open (which I believe was 2014ish) and never went back. They had some Giga-Chads working who acted bothered upon ordering and gave passive aggressive attitude . Food was average but nothing worth going back for. Those raving about it obviously have no taste buds, and it shows since the place is gone lol so long , you're not missed

Wow oh wow! Jay's Beef Italian sandwiches are amazing!
If you are like me, and don't know about Italian Beef until you went to Chicago, this was a great place to try it. Italian Beef is roasted beef that is cooled, sliced and dipped in gravy.

Jay's Beef has an appealing old school sign out front. Inside, it is set up like a diner. I really wanted a Chicago style hotdog. The hot dog was a regular hot dog with jalapenos, pickle and tomato. Hot dog was ok. My friend told me that this is not the best place for that. She was right.

But the Italian beef was amazing! The sliced roast beef was juicy and tender! The sandwich was lined with cheese sauce, so the bread was moist but held together. Then topped with pickled celery and jalapenos slices. And that gravy was was beef jus! It was savory and made the sandwich ridiculously good. It tasted like a not-dry Philly Cheesesteak.

The roast beef was so delicious! I wish I had one right now.

I'm here on vacation and when I passed this place, I knew I had to check it out. Walking through the door only confirmed what I suspected, this place is legit. I've worked in family owned fast food restaurants before and this is your no frills, great food spot.
I'm from Buffalo and we're not strangers to fresh roast beef (beef on weck).
I could tell this beef was freshly cut. Thin and tasty with fresh veggies.
To all the f-ing haters of this place. Roast beef is a lean cut of meat so it doesn't have a rich taste to it and they don't over season it. Of course it's going to taste better if you throw cheese or have it with sausage.

After talking to the owner/supervisor I found out that they do indeed slice the beef fresh the day before and they do a simple seasoning.

I got no beef with this place. No beef at all:

So yeah... Clearly, this puntastic intro is my backwards way of saying I really, really, really loved this spot's Italian Beef Sandwich. For real. I don't declare this lightly. As a former Chicagoan, I've never stopped missing this iconic, revelatory-when-done-right meat 'n bread creation, jacked up with giardiniera and jus.

Now to back up for a second, back in the day, Al's on Taylor used to be my go-to for I-talian Beef. So that was my initial plan during a recent Chicago visit with hubby and kid. Then I began reading that Al's had become super touristy, and that quality had declined while prices continued to go up. I decided it wasn't worth the schlep, and Jay's quickly became plan 'B' mostly 'cause it was a convenient stop on the way to the airport.

Well, all I can say is sometimes fate really knows what she's doing! Meat was flavorful and tender, and the giardinera, which consisted solely of chiles and celery, as opposed to also including carrots, cauliflower and /or olives, added some really welcome heat. This rendition of giardiniera had more of a rawness to it, if I am recalling correctly, rather than the expected pickled tang. But I loved it.

The space offers some seating, but fancy it definitely ain't. It feels more like a neighborhood hang, and is admittedly lacking in the sort of legendary vibe you'll encounter at a place like Al's. But damn, that is one fine sandwich. No regrets from me.

Just moved to the city and I love this place (despite Covid). The burgers are such great prices and taste amazing. I can't wait to dine in here some day, small but such a cute spot. Will be back for more (we just ordered tonight for dinner too). Onions rings and fries are also great. Can't wait to try more!

Can you believe I've never had an Italian Beef Sandwich before?! Disclaimer: I've lived in Michigan and Wisconsin my whole life. I never knew such a thang existed! Not like this.

Jay's Beef has customer only parking in front of the business. This is convenient, given the jammed packed Wicker Park neighborhood (Western and North). Also, it's important to know there aren't public restrooms here.

We came, we saw, we tried our first REAL Chicago Italian Beef sandwich. Walking in, we were greeted. The place has a "hidden gem" air to it. No frills, nothing special on the outside. BUT, when you get your hands on your food, you will see where the quality in the company lies. HUGE PORTIONS, so come hungry. Jay's Beef specializes in above average Italian Beef; everything else is good/average. My husband ordered the hot dog and gave me a thumbs up.

The Italian Beef deserves its own paragraph. The Beef was clearly dipped in juice the right away: fully submerged. It made every bite juicy and hearty. The sandwich was layered upon layer with meat. The bread soaked in the juice, but did not dissolve under the weight. LIFE CAN BE PERFECT. TIP: order a mix of sweet and hot peppers for an added crunch and texture. Don't worry, the hot peppers are not hot. They just add a touch of heat. I like spicy foods, but not for this.

Leaving the building, our clothes were strongly smelled of greasy foods. That's the whole experience, right?! So, if you don't want to get your hands dirty, don't go. And lastly, Jay's only Beef is with people that haven't been here yet! Check it out!!

This place is kinda cool. I think it was my third time being in here. My first time was when I was with my friend somewhere around the area, we were looking for a quick bite and we found ourselves here. I ate their cheeseburger and it is good my friends says their order was good too. I came back recently, quite a few people were inside and I observed that most of them ordered the Italian beef sandwich. I got curious, I never had their Italian beef so that is what I order. It was served hot and has a nice portion. First bite and realized why most of the people inside have it. It was delicious and flavorful. It is not the best Italian beef I've ever had but it is still basically good at a very fair and reasonable price. I would love to be back again!

I last had Jay's many years ago and I remember being really unhappy with my beef and vowing to never get food from here again.

Tonight I really wanted an Italian beef and Jay's was one of few options. I don't know what happened, but holy moly, am I glad I decided to roll the dice and try it again.

The beef is delicious and Jay's delivered on multiple fronts.

The beef, flavorful and generous portion. I appreciated that this was true Italian beef that was cooked down to the shreds and not just heated slices of roast beef you sometimes see at mom and pop joints. The juice was also very tasty and I was happy to have requested extra on the side to get my ideal juiciness level.

Fries, fantastic fries with just the perfect amount of salt for me.

The food delivered fast and hot and everything was well packed. I'm so happy to have tried this place again and have a good local beef spot that's delivers.