Charleys Philly Steaks


Charleys Philly Steaks is an American restaurant chain of Philly cheesesteak stores headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. Formerly known as Charley's Steakery and Charley's Grilled Subs, the franchise was established in 1986 on the campus of The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, and is still headquartered there. There are 600 locations in 46 states, Puerto Rico, and Guam in the United States, as well as stores in 16 other countries.

History

While studying real estate at Ohio State University, Charley Shin worked in his mother's Japanese/Korean restaurant in Columbus, Ohio. A wrong turn on a family trip to New York City resulted in Charley's discovery of the Philly cheesesteak. Charley convinced his mother to take a break, sell the restaurant, and invest her life savings of $48,000 in “Charley’s,” a restaurant across the street from Ohio State's campus. Charley's first decision in the restaurant was to turn the grill around to face the customers, so they could always see their food being cooked, a move that would later become the trademark of the Charley's Philly Steaks chain.