IB’s Hoagies & Cheesesteaks

I literally live across the street from this place, I’ll place an order and will walk down to pick up 15 mins later. Staff is pretty polite and they pay attention to any adjustments you may want with your order. The BBQ Cheesesteaks are pretty awesome.

best cheesesteak /​hoagie in Oakland. the chili cheese fries here are good too! the parking is tough during lunch but there’s a parking garage close by.

Two stars for messing up my order with no rush at all. If youre gonna charge 13.50 for a sammish and fries the least you can do is hand me the right bag.

Usually I. B’s is fine. Their hours were kinda bad because it’s a downtown spot that is really for the lunch crowd and they did a pretty good implementation of a cheese steak even if it has lettuce and tomatoes by default. Get those removed and you’re fine, usually.
Instead of wiz our cheese steaks today had almost no wiz. That is not what you want when you go to a cheese steak shop.

Pretty good cheesesteak! I was in town for work and saw this place on Unilocal and had to give it a try! The parking lot behind is NOT for customers, so you have to street park which have meters. Soda fountain was down and they had cans instead but there were only about 6 (total) and only 2 kinds. Luckily I liked one that they had! Overall great place, wish I could have tried more food options and their starters! Next time I’m in Oakland I’ll stop again!

Indulgent, greasy food. So bad, so good. I come for the fried fish or shrimp, especially if I’m having a stressful day at the office. Even the cheese sauce for their cheese fries is impressive, better than most.

I came here with my sister to get some cheese fries. Parked at the metered spot in front. There is a parking lot, but I am not sure if customers can park there for free.
My sister and I were helped by a new cashier in training. She ordered cheese fries with jalapeños. The wait wasn’t too long since we came before one other customer. We got the cheese fries, but the jalapeños were missing, so my sister asked the cashier about it. She tried to pay for the jalapeños, but the cashier added the jalapeños for free. That was really nice! His coworkers laughed at him for the mistake, but he also laughed it off.
The cheese fries and jalapeños were delicious! Can’t wait to go back to get more. The staff was nice and seem to have a dynamic team.

I was there for the first time today. Just ordered the classic cheesesteak with sweet and hot peppers.
I loved it! It came out so quick, I probably waited no more than 5 minutes. It was a good size, not too big and not too small. Just perfect.
Bread was soft, meat was flavorful, peppers were sweet and spicy! And the price is definitely affordable.

One of the most authentic cheesesteaks I’ve found outside Philly. The tater tots are killer. Good people own it and they also own the Lunch Box on Franklin.

I give this place five stars because it is one of the better greasy joints in the area. Yes this is not fine dining that merits a Michelin rating or anything like that but it is pretty good for what it is.
Cheese steaks — Ok I get it. This isn’t as good as one from Philly. If you want a Philly Cheese steak, then go to Philly. This one is fine — not amazing but good enough to get me to come back.
I love how many different menu options they have. I went in there thinking it was just cheese steaks but there was so much more. This was equally true on the fries front, with tater tots AND sweet potato fries.
On top of being surprised by their menu, I felt that their staff was very nice and friendly. Even though the wait wasn’t long, the cashier gave me the number so I could call in an order next time.
Can’t wait to take my coworkers there!

Meh. Not bad but not great. If you want a Philly then it hits the spot, but if you expecting it be fabulous, it’s not.

Next door place, can never get enough from this place it’s awesome

A pretty good lunch spot in town. My coworkers and I don’t work that close to this place (maybe a 10 – 15 walk) but we occasionally make the trip out here for group lunches over something more convenient. It’s right by Frank Ogawa Plaza so it would be convenient for anyone who works there.
The easiest thing to do is order a combo, where you can get any of their grilled sandwiches with fries and a drink. You can’t go wrong with the classic cheesesteak but I also like the teriyaki steak and the cheesesteak deluxe. As for sides, I would stick with the classic fries or cheese fries (if you’re up for more cheese than you already have in your sandwich). I’ve tried the garlic fries before and they’re not really worth it. If you want to relive your elementary school days, or if you’re a big fan of Napoleon Dynamite, they serve tater tots too.
We enjoy sitting outside. People seem to think that this is a bad neighborhood but we’ve never had a problem sitting outside here. They have some tables out there that we usually move around and put together. There isn’t all that much space inside to sit. There’s plenty of seating over at the plaza though if you’re looking for a place to sit.

I have been going to IB’s Hoagies for years and it is one of my favorite Cheesesteaks place to go eat during my lunch break. They are busy when you walk in, but are always very friendly.
I was there this week and what amazed me is that the guy at the register (forgot his name) let the woman do an «I owe you». I have not seen that with ANY business at all. When he accept the note and a phone number from her as collateral, I was speechless. What a great way customer service! I APPLAUSE for his kindness.
I always get the classic cheesesteak and as always it is delicious. This time I got it with both pepper. It is sweet and spicy. DELICIOUS!

I was pretty hungry and got the mushroom steak but was pretty disappointed. There was a scarce amount of meat and a huge bun. Me and a coworker went in the middle of the lunch run. Didn’t call ahead and it was still ready in about a 5 – 10 minutes. I didn’t get the fries which I probably should have by the looks of the other reviews. My coworker ordered a Veggie which is basically a cheesesteak with everything but the meat… Insult to injury was that his sandwich looked waaay more appetizing than mine did.

It suddenly dawned on me, about half way through the consumption of IB’s mediocre Philly cheese steak, that my taste buds had an overwhelming sense of bad eggs. «Strange, why on earth would they put eggs in this…» I thought.
No, it wasn’t blasphemy, or hipster artisanal experimentation; for this cheesesteak had no eggs. Rather it was the curdled cheese, or god knows what, that left this foul, pungent taste in my mouth. Perhaps it was my ancient ape ancestor, the 2 million year old evolutionary gene in me, that vaguely stated: «Tastes like shit… But you be hungry! Won’t kill you!» So yeah, I still ate the rest of it in an act of desperation…
You know those tours in London that show you the killing grounds of Jack The Ripper? Well for a fraction of the cost you could head on down to IB’s and experience his true terror first hand as his ghost eviscerates your stomach lining in the form of 36 hour food poisoning. Fuck you IB’s. You owe me at least $ 12 for toilet paper.

The cheesesteaks are pretty good but obviously heart attack inducing — I can’t stomach one of these more than once in a few months. I feel like it’s a bit skimpy on the meat, and the sauce that people rave about is not that special.
I like the fact you can get two people full on about $ 20. It’s fast food but a step up.
What I find bad is the chili «cheese» fries. It’s a weird thing I noticed about the Bay Area that they don’t use melted strips of cheese in their chili cheese fries, but a gooey substance like nacho cheese. It just ruins the whole thing. There is also an option for curly chili cheese fries, but I can’t recommend that as it is sodium central. My mistake for thinking that could be good.
Overall, I’d recommend this place if it’s once in a while or if you are blasted and feel like devouring an unhealthy snack. Otherwise. not the best.

Little Yellow corner building @ the end of Frank Ogawa Plaza… cannot miss it.
Quick service/​fresh food/yummy…not sure how it can get any better.
I ordered the BaconSteak ($ 7.50) with a Small Curly Fry ($ 2.25). Everything was up and out in about 8 minutes.
The steak sandwich was awesome, tasty and juicy. Grilled onions and thin crispy bacon (my only complaint… I like them thick) rounded out a really well made cheesesteak hoagie.
«SMALL» curly fry… nothing small about it… it looked like a large fry to me compared to other places. Well seasoned, crispy and hot, but not overly oily.
Well done!

I had some business in Oakland today and decided to stay in the East Bay for late lunch. I decided to do some walking around and found this place. I hadn’t had a cheesesteak in I-don’t-know-how-long, so I figured «Why not?» Usually if I were in the mood for one, I’d go to The Cheese Steak Shop in The City, so that’s the standard I hold until I wind up in Pennsylvania.
I had the combo with the Cheesesteak Deluxe, a side of fries, and a self-​serve soft drink. In short, the soft roll cheesesteak was a good choice. It’s on par with The Cheese Steak Shop’s signature sandwich, but thicker instead of longer (begin peanut gallery giggles). Plus I sat near a plug outlet, so I was able to recharge my phone as I ate.
I had to be back on the other side of the bridge, but I was tempted to walk out the door with another one. Needless to say, I’d love to return next time I’m near Ogawa Plaza.

Not all that great. I don’t get the high reviews. The place is pretty dirty, the prices average, and the Cheesesteaks rather mediocre. I’ve been here 3 times now and was never that impressed. How is this a gem compared to Ike’s or Stag’s just up the road?
If you’re looking for an average Cheesesteak sandwich and you don’t mind your order being messed up this is your place. One bonus point: they got fried zucchini, I like that.