Joe’s Pizza and Subs

I used to be a loyal customer but no more. I got a chewy cheese steak with uncut meat that was terrible. I gave them a chance to make a good one today and they guy on the phone said ok but when I got there they wanted half price. SAD. Bye Joes.
I hope it was worth it to lose a customer FOREVER!

It pains me to write this review. My first time here I ordered a burger… it was disgusting and I had no interest in ever going back but my boyfriend assured me that their sandwiches were amazing. And he was right every component is perfect! The bread is chewy but soft, the ingredients are delicious and well distrubted. It’s reminiscent of NY style subs which are perfection. However, I went there today for take out and when I got all the way home (20 mins away) I found 6 (yes 6) hairs in my sandwich! I wanted to look past that but then the tomatoes were slouchy old tomatoes that looked like they had sat out over night, the avocado was brown and slimy, my pepperonis were dark brown and hard and the one tomato slice I got that was fresh was of the top of the tomato that was the rim which was hard and brown. Everyone had their off days which is why I gave 3 stars but examine what you get!

If you’re stuck on-​campus then Joe’s can be a decent option. I’ve only had the pizza here and they’re okay, but for the most part I just wanted to escape dining hall food for a meal or two and spend my flexis on something.
The big thing that makes this place special though is that it’s the only place on-​campus where you can get beer legally, so if you want a drink and you’re over 21 then this is the place to stop by.

The good thing about this place is that you could use your flexis but overall this place has low quality food. The subs and pizza are just not good for the price you’re paying.

i miss joe the owner who passed 2 years ago. the super combo sandwich is why i drive from watsonville. bacon ham cheeses turkey piled high this not subway! they really pile it on. great atmosphere and baklava is always good. only tried pizza once i guess im in a rut but other offerings look good also the greek salad is very good

C’mon guys, it’s been like 4 weeks since you’ve updated the menu prices. I bought a small joes regular with avo (Used to be 5.20). It rang up at 7.12…apparently the regular is now 5.20 and it costs 1.50 to add avocado. Wish I had known that before I placed the order.

Out of the past four times I’ve been here, they have messed my order up every time. It’s never rush hour, and the final time they forgot all the meat on a New Yorker (which is double meat). Barely an apology when I brought it back over an hour later due to scheduling conflicts. This place needs to rethink its staff.

I waited 25 minutes for this $ 7.61 spaghetti without meatballs. It’s not even rush hour; no one was in line when I ordered my food. The experiences, both the food and the attitude of the cashier, are so bad that I decide to write my first Unilocal review. The place is just awful.

I hate this place and only ever went here because it was the only food place opened on campus during summer quarter. The staff is pretty incompetent; I ordered a sandwich once and I was waiting for them to ask what kind of bread, cheese, etc. I wanted but they never did. If you want a burger, you better be willing to wait around for half an hour and don’t expect it to be what you ordered. The only thing I get here now is pizza because I can watch them plate it for me and I’m pretty sure it’s not tampered with. I feel like there are so many students looking for jobs that they should be able to find people who can at least act like they want to be there.

Since changing owners, Joe’s has gone downhill fast. The current owner is clearly incompetent and incapable of running an actual business. Their «coffee bar» has next to no coffee, no espresso, not even milk! The restrooms are filthy, full of graffiti, have no soap, and no paper towels. How can the employees even wash their hands? After paying for my beer, I waited almost 15 minutes at the bar for someone to come pour it for me. (They also don’t check IDs for beer). The dining area was dirty, the staff was overwhelmed by a crowd barely big enough to start a fight. One of the only bright points of the former Joe’s – the pool table – was in disrepair and had broken cue sticks. It is completely unusable. Unfortunately, with few other cheap options on campus, people continue to go here which keeps it in business.

Everyone who gave this place a bad review has obviously never tried a turkey and bacon sandwich from here. I’m home for the summer and I miss this place. Yummy and convenient, its a win-​win!
–1 star because the amount of bacon and banana peppers they give is inconsistent! :(

I like this place as an alternative from the campus dining hall or other food options. I’ve gotten their regular sub, roast beef sub, cheese pizza and garlic bread here. Overall, the quality of the food is okay, but anything is better than dining hall food at least.
Their subs aren’t bad. For a small, you’re paying about 5 – 6 bucks for a decent lunch which I don’t mind, but I wouldn’t get it everyday since I would easily get sick of it. I only ordered their cheese pizza once, and it was SO oily. I have to admit though, the slice size itself was worth it for about 2.50; it was huge! Their garlic bread is about 3 bucks and is pretty filling and good for the first few bites, but it gets dull eventually.
This is also the only on-​campus place that serves beer! I still have yet to order a drink before I graduate.
If you still live on campus, use your flexis here!

I’m vegan. Just ordered a garden burger off of their «vegan» menu. When I got to my apartment to eat it, first thing I noticed was that it had mayonnaise drenched all over it. So disgusted, annoyed, and upset. It was under the VEGAN menu! I can’t deal with this shit right now!

A total disappointment the falafel salad was. Over cooked to brick status and rubber like bread. Not a pleasant experience at all. Would not recommend at all.

I miss this place. Never been here for their happy hours or really any thing else other than their sandwiches, which I used to get often. In my opinion, this is better than most food on campus (even though we don’t have that many choices). If it’s still there, I’ll go back for the sicilian chicken. It’s across the bookstore and they have a lot of seating, but I usually took my sandwich to the outdoor theater and ate there.

Honestly, in my first year of college, I never tried this place out even though it was conveniently placed relatively close to my dorm. I always knew one or two of my friends who were working there at the time, but never had a chance to really try it until a couple days ago.
I recently found out I was allergic to gluten, so I checked the menu to see if they had any gluten-​free items, and to my surprise they had a whole vegan menu! I guess I’m pretty lucky living in a vegan-​friendly area.
I ordered the Vegan Burger with fries ($ 5.50). With this option, you can choose between a Boca burger or a Garden burger, and I chose the Garden burger. As I was waiting for my food, I browsed Unilocal and read some reviews and quick tips and a lot of them talked about how good the bread was.
When I received my order, it looked absolutely amazing. The burger was pretty huge, but I hadn’t eaten all day so I couldn’t wait to devour it! The burger was topped with slices of tomatoes, lettuce, onions, and pickles. The fries were delicious, too! They looked like steak fries and were surprisingly appetizing! I loved it.
I loved the price and the friendly service, so I will definitely be coming back here again.

You know, for an indie campus pizza joint, it’s not half bad. Sure, it’s slightly on the pricey side for what you get, and of course it’s not as consistent as your local CPK. But let’s be honest; you’re on a college campus, you have limited options, and at UCSC your choices are to drive the two miles to even get to the edge of campus and leave… or eat at one of a few very limited options. And then you’ll never find parking again. All things considered, be grateful, at least they have a big menu.

Shame that this is the central café/​restaurant to eat on campus because it straight up sucks.
Most people get sick of Joe’s after eating here for 2 – 3 years. I got sick of eating here after the first few times.
This place sells mainly sandwiches and subs, with an emphasis on pizza and soda.
For a school that focuses so much on alternative lifestyles and diets, Joe’s does nothing to help.
If you’re a meat eater, then you might like this place. There are a ton of meat options. If you’re vegetarian/​vegan, then good luck. We have the avocado and cheese sandwich. If you’re vegan, you can get the avocado sandwich which is this pathetic looking thing of a sandwich with slices of tomato, a leaf or two of lettuce, and a few drab slabs of avocado… all for the amazingly terrible price of $$waytoomuch.
It is convenient to grab a slice of pizza on the way to class for about $ 3. They have them hot&ready so there’s no wait.
So this place does try to cater to veggies. they have vegan pizza which is surprisingly good, vegan mediterranean options like falafels and pita, or even spaghetti. Aww you have boca patties? how thoughtful. Too bad they’re not seasoned and cost $ 5. Overall, I’ve found these options to taste really bland, boring, and forgettable. The wait is always long, and the price is not worth it. But of course you’re stuck on campus with nowhere else to eat, so you have to eat this crap.
There fries are the worst tasting fries on campus. They taste like a starchier version of Wendy’s fries… and no there’s no Frosty to mask the bad taste.
There are a couple good things though. They have a café in the corner if you want tea, coffee, or drinks so you can skip the main line. There’s a big screen tv that you can watch (but no sports allowed, thank f*cking goodness). There’s outdoor seating so you can watch the world go by in between classes.
Oh yeah, it’s also the ONLY PLACE on campus that serves booze. So I recommend buying a pitcher, downing it all, and forget about how gross and overpriced this establishment is. Then you can stumble to classroom unit 2 knowing you had a ‘well-​balanced and nutritious’ meal to help you learn!
Cash, Card, Flexis accepted here.

Joe’s is okay. It’s pretty cheap, but on the spectrum of quality vs. price, it is overpriced.
Before I get into why I will never go there again, here are a few tips:
— Don’t make your order too complicated because they will usually screw it up (ie. mustard on sandwiches. I hate mustard. I always say no mustard, and no Italian peppers, and stuff. I always get mustard on my sandwiches)
— Keep it simple, kinda like the first bullet point.
— Have an idea of what you want to order.
— Expect to wait forever during prime food hours.
— AND WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT ORDER THE GARLIC FRIES. They are horrible. If you like eating food that looks like someone pooped pesto and slapped it on some fries, go ahead. If you like Ghostbuster slime on your food, go ahead. If you like regular garlic fries, DON’T DO IT. Don’t contemplate it. Don’t even look at it on the menu.
The garlic fries ruined Joe’s for me. I am never going there again.

I go to UCSC and this is one of the better places to eat on campus.
I also worked here for a little while and tried many of the sandwiches here. If you come here, get sandwiches or pizzas, which is what this place is known for. Their sandwiches are way better than Subways or even Quiznos (depending on your own opinion). They are freshly made and you can take out/​add stuff in it. If you are going for pizza, try the spinach and fetta. I never knew what it was until I worked here. I don’t even like pizzas but I like the spinach and fetta from here.
Do NOT get any of the pastas, raviolis, salads, onion rings, or garlic fries.
It is a little overpriced for pizzas and drinks.