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Anybody (even me!) can make a Vegan Cheesesteak better than these folks. To make a better cheesesteak, go to Whole Foods and get Ray's Wheat Meat, fry it up, use some Roads End organics and viola! A tasty Cheesesteak of the Vegan kind. These clowns? They use TVP crumbles and some non-vegan cheese and call it a cheesesteak. There was a huge scandal a few years back, and I have not been back since. The funny part is, I am not even Vegetarian anymore. I eat meat like most people. However, I don't trust these guys. Their service was rude and subar. Even for an unfriendly city like Philly. The atmosphere was good, as you would always see punky people hanging out.

I can actually tolerate Gianna's overall, but there are some annoying things I wish they would take seriously. First off, the bathrooms have been covered with graffiti for as long as I can remember going there. I get the impression the staff there avoids that room all together but don't seem to mind their customers having to deal with sloppy commodes, And what;s with the sink? Can you just install a normal porcelain fixture with hot and cold water? And lose the mystery container that;s supposed to hold soap and mount real soap and towel dispensers on the wall. The food is passable, but I've yet to have anything with any real taste there. The pizza is especially bland no matter what style, it seems. Isn't tomatoe sauce an important ingredient in pizza's flavor? Gianna's pizza lacks any meaningful sauce. The dough is paper-like and has no taste, either. Philly is famous for great pizza- why doesn't Gianna's seem to anything about pizza? Some sauce, please! For some reason, I like their famous GG special with vegan cheese, even though it only tastes like whatever you put on it, like lots of ketchup. Also, the bread is too chewy. I guess it;s the price I pay to not feel guilty after eating a dead animal, which is why I suffer through a meal there. On a positive note, the service is super fast, although super-impersonal. I think if they tightened the place up, got some better trained and better paid staff, and figured out a way to throw some real flavor in their food, they would win over more naysayers of the vegan lifestyle.

Here's the highlights: Cheesesteak tastes like cardboard but you get use to it. (It tastes better with vegan cheese than real cheese. If you're gonna go fake, you might as well go all the way). The fake sausage smells and tastes terrible. The chicken is ok. The vegan pizza is interesting and good. Atmosphere - every time I go in everyone looks ill. The cooks usually give me the attitude "what do you want!?", hence therefore I'm guessing that's why there is a hippster now taking your order. *Plus - If you have food allergies this place won't hurt you. My little story- My first experience was at Gianna's Jr. I got the GG special and vegan cheese fries. I thought the fries were way too salty and the cheesesteak tasted like cardboard. I was drinking water for hours afterwards. Having food allergies I eat lots of healthy foods that don't taste good but make me feel good. This was one of them. I felt good after eating there, no allergies. Not only that you get cravings for it later.

Gianna's grille is a pizza and steak shop. Years ago they used to push the vegetarian/vegan aspect of their operation, but these days unless you look at the back of their menu, or notice all of the indie rock kids hanging out in the cafeteria-style room, you'd have no idea that they're anything other than a typical pizza joint. Of course, gianna's is famous (at least regionally) for being a vegetarian spot, even if they do play it down these days. The "gg special" a.k.a. vegetarian cheesesteak is good, prepared exactly like a "real" cheesesteak. But, yes, it would be better off if they used decent faux meat. Actually if they used ANYTHING other than the garden crumbles they use, it would be better. (go to govinda's gourmet to go if you want a good veggie cheesesteak.) My favorite menu item is the gianna burger. my god, it tastes like a big mac (even has the special sauce.) it is really good, and cheaper than the steak sandwiches. The pizza is good, but you'll pay through the nose for a slice of the vegan stuff with toppings. By the way, gianna's DOES offer vegan cheese now, even if it isn't that great. And if you like vegan dessert, you can't go wrong here. This place has tons of dessert options.

I moved to Philly after the soy cheese scandal had died down, and only heard about it after I had tried Gianna's. The vegan pizza tastes pretty vegan to me, but even if it's not, I'm not such a strick vegan as to have a huge problem with casein. (Of course, I totally agree that all items should be accurately labeled, and understand vegans' anger over this issue.) Personally, a tiny bit of dairy derivative just doesn't bother me. I love the variety and value and Gianna's. Where else in the city can I get vegan pizza with fresh basil and soy chicken for under $3.00? There are many other choices, as well. Really, it's the perfect spot to stop for a quick meal when I'm in the South Steet area.

I think what matters more is that Gianna's serves vegan food in the here-and-now. Their vegan items are pretty good, but not as good as other vegetarian fast-foody places like Mama's or Basic 4. The vegan chicken cheesesteak is good here.

A few years ago, it came out that gianna's soy cheese wasn't vegan but they were lying to their customers that not only was it vegan, but they were making it themselves. their excuse had something to do with their "supplier" something something. oh, but i thought you made the cheese yourselves. hmm. Gianna's cheesesteak isn't even tasty. It's like TVP crumbles and it falls all over the place anyway.