Jersey’s Cafe
13710 N. Meridan Street
Carmel, IN 46032
http://www.jerseyscafe.com/
After finding out that Jersey’s Café was on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, I decided to stop by and give it a try. First, they have been open for 13 years? Really? Best kept secret in the Indy, I guess. I looked at plenty of reviews on Urbanspoon and people seem to like it, but said the food can take a while.
Right when you walk in, there is a sign that mentioned that food could take 20 minutes to an hour because of the increased volume from Triple D. The restaurant probably has 20 or so tables, of which, 4 were empty. The interior reminded me of McAllister’s with a bunch of Jersey things hanging up. The odd part is that there is a corner of the restaurant that has a few shelves floor to ceiling of teddy bears. It appears that they were for sale, but I was thinking…why would they sell bears here instead of using this area for more tables? Odd.
Before I start talking about the food, they have two different menus. One menu appears to be regular deli sandwiches and breakfast. The other menu is cheesesteak and hoagies. There were over 40 variation of cheseteaks and over 80 variations of hoagies and sandwiches. It took me at least 10 minutes to get through the entire menu.
What I Ate: Philly Cheesesteak (chips and a pickle); $8.99.
American cheese, steak, onions, mushrooms and peppers. Pretty simple, but all things that I like, on a bun! The sandwich arrived in 20 minutes, which I was thankful of considering I might have waited for an hour based on the sign.
The sandwich itself was really good. The steak was cut a little thick for my liking, but it had a ton of cheese on it and I liked the bread it was on. I could’ve used a little more seasoning as I put just a touch of salt on it and some pepper. Sometimes I put a smear of mayo my cheesesteak because it can get a little dry, but not here. Everything here – just worked and I really liked my sandwich.
Would I Buy It Again? Yes, but with a few reservations.
What I liked:
*This is the best cheesesteak in Indy.
*The Hot Hoagies looked awesome, I am going to get one of those next time.
*Good value.
*Friendly service.
*The only great sandwich place in Carmel.
What I didn’t like:
*Long wait times to make a sandwich.
*Hard chairs didn’t make the wait time comfortable.
*Long menu.
*Creepy stuffed Teddy Bear corner with those beady little eyes watching me down my sandwich.
I am really not sure what to say about this place. If Penn Station can make a cheeseteak in 5 minutes, then am I crazy to think that 10 – 20 minutes max is acceptable? Good Food and Quick Food does not have to be mutually exclusive. I can get a torta in 5 minutes in at any of my good taquerias…and they taste awesome.
But, who am I to say? They have been open for 13 years, so they must be doing something right. If they could consistently push out food within 20 minutes maximum, I would be a frequent customer. Good food is worth waiting for and I would sacrifice speed for quality, but one hour for a sandwich is not going to happen. My two year old would never make it and that doesn’t leave me enough time to go there for lunch. It seems like if they took their menu under 100+ sandwiches, then they just might be able to streamline the process a little bit.
Still, Jersey’s is surely worth a try – whenever you have the time.
-wibia
Tags: cheesesteak, diners drive-ins and dives, Food, guy fieri, jerseys cafe, sandwich
I ate here a few weeks ago. Had a meatball sub. It was so-so. The service was terrible, but my client warned me of that going in, so I had no right to complain. I think this is the sort of place where you need to try a few things and you may find your magically perfect sandwich (like my pizza sub with meatballs added at WG Grinders). I’m willing to try it a few more times and see if I can find that magical sandwich.
Glad you went and tried this place out. I’m a big fan. I’m thinking of going back soon to try one of the other variations of cheese steaks. The wait was long when I went just like everyone says, but that’s not really a big deal for me especially since I really liked my sandwich.
WIBIA:
If you wanna go for lunch, call ahead with your order. Mrs. Show goes frequently and said it never takes more than five minutes when she calls ahead.
Jersey’s itself hasn’t been open for 13 years, the owners/operators have had a restaurant in Carmel for 13 years. Prior to Jersey’s, they ran the Chequered Flag Cafe on Rangeline.
Part of what takes so long is that everything is done fresh and individually. That coupled with a small kitchen staff make for a long wait.
dang, I wish you would have taken a picture of the teddy bears… now I want to go just to see that…
I tried to go this past Sunday, but they were closed. Will have to get back there and try the cheesesteaks asap…
@ Angie
Yep, they are closed on Sundays and only serve lunch on Mondays.
Even before they were featured on the show, the service was terribly slow and the food was just average. The teddy bear decor is really creepy though! Last time I went I was there for almost an hour an a half waiting on a sandwich. Unacceptable!
I tried to get a quick sub to go, but their rude staff made it clear that my time is less important than their time. After waiting 20 minutes for a sandwich I left with my prize. And what did I discover? Well, it’s OK, but a bit sloppy. Bring a fork and maybe a roll of paper towels. These are casserole sandwiches but without anything special to make them worth the mess. No wonder they discourage take-out.
I give them 6/10. Not worth the hoopla.
Hey, I’m glad you checked this place out. I have been going to Jersey’s and before that the Chequered Flag for about 8 years now. In terms of sandwich quality, they are the best I have run into so far. The service can be a bit slow at times, though. And since being on DDD, they have been even busier.
But some of the sandwiches are just soooo good. A few of my favorites include:
* Cheese my Baby
* Piscataway Grinder
* Delaware Water Gap Nonie
* Dr. Jazz
* Wildwood Cheese Steak
And if you’re looking for a vegetarian option, I would recommend the Vegetarian Rueben. It’s the best veggie sandwich I’ve had.
I made it a point to eat there on Saturday, June 17th after watching Jersey Cafe on Food Channel. The food was good, however, the “SERVICE WAS HORRIBLE.” We waited 30 minutes to get in, another 30 to get served and 1 hour to be served two simple sub sandwiches. It was a 2 hour experience that I would not recommend to anyone. I heard one server apologizing to a family about their long wait. I over heard another table say that they are not leaving a tip. I almost got up and walked out paying for the drinks. I end up leaving a below average tip out of sympathy. My guess is that this place will go out of business due to the poorly managed operation. Don’t go there unless you want to wait several hours. The place is way over rated and hopefully they get the point from everyone who gets a bad dining experience like we had.