#FlashbackFriday: For National Cheesesteak Day, a Taste of Charleys and Its History at the Exchange

March 24 is National Cheesesteak Day, which inspires a look back at Charleys Philly Steaks and its history at the Exchange.

Charleys’ history at the Exchange begins in 1999, when the sandwich chain partnered with the Exchange with a goal of opening restaurants at military installations worldwide.

That goal was accomplished: The Exchange currently has 95 direct-operated Charleys and three concessions, including locations at such installations as Andersen Air Force Base in Guam, Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait and Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii—which was where the first Exchange Charleys opened in June 1999.

A 2023 photo of a Charleys Philly Steaks at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

Based in Columbus, Ohio, Charleys was founded by Charley Shin, a business major at Ohio State University who had his first Philly cheesesteak during a 1985 trip to Philadelphia and decided to open a cheesesteak shop of his own. With help from his mother, who owned a Korean-Japanese restaurant in Columbus, he opened the first Charleys in 1986 in a 450-square-foot space near the Ohio State campus.

He was a college junior at the time, and his mother’s help came in the form of a $48,000 investment—her life savings. The gamble paid off: The restaurant was a success, and within five years, Shin began franchising in other markets to accelerate growth, finding success in mall food courts. Originally Charley’s Steakery and then Charley’s Grilled Subs, the chain became Charleys Philly Steaks in 2012, the apostrophe after “Charley” disappearing in the process.

According to the city of Philadelphia’s tourism site, the cheesesteak was invented by Pat Olivieri, who concocted a steak sandwich in 1930 and added cheese to it a decade later. The Olivieri family’s Pat’s King of Steaks is still serving up cheesesteaks in Philadelphia.

Sources: Exchange Post archives, Charleys.com, National Day Calendar, Visit Philadelphia, Nasdaq.com.