Jay’s Beef

If you like Gardinera this place is a skip.
The beef itself is good, as is the bread they use. The Gardinera is definitely where a lot of the flavor comes from, in my opinion, in every Italian beef. I don’t get sweet pepper on beefs, I think that’s reserved for children and those with weak palettes. I don’t know who came up with their Gard recipe, but you guys need to rethink it. It’s terrible. Maybe just go with a standard brand than making it in house, bc as of now I pass on going to you guys. I live in the neighborhood so I’d love you guys to have a solid beef, I’d come in all the time.
Everything else I’ve had has been good, I’m speaking specifically of the Italian beefs and ordering them the «right» way.

Should have gotten an Italian beef, because the hamburgers were awful. I mean, terrible. Horrible, bland, over-​cooked, flavorless pieces of meat in between 2 dried out buns; even the bacon was crunchy and lacked flavor. Wouldn’t be surprised if it was pre-​cooked.
They obviously have no clue what medium rare is, however, without even salt or pepper in the meat I doubt it would have made much difference.
Fries also lacked any flavor. Virtually no salt.
Granted these were ordered via the Eat247 app, so, it wasn’t as fresh as it could have been, but, I’m taking that into account. It was still likely one of the worst burgers I’ve ever eaten. That includes fast food chains

the best beef in chicago! the combo is going to melt in your mouth! buyer beware highly addictive great sandwichs! YOU WILL NOT FIND A BETTER BEEF BUT HERE!

My last experience with Jay’s was at their Narragansett location. Hubby and I were trying to find a cheaper option for dinner this evening before hitting the 606 Bloomingdales trail. Jay’s beef isn’t too far from the CTA Damen Blue Line station, a couple of big blocks west of it.
The good thing was they accepted our MasterCard because we didn’t see any indication that a major credit card/​debit card could be used for cash-​less people like us. Anyways, we went with the generic hot dog with fries combo, of course with everything, except ketchup.
This Jay’s satellite location deals with mostly take-​out and delivery businesses. There’s an unlimited pop station if you choose to dine in. They put the Yankees vs. Blue Jays game on, so I appreciated it because baseball is the only sport I pay attention to.
Our dog was alright, so were the fries. With Rosa J. being ultra-​frugal, I had no complaint whatever because Jay’s certainly was an inexperience choice, in comparison to that hip and dark vegetarian bar in a close proximity.
If you’re in the Bucktown/​Wicker Park area and looking for a quick bite without breaking the bank, I would recommend Jay’s on North Ave.

I LOVED this place until they decided tonight! that they weren’t going to deliver to my house. I live 5 min away off north Ave and kedzie. Guess people west of the park can’t get any love. Sticking to Boston’s moving forward unless Jays decides they want to service the west Humboldt park area a whole 5 minutes away.

I love jays, grew up by the hardwood heights location and now live by the wicker park location. Best beefs in the city and cheese fries. Always nice Greek family working there, just wish the location on north was open on Sunday’s :)

I was looking for a great italian beef place to cater my Dad’s 60^th birthday. The location where we were holding the party did not have any way for us to heat up the meat, and we were afraid that individual sandwiches would get cold or super soggy throughout the party.
Tony at Jay’s Beef went above and beyond to help us out. He heated up 8 lbs of beef and put them in serving trays for us and also provided us with serving tongs. The rolls came in a large bag and we were given hot and sweet peppers in smaller containers. This was not something they normally do, but were super accommodating for our situation which we really appreciated.
Best of all, the price was great! We cannot say thanks enough for going above and beyond! We really really appreciate your help! The party was a blast and my Dad loved the beef!

Incredible food at a great price. I just wish they were open on Sundays.

It’s with much sadness that I give this Jays location 2 stars. (I am being generous). I have been a long time customer. Since they opened their doors. I would always get the same order cheese fries and a Italian beef dipped with hot and sweet peppers on the side and cut into 3. The French bread was always fresh and the meat was always tender and scrumptious! Flavor to die for. And thus I didn’t mind the prices. But recently things have taken a turn for the worse. Meat is way too fatty and bread was stale. This happened a total of 3 times to me. At the 3^rd time I called and told them how unsatisfied I was. They offered to give me a beef and cheese fries on the house for the next time I came in. Sadly I won’t take them up on the offer and have taken my business else where.
If the management reads this please please fix!!!

Mediocre. Go to Portillos, Al’s, Jonnies… also they put nacho cheese on their beefs. Disgusting.
Boring frozen fries. Giardinara is mostly celery for some reason.

Walked in to no one saying Hello and left out without even a Thank you. Terrible customer service boys, if you are in a crappy mood go home and let someone else work and be happy.

Was driving down North Avenue with a friend and spotted Jay’s Beef and remembered it was on the list of best beef sandwiches in Chicago, so we had to give it a try. There is a parking space right in front which was a bonus. Jay’s is a no frills place with several tables if you’re eating in. My friend and I both had the beef (dipped) sandwich, mine with sweet peppers, and hers with sweet and hot peppers. What a tender, juicy, messy, Chicago favorite. Highly recommend.

LOVE Jay’s Beef, and let me tell you, I am PICKY about my cheezburgers. Jay’s is hands down a great place for a Chicago style dog or a juicy burger if you’ve got a few dollars in your pocket. I’ve also had their mozzarella sticks, wings and italian beef and all were super tasty and fresh. Someone on here said this place has been open 30 years… that is no small feat for a small business in Chicago, and it’s definitely because Jay’s is tasty, fresh, fast and affordable in a neighborhood where things like that are pretty lacking.
I live not too far from the place and order delivery quite often (especially weeknights when I don’t feel like messing up the kitchen, lol). I’m sure the fact I live close is why they are early every time, but I’m not about to complain… my food is hot every time. If you’re inthe neighborhood and craving a burger, there really is no better place to go.

Probably my favorite beef in the city. Definately the best hot giardinara

I’m 32 years old and I’m pretty sure I’ve been eating Jay’s Beef for about 33 years. Nope, my math is right. My parents were eating Jay’s Beef when I was still in the womb. Maybe that’s why it’s still one of my all-​time favorite Italian Beef spots in Chicago. Years ago I was so happy to see that they opened up a location in Wicker Park and now it’s definitely my go-​to for a quick Italian Beef fix.
The beef, the bread, the gravy, the hot peppers… oh all that glory… it’s so damn good.
I’m not sure what else they serve here. Not sure why anyone would come here and order something other than the Italian Beef. It’s called Jay’s Beef for a reason.
If I had to give it one knock it would be that I wish the hot peppers had more of a kick. Overall though, Jay’s Beef for the win.

Solid italian beef joint in the neighborhood.
The beef was actually really, really good. I think it stacks up well with other beef joints I’ve tried (I’m calling you out Carm’s).
The bread is what you find at the others but the weakness, at least for me, is the hot peppers. It was basic celery and jalapeño mixed together and not really providing any real upgrade to the beef between chews. I think that is really the main issue at hand with the beef at Jay’s.
Customer service was friendly and prices were about what I expected.
Would I go back? I don’t see why not. However, keep in mind that this italian beef will only do in a pinch or if you’re in the neighborhood and don’t want pizza, tacos, or other street food.

Since Jay’s recently made a list of the best 10 Itallian beef sandwich places in Chicago, I figured I’d finally give it a try. I’d always avoided this spot because I figured it’d be just another randomly overpriced Wicker Park newcomer hoping to separate drunk yuppies from their money. Well, I was wrong about that, but I can’t say that Jay’s blew me away either.
For a little over $ 8 I got a can of Coke and, of course, an Italian beef. The beef itself was really quite good — it was meltingly tender but still held up as recognizable slices, with solid texture and flavor. The gravy was good, if not very spicy. As for the giardiniera, I loved how fresh it was. This clearly didn’t come from a jar! That being said, the hot version was pretty much entirely composed of jalapeño slices and some celery, with little else. So, while it was certainly spicy, it didn’t have that great mix of flavors and textures that I personally prefer. The bread was fine, just like pretty much every Italian beef shop in existence.
There’s not much to say about Jay’s atmosphere or service. It’s all perfectly acceptable, the space is clean, and offers a few tables so you can eat in if you like. I can’t say I’d go out of my way to eat here again, but it’s certainly a good place to get a pretty decent sandwich at reasonable (for Wicker Park) prices.

The food was really good. I was in the mood for a simple burger: nothing gourmet and nothing fast-​food-​ish. I got exactly what I wanted. My beef (pardon the pun) with the place is that the guy behind the counter handled my money turned around without washing his hands and grabbed a handful of onion rings and threw them in the fryer. I know the fryer cleaned off all the nastiness transferred from my currency to his hands but still it kind of grossed me out. To end the review on a positive note the wünder bar was amazing (and clean).
UPDATE:
As an update, the owner messages me and promised to address the sanitation issue mentioned in my review. I think that is admirable and shows a business that is tuned into what customers are saying.

The beef in their Italian beef is really good, really moist, and really well-​seasoned.
The rest of the food I tried just wasn’t.
Unsalted fries, flavorless unseasoned burger, giardinara that tasted like absolutely nothing, and 50 cents for THREE SLICES OF JALAPENO on my beef.
The milkshake tastes like it was liquid in a bag this morning.
Delivery was FAST. Driver was NICE. 3 stars seems about right. The prices are dirt cheap by comparison to other restaurants in the area.

My entire family raves so much about Jay’s Beef I had to try it myself. It cost me airfare to Chicago, $ 34.00 round trip cab fare from our downtown hotel and the price of two sandwiches, fries and drinks was a whopping $ 16.00 (I’m being facetious, of course). All I can say is that the trip was worth it!
I walked into the restaurant and the smell of seasoned beef was incredible. The sandwiches were freshly made to order and very delicious indeed! The employees were friendly and generous and made us feel at home.
I was delighted when my order was ready. The fresh bread was FILLED with tasty, perfectly seasoned delectable beef and giardianiera peppers and then dipped in a delicious au jus. The different flavors made a perfect combination of deliciousness!
I will return to Jay’s some day and I will make sure to try some of the other menu items but I will not forget to order the wonderful Italian Beef Sandwich!