Cheesed: Patrons of Philly cheesesteak festival unhappy with long lines

Saturday's event drew an estimated 25,000 guests and tickets were going anywhere from $20 to $60.

PHILADELPHIA -- The Philadelphia Cheesesteak Festival's inaugural effort saw tens of thousands of attendees at Lincoln Financial Field, however plenty went home disappointed -- and hungry -- because of long lines at vendor booths.

Saturday's event drew an estimated 25,000 guests and tickets were going anywhere from $20 to $60, depending on the level of access you wanted. Customer complaints indicated that there were simply too many people for the number of outlets offering their variety of the city's staple sandwich.

"We had four people attend and spent $240 and only got food from one vendor, who was serving cheesesteak rolls. It was way over-sold and totally unorganized," said Hatfield Township, Pennsylvania, resident Jim Ozzimo. "I had vouchers for 20 samples of cheesesteaks and with at least an hour wait for one sample, could have never even used my vouchers we paid for. The organizers and sponsors should be held responsible."

Ozzimo said it took one hour and 20 minutes to drive to the stadium. He and the couple that accompanied him eventually gave up and got lunch at Xfinity Live!, which cost another $170, he said.

"People are talking about class action lawsuits. It was a joke," he said.

According to NBC10, the organizers said the first-ever event came with a learning curve and they took away lessons to improve upon next year. Organizers said some vendors were busier than others but all offered "quality product for the attendees to sample," NBC10 reported.

Highlights of Saturday's event included a 500-foot-long cheesesteak that broke the world record and offerings from more than 40 vendors, including Original Philly Cheesesteak Co., I Don't Give a Fork, Chubby's and Grilladelphia.

Did you attend Saturday's event? Let us know about your experience in the comments section below.