It’s almost Pavlovian the way the name of a city can make you think of—or even imagine that you can taste—that city’s famed cuisine. In Baltimore, it’s the crab cakes. In New Orleans, the beignets, served hot and liberally sprinkled with powdered sugar.
In Philadelphia, it’s the cheesesteak, a hearty sandwich on a soft roll, filled with sliced or chopped steak mixed with melted cheese, and served “wit” or “wit’out”—onions, that is. The cheese is your choice, as long as you choose American, provolone, or Cheez Whiz (that’s right, that gooey cheese-in-a-jar). Many locals insist the soft bread on which a cheesesteak sandwich is made must come from the Amoroso’s Baking Company, a long-time, family-owned Philadelphia staple.
But if you talk to Philadelphians about anything else related to cheesesteaks, you’ll soon realize there’s no consensus. Everybody has their favorite, and there are so many cheesesteak sources, the task of finding the best can quickly become overwhelming.
The two most famous cheesesteaks in Philadelphia come from a pair of eateries located directly across the street from one another, at the corner of 9th and Passyunk (pronounced pass-a-yunk). Located only two miles from the Pennsylvania Convention Center, Geno’s Steaks and Pat’s King of Steaks are considered cultural and culinary landmarks. Ordering a sandwich from each and performing a “taste test” is a popular tourist pastime.
Visitors to the Pennsylvania Convention Center also have several cheesesteak options at Reading Terminal Market, located just across the street from the center at the corner of 12th and Arch streets. One of the best is Spataro’s Cheesesteaks, called “One of the 10 Best Cheesesteaks You’ve Never Had” in 2009 by Carolyn Wyman of the Philadelphia City Paper. Wyman, a nationally syndicated newspaper food columnist who wrote the Great Philly Cheesesteak Book and leads food tours at Reading Terminal Market, explains that the Spataro family is related to Tony Della Monica, a co-owner of Chick’s Deli in Cherry Hill, N.J. Chick’s is the out-of-town shop made famous when it won Philadelphia magazine’s 2003 best cheesesteak award.
“Tony taught the Spataros how to reproduce his elegant steak, including how to cut up Spanish onions thin enough that they can be cooked to crispy-sweet doneness simultaneous with the highly flavorful but not-at-all-greasy meat,” explained Wyman.
Other cheesesteak options in Reading Terminal Market include By George! Pizza, Pasta, and Cheesesteaks and Carmen’s Famous Italian Hoagies.
No matter where you find it in Philadelphia, the cheesesteak is sure to add a cheesy, meaty, Philadelphia flavor to your annual meeting experience!
