Jin’s Grill

PLEASE reopen, I need the fish steak back in my life! For $ 9 I could get a whole sandwich, fries, and a drink! My hangover cure all is gone!

This makes me so sad. Best wishes to Jin, always loved seeing him and the crinkle cut fries were bomb!

Bummer!!! I was planning on stopping by with my son again this Saturday. Jin was the best and I have yet to find a better cheese steak in San Diego. I’m going to bow my head in a moment of silence now…

NOOOOOO!!!
Jin’s is closed??? Please let your loyal followers know if and where you are moving to. Why not Kearny Mesa? Closer to me! :)
Jin’s was also delicious and he was super friendly. A real shame.

WHY OH WHY JINS GRILL!!! I am very heartbroken right now. Jins always had customers for their tasty ass cheesesteaks… I am shocked.

Place’s like Jin’s are under appreciated here because folks think crap like SUBWAY is good food.
so sad to see Jin’s go.

I hate to say it, but it looks like Jin has sold/​gone out of business/​closed for good. Stopped by tonight during business hours and was closed. Can anyone else confirm?

I went there today only to find out from the new owners that Jin’s Grill is being replaced by some Hawaiian fast food joint. Last week, I gave them a five star review and told them in-​person to keep up the good work. They didn’t bother to mention that was their last week. It’s a sad day for America.

Feeling extremely sad to know from these recent reviews that Jin’s wasn’t just going through a remodel but is becoming a Hawaiian food place. I last ate there about 2 weeks ago. Something more than a craving I guess made me feel the need to stop by. I unexpectedly ran into my brother here during his lunch for the 3^rd or 4^th time. Sigh, he, myself, my last bf, the sis-​in-​law, n I bet my parents too were fans of this place since Philly cheesesteaks (authentic or not) ate on of my mom’s favorite sandwiches. I didn’t really plan out this review but at least I wanted to say I’ll really miss this place since not only was it delicious bit it was a special place to me and family. If anyone knows the owner or former cooks, please let us know if they’re reopening Jin’s elsewhere. I don’t know Jin that well but he was a kind man who always had a cute way of saying «hiii» to people. I don’t recall seeing any signs on the door about going out of business or doing a renovating so the two times We last went, construction workers were moving the tables and chairs outside and the windows were covered, so I assumed new furniture was going to be put in. This past week I see bare windows (well, except for the «People love us on Unilocal» or credit card stickers plus the familiar standing sign to advertise the sandwich combo, the soda machine, and some of the picture frames inside. Sigh, yeah, just like how some who might’ve reviewed this place mentioned how Jin’s was a sandwich shop that happened to be right next door to that, ahem, famous chain sandwich shop, might’ve been quite odd for its location but I and many others enjoyed the good food (whether the crinkle fries were freshly cut or frozen bagged ones, or whether these were authentic cheesestakes or not) and the friendly service. I feel sad to see these new reviews confirming its closure. I’d love to hear of it being reopened again nearby but maybe the owner is soon retiring? Jin, we’ll all miss you and your quick service restaurant. I’m unsure how many years it was there since I’ve never readout frequented Midway until late 2012 or 2013 but I believe Unilocal was what brought us to try this place out for the first time, to eat something other than stuff from the hundreds of Taco shops or Wendy’s or supermarkets. Hopefully if we try out this new Hawaiian place it’ll be as friendly and good of an atmosphere and taste of Jin’s, though Hawaiian plate lunches and cheesestakes with fries aren’t the same types of food.

Brought the family with me this time. Definitely very good and the closest thing to a Philly Cheesesteak this far West.

Their cheesesteak is as close to a true Philly cheesesteak as you get. I’ve had my fair share straight from the City of Brotherly Love and various copy cats all around San Diego. The day Jin’s start serving it on amoroso bread is the day I’ll say they’re THE BEST. It’s pretty darn close to perfect and my husband and I will continue to trek miles to Jin’s to get our fix.

Our food was delicious! this is a small mom and pops shop. Was is priced fairly. Very simple menu of about 5 different things. The sandwich its self was very flavorful and the meat was very tender. There was a shortage if cheese in it tho (sad face). So add the extra cheese for 0.25 the French fries are steak fries and no extra fancy salt or seasoning to ruin it, just good fries. Drink have unlimited refills! Whoo-​hoo!
I recommend this place for a quick bit or even to go.

a very average philly steak, meat tasted watered down and didn’t have any real flavor at all. skimped on the cheese so get extra cheese if you want to actually taste cheese.
no where near the level of brown bag, pops or even jersey mike’s philly. if looking for something new like i was, try firehouse right down the street, i’m sure it will be much much better.
this is the kinda philly that with each bite you hope tastes better but never ever ever ever ever does.

Okay, I don’t do cheesesteaks. I mean, I don’t even think I’ve ever tried one, but they’ve never looked good to me. That’s a whole lotta meat and no thanks. However we were trying to find a quick place for a bite and Unilocal popped up with Jin’s Grill. I didn’t read anything about it, just saw «grill» and the ratings and was like yup, let’s go there. I figured I’d get a grilled cheese or panini or whatever.
When we got inside and saw the menu consisted of ONLY cheesesteak-​style sandwiches my heart dropped a bit, but I was so severely starving I didn’t give a crap at that moment. I decided to go with the chicken cheesesteak sandwich because that seemed an easier transition for me than a bunch of cow steak.
IT WAS DELICIOUS.
It took a little longer than expected to get our sandwiches and my husband was dangerously close to losing an ear or something to my ravenous appetite, but in the end we got the sandwiches (and fun crinkle cut fries) and everything was outstanding!
I’m not sure if I’d be bold enough to try a cheesesteak sandwich anywhere else, but I will definitely try another one from Jin’s next time we stop in. The flavors were fantastic and unlike anything I’d had before.

This place is amazing. I’ve been going here for years now (live down the street) and Jins never disappoints. Ever.
The owner (short little Asian guy) is the sweetest man ever. He’s so polite, not stingy, always has a smile on and makes the best cheesesteak with mushrooms in town!

I have been craving a good Philly cheesesteak for the past few days so I decided to try out Jin’s Grill. I’ve been to the big boys out in Philly so I wasn’t sure just how the local places would compare. Let me just break down the experience:
Easily found parking (always a plus). Walked in to a warm welcome from the man himself, Jin. I believe customer service is just as important as the good quality so it was nice to be welcomed with a smile. I ordered the Philly cheesesteak combo which came with fries and a drink. The price was fair so no complaints. I took a seat and waited all of 5 – 10 minutes for the food. One of the employees brought the food to me and told me to have a nice day. I told him thank you, followed by thanking Jin and left.
I didn’t wait to long to dive into the meaty, cheesy goodness. I got home, unwrapped and took a big bite. The sandwich was stuffed full of meat, cheese, and onion which I think is imperative for a cheesesteak. I can’t say it can keep up with the Philly originals but this sandwich was definitely good enough for me to make it a regular dining choice. Go ahead and check Jin’s out because it has my stamp of approval!!!

I was skeptical about this place. I mean, they claim to have the best cheesesteaks in San Diego, and I’ve already made my love for Pop’s cheesesteaks known in a variety of different ways. But, I try to be open-​minded, and we were in the area, so we decided to give it a try.
The shop is small and sparsely decorated, but at least it was mostly clean. They also have the misfortune of being right next door to a Subway shop, so, if you’re like me, and can’t stand the smell of anything Subway puts out, just know that you’re going to get an unpleasant nose-​full of nasty odors when walking into Jin’s, but that it’s *not* coming from them.
There was only one customer in the store when we walked in, and he was halfway through is sandwich when we got there. The guy working the front came out to greet us and get our order, and he was friendly and patient with us, taking the time to explain how their sandwich-​ordering process went. And I can say that he was even more patient with the customer that came in after us — that guy had no idea what he wanted, but the worker’s tone of voice and patience level never changed. I can admire people like that.
We each ordered a cheesesteak to go, and sat down at the nearest table to wait. On mine, I got the CheeseWhiz (because it’s delicious that way), along with onions, mushrooms, mayo, mustard and tomatoes. I honestly don’t know what compelled me to get the tomatoes, but I did end up liking it. My husband got the same thing, but with extra cheese and without the maters and with one other vegetable that I can’t remember.
The sandwiches took a bit longer to come out than I had expected them to, given that we were the only order they had at the time, but we weren’t in a rush, so it wasn’t a big deal. The guy working the front came out with our sandwiches on a tray, and we had to remind him that we had asked for them to go.
Meanwhile, I helped myself to their hot sauce bottle and the tiny to-​go containers. I’m glad I took some of that home with me — it’s delicious! Tangy and spicy (my lips were on fire by the time I was done eating the sandwich), and excellently paired with the meat.
Yes, I did enjoy the sandwich. It was very tasty and super messy — which I’ve come to associate with a good cheesesteak sandwich. Is it authentic? Having never been to Philadelphia, I can’t say for sure. I just know that it made me make yummy noises, and that I had no problem finishing off the sandwich.
The bread was toasted but chewy, the meat had a good flavor and texture to it, and the grilled vegetables were a bit «al dente» (can you use that with veggies?), which gave the whole thing a nice bit of crunch. And the whiz? SO perfectly melty and yummy.
I don’t think I can say that it’s better than Pop’s, but it’s running a very close second place. It is closer, so that’s a bonus (or, maybe it’s not such a good thing… I can only eat these so often!), and the one person that we interacted with was friendly. We’ll see if the shop lives up to our expectations the next time we drop in. Because I’m sure my husband will want to drop in again soon…

The best cheesesteak I’ve had!!!
That’s saying a lot since I’m writing this after a recent visit to Philly and hitting both Pat’s and Geno’s…the inventors of the cheesesteak!
Jin’s does an proper cheesesteak with onions chopped into the steak and served with cheese whiz as it should be. Far superior to Pat and Geno’s for many reasons. The bread is a perfectly crusty roll. The meat is well seasoned and there’s no shortage of it. The onions are expertly chopped in by Jin himself and you can’t beat him on price.
Jin makes it himself and that’s the way you want it. Don’t sacrifice time for quality… Jin doesn’t.
Support this local business so that I may have access to these awesome cheesesteaks for many moons to come!!!
Stay sexy fellow Unilocalers!!!

Simple menu of cheesesteaks, pastrami steaks, burgers and a fish sandwich. Clearly freshly prepared with flavorful meats and savory cheese. You can choose the cheese — cheezwhiz like Pats? American cheese like Genos? Or provolone like my neighborhood shop in Brooklyn? All available.
The meat is not as thinly sliced as I’d like but it’s amazing lack of grease makes up for that. Nice to be able to leave the joint without feeling like you need to take a shower.
Give it a try if you are in the hood. Definitely a better bet than the boring subway next door.

Philly steak sandwich is now $ 5.95.
After working out at 24 Hour Fitness, I was hungry for lunch, so I found this steak sandwich place on Unilocal.I thought the steak sandwich was going to be cheaper based on the pictures I saw on Unilocal,but I guess the prices have been raised since some of those pictures were taken and posted.
I decided on Jin’s Grill based on the reviews and the proximity to the gym.
Jin’s Grill is a mom and pop restaurant with seating for about 30 people inside. It’s sparse, but nicely decorated.
After ordering, I waited about 10 minutes for my sandwich. It was hot, full of tender steak and very good! I would definitely eat here again if I was in the area.
Cheers!
Xie Xie!