Al’s Beef

I’m not surprised this place is finally closed. However, I am surprised the franchises in Illinois, Las Vegas, and Texas are still surviving, not sure for how much longer though. This restaurant was annoyingly inflexible — refused to give extra Au Jus Gravy even when I offered to pay for it, and did not oblige my request to have Au Jus Gravy on the side instead of inside the sandwich. The cashier explained that it’s their corporate policy not to do so. Strange!
I decided to give it a try anyway because I was curious about the 3 levels of Au Jus Gravy that goes with their famous Al’s Italian Beef Sandwich. The beef was thin, tender, and decent. But because of the extreme options of either too little or too much juice, it was not edible for me.
The 3 levels of Au Jus Gravy were:
1) Dry — NO Au Jus Gravy added to Al’s beef. It came out dry and lacked flavor. I should not have chosen this because they are famous for their Au Jus Gravy.
2) Wet — ADDITIONAL Au Jus Gravy added to Al’s beef. The beef tasted better with lots of flavor from the extra juice, however, the bread part became wet and soggy.
3) Dip — the ENTIRE sandwich dipped into the Au Jus Gravy. I cannot understand why anyone would opt for this because the sandwich practically became so wet and soggy like the texture of birthday cakes!
The only good thing came out of this experience was Thomas, the assistant manager. He was kind and sweet enough to sneak out a little container of Au Jus Gravy on the side for me. Thanks Thomas! I wish you well on your journey of new job searches. You deserve to be happy!

Screw the Italian stance just wear some stretchy clothing you don’t mind getting dirty. Everything I thought it would be from seeing it on tv! I gobbled down the sandwich fast while it was hot to avoid a cold soggy sandwich. I think I will order the juice on the side next time, if possible, extra spicy celery sauce.
Idk what people are complaining about, you don’t come to a place like this for service, ambiance, knives, and forks.

I’ve been here several times and all times my order has been messed up!!! They either make something wrong or forget to give me something. Staff could smile once in a while or something. They seem like they don’t enjoy their job.

Gross! Do not eat here. We came on a Sunday afternoon and the place was empty! All of the tables were dirty but we wanted to try it anyway. We ordered the big beef wet and my sister and I shared it. It was $ 9 for an 8inch sandwich. The beef was dry and had a horrible taste. We also ordered $ 5 cheddar fries that tasted like nacho cheese from yesterday. Overall the food was horrible and not even worth it if they were handing it out for free.

I had purchased a Groupon for this place and of course, it was about to expire. I had a few days to go, but since it was only $ 10, hardly a meal for two. Just a good snack. hehe. Since we had $ 10 to sample some items, I decided to go with a beef sandwich, because that’s what they’re know for, right? So between the bf and I, we ordered a wet big beef with hot pepper and provolone and chili fries. They also serve polish sausage dogs as well.
Our cashier was friendly, and helpful when we asked for suggestions. He suggested wet over dipped, dry, and regular. What’s the difference?
«Regular» Just enough beef gravy (the «juice») is added to make it nice and juicy, but not over the top.
«Wet» That’s how we do it for most of our guests. Additional gravy is added to the sandwich, the juicier the better.
«Dipped» The crown jewel of juicy, the entire sandwich is submerged into the gravy. Roll up your sleeves and get ready to eat! You’ll need the «Italian Stance» for this one.
«Dry» No extra gravy goodness but still delicious. You might want to re-​think this option though. Our beef gravy is the gold. Go ahead and be a little adventurous and crazy; get it a little wet. You’ll love it.
The fries were decent, fried correctly. However the chili was a little meh since it kinda tastes like the am/​pm chili. The sandwich itself was OK. I found the beef dry and chewy, but the hot pepper definitely put some flavor into it. We both also agreed the wet style was not something we cared for. It made the bread soggy and when the sandwich got cold, it became somewhat nasty. Part of the bread had already broke before we got it to it.
Parking: Street, lot behind the building.
Overall: decent, just wouldn’t go out of my way for it.

Slave girl had a Groupon for this place. It’s now or never! For $ 10 credit, the stuff you can choose from is very limited. We were suggested to got «wet» big beef with hot pepper and provolone as first timer. We also got chili fries.
The fries were good but not fantastic, especially with am/​pm style chili over it. The sandwich itself was OK. I found the beef dry and chewy, but the hot pepper definitely put some flavor into it. We both also agreed the wet style was not something we cared for. It made the bread soggy and when the sandwich got cold, it became somewhat nasty.
The service was friendly but the eating environment was not very pleasant. There was Christmas music in the background, but the TV was also on with sound. With both sound sources competing with each other, I could barely hear slave girl telling me what she planned to do to me under the table. Hence, nothing happened.
Very average fast food and good for quick lunch bite.

Every time I come here the employees are always super friendly and the food is always fresh leaf repaired.
I always like to try loaded fries wherever I go and for five bucks this place always overdelivers.
The sandwiches and hotdogs are also amazing and would recommend trying them all.

My husband and I had high hopes for this Al’s beef as we are familiar with the original joint as we were native Chicagoans, but this place is nothing like the original. We were hoping to find italian beef closer to where we live as we usually drive down to Portillos in Buena Park, but we will definitely continue going to Portillos. I hate giving out low reviews, but this place has nothing to redeem itself other than maybe free refills on soda… not saying much at all.
I am not one to need great customer service, but I expect at least a little bit of friendliness. The guy taking our order was really rude and short with us (and the people he took orders from before us). He was not friendly at all and kept walking back and forth between each order he took. I was cringing when I saw how he was treating customers… not a way to win people over. We asked for a side of the gravy (which we do when we go to Portillos, our usual spot for italian beef)
Now on to the food. We ordered a large italian beef dipped with hot peppers and provolone cheese, an italian sausage, cheese fries, and a drink. My gripe with this place is that it costed over $ 20 for that! If the food tasted good, I probably would’ve forgotten about it, but the food did not bring one taste of home. I hate playing the comparison game, but when we go to Portillos, we usually get an italian beef with hot peppers, cheese, and a side of gravy, a hot dog, a polish, a drink, cheese fries, and onion rings for the same price. The hot peppers did not taste anything like the gardinera that normally comes with italian beef– it almost had like a Chinese five spice flavor to it that just ruined the whole thing. The provolone cheese was completely cold and straight out of the fridge too… talk about unappetizing!
At the end, I wanted to wash away the grease and bad experience by going to the bathroom to wash my hands and it smelled so disgusting, I gagged.
Never again. I will be sticking to Portillos in Buena Park for my italian beef fixes. Steer clear of this place!

Granted, this review is unduly influenced because Al’s filled a gnawing craving I have had for weeks. Unable to justify the long drive down to Portillos, which I understand is THE place to go for Italian Beef out here in So Cal, I settled for the reasonably close option that I could work into my afternoon commute. Still took me about 20 minutes out of my way, so I had to add a polish to the beef as compensation. And I was so glad I did.
Was it the perfect Italian Beef? Not really. But it was delicious. The place is a little kitschy, with the life size cutout of Mike Ditka staring you down, and it otherwise feels like any other fast food place. But what the space lacks in authenticity, the food tries really hard to make up for. The Chicago style polish nailed it. I’ve had better and cheaper, but it was the real thing, no question. And the beef, hot and dipped, was gone way too quickly. It was the reason I came and the reason I will go back. Not perfect, but a happy second best.
The service was really slow, which I was prepared for, but it was also friendly. Frankly, when the food came out, I didn’t care about the few extra minutes.

I had bought a groupon for $ 20 worth of food so I ordered the Big Al, small chili cheese fries, and fountain drink for myself and a chili cheese dog and large chili cheese fries for a coworker. All this came out to $ 27 way above what I should’ve ordered. That was one big tasty sandwich but I downed it with the worthless chili cheese fries. My coworker loved the dog but complained about the chili cheese fries also, there is room for improvement.

I was so excited to try this place, I have seen this place featured on a couple food network shows.
I went here with a couple friends. we were all pretty satisfied, I had gotten a Polish Sausage and it was Incredible, the crunch, the seasoning was on point. What i didn’t like is how the fries were wrapped inside with the Polish Dog in the same paper. which is more than likely why the fries were so soggy… My buddies sandwhich combo had the fries in a separate box so his fries were very crunchy and delicious. why do it differently for the Polish Dog?
Another thing was the price, it is pricey but the way the Polish came out it would of been worth the price if my Fries weren’t as bad as they were.
The cleaniness wasn’t as great as it should have been.
For these 3 reasons. is why i am giving 3 Stars.

Although this place doesn’t taste exactly to that of Al’s Beef in Chicago (I tried it there this past August), it still is very good. I always get the regular beef «Dipped» which is completely drenched in Au ju. It’s very tasty and packs a load of flavored with just the right amount of spice. But the downside is the price. For one dipped Italian beef, it runs about 8 $. That does not include fries or a drink. If you happen to get those, expect your tab to be upwards of $ 15.
Overall, the food is good ⁴⁄₅ stars, but not like the original in Chicago. The prices are too high. I would feel comfortable paying $ 5.45-$ 5.99 for the Italian beef.
I don’t believe this place will last as I see maybe 2 – 3 people in the when I do go.

Tried the dipped Italian beef. It wasn’t bad and was a descent portion of meat. Although I think its quite costly for it. (minus ½-​star) Thought the meat seemed a bit on a the dry side (minus ½ star) but the dipped au-​ju kind of helped it. I wouldn’t mind eating it again but nothing on a regular basis as its to greasy and again, pricey.
In terms of the greasiness, I would recommend for the clean eaters to request the au-​ju on the side rather than have it dipped as it can get pretty messy and again too greasy in my opinion. (minus ½ star)
We also ordered chilli cheese fries which was good but its no different from any other restaurant that sells chilli cheese fries. They have other creative fries such as BBQ, Parmesan, etc fries which I may try next time.
Service was good but the food took awhile factoring that there was only 2 other customers in the whole place and its suppose to be a fast food restaurant. (minus ½ star)

Nasty and DRY ITALIAN BEEF, BURGERS AND HOT DOGS, nasty almos $ 7 bucks blue cheese fries, save your money and drive all the way to Portillos fron Chicago in Buena Park, that’s a real Chicago experiance! Sorry Al, you won’t get my $$ ever again! I wish you had a much better product and maybe the pricing would not matter!
Dirty table, dirty restroom, not so clean restaurant!

First off I’ll say that Al’s Beef is the best Italian beef you’ll find in or out of Chicago. I grew up eating it in Chicago and among all of the beef joints, Al’s wins, hands down. Al’s does everything their own way, as most others just imitate each other. If you’ve never been, do yourself a favor and visit the original location on Taylor Street in Chicago.
I visited this location for the first time this past week around lunch time. I was shocked that it wasn’t packed, as the food and service was outstanding. I was greeted by the manager, a sharp young fella who knows his Chicago food and hospitality. He’s friendly and welcoming, sadly sometimes a rare thing to find in LA. The restaurant itself is clean and there is plenty of seating and free parking in the back.
Al’s beef itself is flavorful and rich with spices (but not spicy). Their giardinera is unlike all others. It’s chopped in tiny pieces, spicy and complements the sandwich perfectly. For the record, I have a couple mason jars full of this spicy gold in my fridge and I put it on everything — pizza, salad, chicken, sausage, pasta). You must get the sandwich either wet or dipped. Dry is boring and therefore not an option. Definitely get provolone on it. It adds another layer of deliciousness that you’ll appreciate. If you really want a treat, get a combo, which is a beef and sausage together in one sandwich. Their Italian sausage is outstanding! Their frys are fantastic and also a must-​have to accompany your beef or sausage. Unlike any other you’ve had.
This location is 40 miles from my home, which makes it an occasional special treat for me. I would love if Al’s opened locations in Orange County, preferably Huntington Beach! Or maybe that’s not such a good idea, as I’d spend a great deal of time and money there and need to buy bigger pants.
Don’t listen to the negative reviews — give it a shot for yourself and form your own opinion. It’s a little more expensive than other fast food, but worth it. This is real Chicago Italian beef. Keep up the good work, Al’s Alhambra!

Just as my friends take me to «Hawaiian» style restaurants to compare to what I grew up eating having been born and raised in Hawaii, I have a friend who we drag to places to compare to what he grew up eating, having been raised in Chicago. It’s how I ended up at Al’s Beef one night.
First — parking. Lots behind the businesses offer two hour free parking. Or you can drive up and down Main looking for street parking. I don’t know the meter hours are on the street so check the signs to avoid being stroked a ticket.
Second — go up, order at the counter, have a seat and wait until your number is called. I arrived before my friends and was the only customer in the entire restaurant. I sat as no one greeted me and I couldn’t see anyone behind the counter. Waited a few minutes until someone peeked up over the counter, who happened to be fairly short and I just missed her as she was hunched over prepping some food.
So, on to the food. I ordered an Al’s Beef and a Maxwell Street Polish. I figured I had these items in Chicago just last year so I had something to compare this experience to. It wasn’t bad, but just wasn’t the same. I prefer the hot peppers to be whole so that I have a bite of one with each bite of beef. If you look at my pics, they were diced and mixed in. Again, looking at my pic, the Polish came pretty much naked.
Difficult to compare apples to oranges when it’s not prepared the same way that I had from the original restaurants back in Chicago. So, it came down to whether I liked them or not. I didn’t mind my meal. I thought it was a little pricey but not to the point that I walked out and ate elsewhere. My friends felt the same way. Not the same, but not bad.

This place was featured on Food Paradise in the episode all about sandwiches. Of course, I had to try the titular Italian beef sandwich.
The beef was soft, heavenly marinated with bell pepper and sweet pepper relish. I was surprised when the cashier told me they charge 50 cents for each type of pepper. I was even more surprised when I unwrapped my sandwich and saw just two tiny slices of bell pepper. I felt cheated. The sandwich tasted pretty good, overall. The best part was the beef gravy that they soak it in. This is a fatty, rich gravy that is left over from cooking the beef.

Just because I love Italian sausage sandwiches, I just had to try theirs. I immediately regretted it. Not that it was bad, but I could have made a better Italian sausage sandwich for a lot cheaper at home with my George Foreman grill.
Al’s Italian beef shares a dining room with Nancy’s Pizza, so the place is filled with people eating pasta and pizza.

Overrated. Hyped.
*The manager was extremely professional and courteous. I appreciated his candor and his enthusiasm. However, it wasn’t enough to save me from my overall disappointing experience at Al’s. I wasn’t impressed by the beef at all. It was like two notches down from Yoshinoya. The sauce that complimented the beef was disgusting. Is this how they eat this shit in Chicago? GEEZ LOUISE.
*I enjoyed the hotdog with peppers though I don’t think it’s something that I would ever get again or go out of my way to eat for the price. I’ll stick to Costco hotdogs instead.
Thanks for the experience though. Like the 2 star rating says, «Meh. I’ve experienced much better».
JY

Finally! After months and months of waiting and looking all over the internet for the Grand Opening, I saw that they were open for business the other day when I happened to drive by.
I ordered my usual Big Beef (dipped, of course) with hot giardiniera. My wife got the Regular, also dipped. We added on an order of the Cheddar Cheese fries.
What can I say except that it was all delicious? Juicy beef with a nice kick from the giardiniera, all on gravy-​soaked bread.
The cheese fries were also great, though I remember getting the cheese on the side in a little cup back in Chicago. Whatever… I won’t complain.
While the food is, for the most part, as good as I remember it being in Chicago, I have to say that it’s just not the same as eating in Chicago. (I know you’re thinking, «Well DUH!») A big part of the Al’s Beef experience is walking in from freezing temperatures, ordering your hot sandwich, and biting into it while hovering over the side counter. Eating it in a clean restaurant on a table in 90 degree weather just doesn’t have the same effect. Oh well. I’m grateful I have this option just blocks away from home now.
BTW, my favorite part of this particular Al’s experience was when my wife looked at the cardboard cutout of Mike Ditka and asked if that was Al. Ahh, gotta love her.

I’ve never had an Italian beef sandwich — only seen it on Man vs. Food. So the chance to try Al’s Italian beef sandwich in Alhambra was too good to pass up. I decided to get a small sandwich to go. The cashier asked me if I wanted any sweet or spicy peppers, so I asked him what he recommended. He said that he prefers the spicy ones, so I ordered one small beef sandwich, dipped, with spicy peppers. Nice call! I couldn’t wait to get home & unwrap the sandwich. The ingredients are pretty simple, but the gravy is flavorful and peppers had a spiciness that tasted like a spicy deli mustard, if you concentrated it.
The store is pretty big, with ordering and pick-​up windows on opposite sides of the kitchen, similar to Tender Greens. The menu also has burgers, hot dogs and all kinds of fries (chili, blue cheese, cheddar cheese, etc). Self-​service drink fountain is conveniently located in the middle of the store. Al’s Beef is located on the bottom of a recently-​opened condo complex. Definitely eager to try other things on the menu.