V & S Sandwich Shop

I don’t write many reviews but I had to put in a good word for this V&S location. I haven’t been to any of the others. At this V&S, they are friendly, polite and seemed genuinely concerned about their customers’ satisfaction. That’s one reason I feel compelled to comment. Good customer service is so hard to find these days. I won’t spend my $ at an establishment if the service is bad. The second reason I gave V&S 5 stars is the food quality and value. A friend who seeks all the best places to eat in the county told me about the Sammy burgers. I had seen the signs in the shop. I figured they were just the same old nasty sliders you get at most restaurants but I took his advice and tried one. WOW! Double WOW! Just try it– that’s all I can say. I also love the extensive Sammies menu of cold hoagies. The Italian has just the right amount of everything for me. The price is right at V&S. There are a lot of good places to eat in and around Reading but for value, V&S can’t be beat. Btw I never knew it was cash only. If you don’t have $ 3 on you maybe you should not eat out. Also keep in mind that credit transactions cost the merchant so maybe the cash only policy at V&S is keeping costs down. Thank you!

V&S, the quintessential Reading cheesesteak shop. This is where you come to get a true Berks County cheesesteak. If you think it’s «too small», order two, it is Berks.
I find the staff to pleasant enough. I appreciate the fact that they are fast and keep the line moving. Besides, who comes to a sandwich shop to chat up the cashier? Or watch TV for that matter?! Who cares if it’s a small TV? I’m here for the food.
And yes, it is cash only. No problem, I’m an adult, I don’t leave the house without a small amount of cash, because, you know…
P. S. Name ONE cheesesteak shop in Philly that takes credit cards and is known for «service with a smile». smh…

The older woman at the counter was rude. From my phone call to place an order, to the time I arrived to pick my order up. Not to be disrespectful to older people, but she clearly doesn’t hear well and I had to repeat myself half dozen times. Though old, she was well made up like, well, a dime store hoe. Perhaps time to retire? Both from V & S and that half pound of make-​up. ANYWAY– Then when I go to pick up my order, I am told they ONLY TAKE CASH. Now this is odd. It isn’t 1950. I am thinking… hum… tax scam /​off the books? SO, thus I have to leave to find an ATM. I go back and get my order and it is incorrect. I tried to look through the bags prior to leaving, but the older woman seemed offended and told me Not to go through it, «it’s correct». Any way, I got 2 extra fries, a large pizza with extra cheese. and 3 sandwiches. I only ordered 2 sandwiches, 1 fry and one plain pizza. AFTER all that is said and done, the food is just OKAY. I wouldn’t write home about. I miss Philly area food since I moved to Berks Co. They just can’t get it right up here — (BTW — I didn’t pay for the extra food-​I gander I got someone else’s food) lol

Great cheesestake and pizza. Well known shop is basically a landmark to Berks County. Fresh food with an unforgettable flavor. Only down fall is they only except cash and they still use a deli counter numbering system for a line. Although I think they should buy a wawa or sheets ordering system, the food here is always worth it. Don’t forget to order a fry with whatever you order. I love that they support the the school as well.

V&S has been a community staple for a long time. Although I love their Italian sandwiches, I hate going there. It has been a long time since my last disappointing stop in and my husband was wanting some V&S so I agreed to go after grocery shopping. Normally we had been in and out relatively quickly so left the car on to keep my adult daughter cool while I ran in. My order of a small Italian, large cheesesteak (which they have the meat pre made and just needs to be heated up), 2 slices of pizza that just needed to be heated up as well, pirogies, and a soda. It took 30 min to make and when I was given my bag the slow looking young man said that I’d need to wait another 30 min for the pizza slices. I couldn’t take it. My groceries were probably getting warm with my ice cream melting so I asked for my money back and the unhappy prison guard looking cashier gave my money back. It’s funny that you have to pay cash and pay before your food is done so your trapped if you wanted to leave. And for some weird reason the cashier gave me the soda before the food was done. If I hadn’t placed it in their fridge it would have been watered down from the ice melting over the 30 min. that I waited. TERRIBLE SERVICE AGAIN!!! It will be a long time again till I go in there. I will drive over to the V&S in Sinking Spring. They are pleasant and up to date.

My, how this place has changed.
V & S Sandwich shop has been around for many, many years. This particular location was originally located a step over. After time passed, I believe they finally realized they were in dire need of expansion. They tore down the buildings next door, built the building you see today, and then paved over the old location to get that long-​desired parking lot.
Friends of mine decided to stop in here the other day for a meal. I normally turn down these requests as I can only eat so much greasy food in a given day but today I was feeling frisky.
We entered the rather clean looking facility and were greeted promptly by the women behind the counter. The women, while attentive, resembled the cast of Rosanne having been recently released from lockup. They were blunt with questions and wasted no time getting the order going. I can’t tell if this is a good thing or not. It probably depends on your opinion sadism. If you can see yourself hanging around a dominatrix, then maybe this service isn’t so bad.
We decided to dine in, picking an unoccupied table to seat ourselves. We noticed that, despite the rather large walls, the four TV’s mounted were virtually invisible. I am not sure on the deciding factor here, but a thirty foot wall needs something larger then a 18 inch TV to be able to see what’s being shown. Go big or go home.
The food was served after a short wait. My large cheese steak would be considered medium by most standards. The fries were nothing to write home about, instantly forgettable.
Ladies and gentleman, I am greatly bothered by something. I find it unacceptable that in 2015, I have to go out of my way to take out cash to eat somewhere. This is a business that has many, many years of operation under its belt yet still accepts cash only. You know what cash only tells me? You’re refusing to get with times, you may have questionable accounting practices, or you don’t value your potential customer base. You only value those who give in. The bad news for you is that social media is becoming more and more ingrained in folk. These people will realize there are better options available. There are businesses that respect them.
I had to take cash out at the ATM across the street. I absorbed a $ 3 fee because it was not my bank. I’m going to factor that into my undersized meal, and calculate that this is a load of BS. Someone has to start taking a stand to cash only, or minimum credit card purchase limits put in place. I’m happy to start.

I don’t understand why everyone raves about this place. The cheese steaks are steak ums which you can buy in the store. The sauce is plan tomato sauce with some spices. The fries are regular frozen fries. It is pre made and not fresh unless you don’t want onions. It is gross and dirty. Along with not using credit. They obviously don’t care about your business. terrible. There are far more better options. Not sure within Berks county. A lot of people should go to Philadelphia for a good experience, not this!

I swear I still have dreams of the cheesesteaks here. Mister’s hometown and besides meeting his family, this place is second best part of the trip! I had mine sans the tomato sauce on a soft roll just like I like it-​with the Good’s chips. I’m going back every time I’m in town!

I only give this visit 2 star because I know I like their sandwiches, but this place today was like the soup Nazi episode on Seinfeld. Give your order and step aside. No one talks to each other except one employee screamed at everyone for leaving something somewhere she didn’t want it… and yes screamed. There is a sign that says they do not accept cc in order to keep prices down, yet I got 2 sandwiches and a bag of chips for 22.00 that doesn’t seem like keeping price down to me. I was born and raised in Berks County and grew up on V&S but this visit was truely a horrible experience. Mgmt might say oh they must have been busy… it was 420 on a
Monday it wasn’t oh and while I’m on a roll, there was at least 6 – 7 employees abd the phone rang off the hook with no one answering.

This is the worst food ever had in my entire life. I came to the shop and order a cheese steak. My first clue that the sandwich was going to be bad was when the hostess told me that onions are already cooked in the meat. I was so hungry I ordered the sandwich anyway but it was a big mistake. If you want a real cheesesteak just drive down to Philadelphia.

Good selection, good food. They have some cheaper items like the $ 1 Sammy burger or the Sammy chicken pattie. The cheese steak is awesome. They’ve forgotten the cheese for my cheese fries a couple times but that’s not a deal breaker. We’d go there more if it wasn’t cash only because rarely carry cash.

Unbelievably rude woman consistently answering the phones. Great food, but after almost 20 years, I won’t spend any more money there because I don’t want to deal with the terrible customer service. The kids working there seem nice, but the counter lady (ies) who should be the most positive, upbeat friendly person (s) on and off the phone are too much. It’s almost like they don’t care about your service, so if that’s the case, v&s won’t be getting mine or my family’s for a while until the issue is addressed

Probably the best sandwich shop in Berks County, and likely one of the top ten in Pennsylvania. It is Italian with a little Pennsylvania Dutch attitude. The ladies have been working there forever, and it is no nonsense all the way. Italian on a hard roll or Cheese steak on a hard roll, grilled ham and cheese on a soft roll, a patch of pizza (thick and cheesy and so named because it will patch a hole on your stomach or a tire). Get the Good’s Blue bag chips and for dessert a Wixon’s shoo fly pie.

The food’s good, when you get what your ordered. Which has never been the case for me, and I’ve been eating it for years. Make sure to check and double-​check your order before you leave. The service is typical east coast brash — to my now-​Midwestern ears it sounds rude, but I don’t think that’s intentional.

I have never been to a V & S Sandwich Shop but while I was on vacation, I decided to stop in Reading for the night and decided to stop here for dinner. From the reviews, I’ve heard that it is a hit and miss. Luckily, I came on a hit because the sandwich was delicious but the service was slow. I would love to come back again but please hurry it up next time.

Good olé V & S. I’ve eaten from this location a bunch of times. Ample parking on the side, ample seating inside and outside. When you come through the doors you’re greeted with a huge counter where you can order from (Make sure to take a number if it’s packed). Ordered pick ups are to the left. You’ll need cold hard cash if you want to order, this place is still in the stone ages and does not honor credit or debit, but I’m sure they’re not hurting for business.
As others have pointed out, it can be a «soup nazi-​esk» ordering system when dealing with select people from behind the counter, and I too have been on the receiving end of things missing from my order. Like the actual nacho cheese for my cheese fries in one instance.
That being said, this place makes some quality stuff. Their cheese steaks are some of the best around. The french fries, burgers, and sandwiches are top notch. Very fresh and tasty. Very filling. The only thing I don’t really care for is their deli style pizza. Which comes in a square shape, and tastes something like a standard school lunch pizza slice, or an Ellios cardboard pizza slice. Overall, highly recommended for the food.
I can’t stress enough though, for the love of all that is holy. Make sure you got some greenbacks to pay for your food. Otherwise you’ll have to do the walk of shame to the bank across the street and access their ATM.

Basic PA Hogie joint. Their specialty is the Italian, which I had, and was delicious. My uncle had the cheesesteak and also spoke highly about it. It’s got a seating area and good options for iced tea, (I believe made by Clover Farms if I remember correct). They actually have a smart technique in the way that they pack the sliced meats in the sandwich so nothing falls out. Well done V&S, well done.

I have mixed feelings about this place. On one hand the food is pretty good, on the other hand some menu items flat out suck (please don’t get the pizza). The lady at the counter is pretty rude and the prices for what this place is are a bit on the high side. The atmosphere is very blah, reminds me of the 80’s. I’d recommend looking elsewhere.

I first heard of this place when I was in Washington State serving in the Army. Two close friends were from the area and would always talk about how they miss V&S. Coming from Chicago, I had my own food joints that I craved so I knew they weren’t exaggerating. Fast forward 10 years, we all returned home, so my wife and I went to Reading to visit and of course finally go to V&S!!! I like the straight up cheesesteak with some red sauce and peppers on it. When we visit Reading I consume on the average of 1.333 cheesesteaks per day.

While the food here is excellent, the service is absolutely terrible. They screw up simple things, like not adding lettuce, all the time. In addition to that, the gruff old hag that works the register never acknowledges the customers or says even a simple «thank you». Not to mention, they don’t take credit or debit cards, which is a real inconvenience these days. If you have the time, go to the Sinking Spring location on Penn Ave. The food is equally wonderful, you’ll get appreciation for your business and you can use your credit/​debit card.