How do you order yours, with whiz or without whiz?

While State College might be three hours from ever-so-famous cheesesteak joints Pat's King of Steaks and Geno's Steaks in South Philadelphia, that doesn't mean it can't grill up some bangin' cheesesteak sandwiches.

Downtown cheesesteak shops, both old and new, prove that you can take the cheesesteak out of Philadelphia, but you can't take the Philly out of the cheesesteak.

Beaver Avenue's landmark Penn State Sub Shop #1, 225 E. Beaver Ave., has been a hot spot to get a good steak for decades.

Sub Shop employee Tiffany Jassel (junior-hotel, restaurant and institutional management) said alumni come in constantly on football weekends to get what they consider to be the "best cheesesteaks" in town.

"The same people who graduate and come back for all the games come back here and say they can't get a cheesesteak anywhere like they can at the Sub Shop," Jassel said.

Under new management since May, the Sub Shop has the same menu and is upholding its image and tradition as an eatery to get a quick sub or steak.

"All of the cheesesteaks we sell are pretty popular, but the Supreme is one of the best," Jassel said. "It's the closest thing on the menu to something you would get in Philly."

The Supreme cheesesteak has fried onions, green peppers, mushrooms and American cheese on it; it runs at $4.50 on a 7-inch roll and $7.95 on a 14-inch roll.

"Our most popular cheesesteak is just steak and cheez whiz on a 4-inch roll for $1.50, and people usually get the whole roll of it for $4.50," Jassel said.

"It's not as tasty as our other cheesesteaks, but it's cheap and a popular drunk food that we usually sell the most on late nights," he added.

Andy Shumlas (senior-political science) described the Sub Shop as "steak-tacular," and finds the sandwiches to be comparable to an authentic Philly cheesesteak.

"Their cheesesteaks are great," he said. "They're all I eat here."

Famous Ernie's Steaks, 111 1/2 E. Beaver Ave., at The Phryst is a favorite for bar fans on late nights.

"This isn't really a restaurant, but more of a nice little place [for] the bar people to grab a cheesesteak," Ernie's manager Josh Westwood said. "We're connected to the Phyrst and opened until 2 a.m."

Westwood said although all the ingredients need to be "top notch" to make a great cheesesteak, the bread that Ernie's uses is key.

"We order our bread from the Buono Bros. Bakery in Chester, Pa.," Westwood said.

"That really gives us our flavor," he added.

Because Ernie's specializes in cheesesteaks, Westwood said it probably has more ingredients than other places, including sweet peppers, hot peppers, lettuce, tomato, onions and more.

"I think we use top-quality ingredients, and we are very peculiar how we cook everything," he said.

Ernie's offers American cheese, provolone and cheez whiz as options for its steaks.

"Lately, I've seen a shift in cheesesteak orders to provolone with onions, which isn't your typical whiz-with or American," Westwood said.

Westwood said Ernie's is comparable to a cheesesteak you could get in the heart of Philly.

"A lot of people come in here and say they're from Philly or from around Philly and this is the closest thing to a Philly cheesesteak that they could find here," Westwood said.

"I promise you're gonna love it," he added.

While Ernie's may taste close to an authentic Philly cheesesteak, newly opened Eb's, 431 E. Beaver Ave., actually gets all of its rolls and steaks shipped from the City of Brotherly Love.

"A cheesesteak is a cheesesteak as long as you put the same ingredients in it, so we can definitely be compared to Pat's or Geno's because we get our Amoroso rolls and steaks shipped straight from Philadelphia," Eb's manager Jon Ebbert said.

Although Eb's is located on a less populated area of Beaver Avenue, so far, business has been steady, Ebbert said.

"We get a lot of business late nights, but during the day, it depends," Ebbert said. "The business progresses as the week goes on; that's why we are closed on Mondays."

Ebbert said Eb's keeps the menu and prices simple to be more cost-efficient for students.

"You can get a cheesesteak on an 8-inch roll for $4, tax included," he said.

"That includes free toppings like fried onions, hot peppers, sweet peppers and mushrooms, and you can get extra American or cheez whiz if you'd like, or both on the steak if you wanted to," Ebbert added.

Jim Petitt (junior-information sciences and technology) said Eb's price is a bargain for the quality.

"It's an awesome cheesesteak," Pettit said. "In my opinion, they're just as good as Pat's or Geno's because you can get a cheesesteak that's bigger than Pat's and it's half the price."

Knowing that ingredients are from Philadelphia is also a perk for Petitt.

"The quality of a cheesesteak is 90 percent bread, and Eb's fits that description since the bread is shipped from Philly," he said.

Regardless of where students decide to feed their Philadelphia cheesesteak craving in State College, downtown eateries promise they won't be disappointed.

"Students that live around the Philly area will come in here and say these cheesesteaks are the best in town and are just like Pat's," Ebbert said.