CHEESESTEAKS • 5 min read
7-Inch or 12-Inch?
The 12-inch is close to double, not a bit more — and cutting it in half is the most useful thing you can ask for.
Every Philly and eight of the nine po’boys come in a 7-inch and a 12-inch. The 7-inch is a full adult meal and the size every special is built around. The 12-inch is close to twice the sandwich, and cutting it in half feeds two people better than two 7-inch would.
Almost every sandwich here comes in a 7-inch and a 12-inch, and the decision gets made in about a second at the counter. It is worth more thought than that, because the two sizes are not the same sandwich scaled — they behave differently, they travel differently, and they suit completely different orders.
What comes in both sizes
- All nine Phillys — cheese steak, pepper steak, mushroom, pizza steak, smokehouse, the Garden, surf and turf, tiger steak and veggie
- Eight of the nine po’boys, including the French dip and the meatball sub
- The one exception is the buttermilk buffalo chicken, which is on a burger bun and comes one size only
Everything on the special menus is the 7-inch. If you want a 12-inch, you are ordering off the main menu and paying for the side and the drink separately.
The 7-inch is bigger than it sounds
This is the part people get wrong. Seven inches of a filled roll is a complete adult meal, particularly with a side next to it. It is the size the specials are built around for exactly that reason.
The 12-inch is not “a bit more” — it is close to twice the sandwich. Ordering one with fries and expecting to finish both is optimistic for most people, most of the time.
| Situation | Size | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Lunch, with a side | 7-inch | This is what the specials are built around |
| Lunch, no side | 7-inch or 12-inch | The 12-inch carries a meal on its own |
| Genuinely hungry | 12-inch | And skip the side rather than the sandwich |
| Two people | 12-inch, cut in half | Cheaper than two 7-inch and there is no compromise |
| Four people, mixed tastes | Two 12-inch, cut | Four halves, two fillings, everyone chooses |
| Taking it home | 7-inch, or 12-inch cut | A whole 12-inch sags in a bag |
Cutting it in half is the underused move
A 12-inch cut in half is the single most useful thing you can ask for on this menu, and it costs nothing.
Two people get a proper portion each for less than two 7-inch sandwiches. Four people ordering two 12-inch sandwiches in different builds get a choice rather than a compromise. And a cut sandwich travels far better than an uncut one — a 12-inch in a bag sags in the middle and pushes its filling to both ends, which is why it arrives home looking worse than it left.
Some fillings scale better than others
Not every sandwich doubles cleanly. Broadly:
- Cheesesteaks scale well — the filling is uniform, so a 12-inch is the same experience for longer
- The meatball sub scales badly — it is the heaviest thing per inch on the menu and gets soft towards the end
- The French dip scales badly — the further you get from the cup, the more awkward the dipping
- Dressed po’boys scale well — the salad keeps it from becoming monotonous
- Fried fillings scale moderately — the coating softens over the length of a 12-inch
The two worth ordering at 7 inches almost regardless of appetite are the meatball sub and the French dip. Both are brilliant short and hard work long.
Ordering a 12-inch to take away? Ask for it cut in half and wrapped as two pieces rather than cut and wrapped as one. Two separate wraps hold their shape; a single wrap around two halves does not, and you get the sag anyway.
Why the 12-inch travels badly
Worth understanding rather than just being told. A filled roll is a beam, and a long one bends. Picked up by the middle or laid flat in a bag, a 12-inch sags, and everything inside it migrates towards the two ends. By the time you get home you have two full ends and an empty middle.
Heat makes it worse. Steam has to go somewhere, and in a long wrapped sandwich it collects along the bottom of the roll, which is already the part under the most strain. A 7-inch has less span and less time under load, which is most of why it survives the journey better.
What about the sides?
Simple arithmetic that catches people out. A 7-inch plus fries is a bigger meal than a 12-inch on its own, and it costs less. If you want both a large sandwich and a side, you are ordering two meals rather than one large one.
On a weekday the answer is usually a special: a 7-inch with fries or onion rings and a drink, at one price. Our guide to the three special menus sets out what is on each.
Ordering for a group
The arithmetic changes completely once more than two people are eating. Sandwiches are the only thing on this menu that divides cleanly, which makes them the backbone of a group order rather than an afterthought.
- Three 12-inch sandwiches, cut, feed six people a half each
- Order different builds rather than three of the same — the point of cutting is choice
- One large shared side beats six small ones, and costs less
- Add wings by the count rather than adding more sandwiches; wings scale further
Where sandwiches stop working is at genuine party scale, because you end up with a lot of bread. Past about eight people, wings do more of the lifting — our guide to how many wings per person covers that end of it.
The short version
The 7-inch is a full meal and the size every special is built around. The 12-inch is close to double, not a bit more. Cut it in half whenever more than one person is eating or the sandwich is going in a bag. And order the meatball sub and the French dip short whatever your appetite. It is all on the Philly menu and the po’boy menu.
Both sizes, on almost everything
Nine Phillys and eight po’boys, 7-inch and 12-inch, cut in half on request.
Frequently asked questions
What sizes do the sandwiches come in?
A 7-inch and a 12-inch, on all nine Phillys and eight of the nine po’boys. The buttermilk buffalo chicken is the exception.
Is a 7-inch enough for one person?
Yes, particularly with a side. It is the size the special menus are built around.
Can you cut a 12-inch in half?
Yes, and it costs nothing to ask. It is the best way to feed two people and it travels far better than an uncut one.
Which sandwiches are better at 7 inches?
The meatball sub and the French dip. Both are excellent short and become hard work at 12 inches.
Do the specials come in 12-inch?
No. Everything on the special menus is the 7-inch.
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