If you haven’t noticed, there’s a new look on South Pugh Street. This summer, Campus Steaks closed its doors, and Penn Steaks opened under new ownership.

The menu highlights ribeye and chicken cheesesteaks on freshly baked hoagie rolls, along with chicken tenders, onion rings, shoestring fries, mozzarella sticks, and cheesesteak egg rolls.

But here at Onward State, we’re only worried about the cheesesteaks.

Jamie Lynch: Classic Philly On A Seeded Roll, American Cheese, Fried Onions, Mushrooms, & Cherry Peppers.

I’ll start by saying that I enjoyed the cheesesteak. I thought it was flavorful, and the cut of meat was great. The hot cherry peppers provided a nice kick as well.

The wait to get my food, however, was a bit ridiculous. There were, at most, ten other people in the restaurant, and I waited for nearly 45 minutes. Not to mention that I paid $13 for a six-inch sandwich. I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt on the wait time, as they have only been in business for a few days.

I also happened to meet one of the owners, Eric. He was a great guy and even offered me a job in the kitchen. It’s clear that they are still in the hiring process, so I would assume everything will be running smoothly once there is a sufficient number of employees.

Oscar Orellana: 6″ Classic Philly Combo

While cheesesteaks aren’t really a staple in my hometown, I’ve always appreciated them deeply. Bread, meat, cheese, and onions, what’s not to like? I think Penn Steaks is a serviceable cheesesteak option in State College. The meat wasn’t tough, the cheese was melted through very evenly, and the fries were surprisingly tasty even though I’m a fan of thicker-cut fries.

However, would I go again? If there’s quite literally no other option in town, yeah. But this didn’t really impress me in the way I wanted it to. It’s just good. It’s a cheesesteak, and it doesn’t deviate from that.

Cooper Cazares: 6″ Classic Philly, Provolone Cheese

For lack of a better word, this place is OK. I don’t see any big differences from the last cheesesteak place, and I’m not sure there was much that tasted different either.

There were maybe one or two other people in the restaurant around lunch time; however, online says it’s takeout only during the week. The staff was very friendly, which was probably the highlight of my experience.

The six-inch roll came out to be almost $15, which is a little pricey. On top of that, the sandwich really didn’t blow me away, certainly not for the price. I don’t crave cheesesteaks often, but the price alone for these would probably make it so I find somewhere else to eat. Overall, I give the cheesesteak a 5/10.

James Russell: 9″ Classic Philly, Cooper Sharp, & Fried Onion

I thought the cheesesteak was decent. Unlike Oscar, cheesesteaks are a staple in my hometown. I definitely have had better, but it picks up right where Campus Steaks left off.

When I bought this, I was rather hungry, so it did the job. I noticed a good amount of fat in the meat, which wasn’t too enjoyable to chew on, but otherwise it was flavorful. The bread was soft and the perfect amount of chewy. The cheese was great; you can’t beat Cooper Sharp on a cheesesteak.

I’ll definitely be going back; there aren’t too many cheesesteak places in State College.