First of all, a big "THANKS" to everyone who responded to my query about who had the best Cheesesteak in Philly and all the recommendations about where I should go.

SO MANY CHOICES, SO LITTLE TIME

Although a good number of establishments were mentioned, I would only be in Philly for a couple of hours, so I coould only choose one place.
Although it was repeatedly pointed out that both Geno's and Pat's were too touristy, they were the two most often mentioned places. As they are basically institutions to the Philly Cheesesteak, I finally decided that I would try one of the two. This would provide me with a foundation with which to compare all subsequent Cheesesteak Sandwiches. It would also allow me to say "Oh...Pat's/Geno's . . . yeah, I've been there." As touristy as they may be, I figured you at least have to had eaten there at least once. In the future I can go to Jim's, and Tony Luke's and any other places brought to my attention, and have some sense of "expertise" with which to compare.

That said, I had to choose between the two, which I was unable to do, so prior to leaving L.A. I flipped a coin (Heads = Geno's / Tails = Pat's) It came up heads and so it was Geno's.

Well . . . that's how it was supposed to work in theory . . . but here's what happened.

While on the plane to N.J. I was sitting next to this guy and telling him the Cheesesteak story and he immediately said "You've got to go to Pat's." When in N.J. my friend also told me "You've got to go to Pat's." So this made me start to re-think my choice.

A few days later, I get to Philly, I immediately seek out the corner Geno's and Pat's are on. A parking space opens up on the street, right next to the ordering wndow at Pat's !! I park the car. There is a long line at Pat's and almost no line at Geno's. Hhhmmmmm. This tells me something already. But, I am still split. What to do?

So, I decide the only way to really know which is better, and to have a greater foundation by which to judge all future Cheesesteak Sandwiches, is to have a sandwich from each of the two!!!!

A REVIEW OF EACH

GENO'S



Geno's had almost no line waiting to order. I ordered your basic steak sandwich, "American, WIT"
The sandwich was not all that big (certainly not was described to me by some) It was rather light on the cheese and onions, and was pretty dry, not greasy (as I had also been told sandwiches from both Geno's and Pat's were).

The steak was pretty good, almost no gristle, and had a somewhat spicy flavor.

It was good, but not anything impressive, and not much different than a place i recently discovered near me here in Lost Angeles that serves Cheesesteaks (owned and perated by a transplant from Philly)

PAT'S



Pat's had a huge line, and so I waited a while to order. This put me in a mood of "This had better be worth the wait." which meant I was already making it harder for Pat's to please me.

I was not disappointed. It was what I imagined a Cheesesteak from these two places would be like (unlike Geno's which was kind of bland and not much to it).

The sandwich from Pat's was about twice as big the one from Geno's. It was loaded with onions and cheese. True to expectations, it was GREASY I mean really greasy . . . really really greasy!!!!
(Which was kind of disgusting), and, as was mentioned by a number of people, the meat at Pat's has gristle (quite a bit). That said however, IT WAS PRETTY GOOD! Lots of taste, lots of fun.

Then, it was in the car and on my way to MD.

NEVER EAT TWO CHEESESTEAK SANDWICHES IN ONE SITTING

About half way to Baltimore I had one of the worst stomach-aches I have ever had in my life. I felt like a swallowed a cannon ball. And later that evening I got sick.

Moral of the story . . . when encountering a Cheesesteak Sandwich stand (or stands) exhibit self control and limit yourself to only one sandwich.

Anyway . . . I have now tried both Pat's and Geno's and I will now be able to try the less touristy, less commercial places when next in Philly.

Next up . . . Jim's and Tony Luke's (although one at a time) when next in the area.

Thanks again to all who made suggestions,

K

 

The second best Philly Cheesesteak I ever had was off the back of a roach-coach in Camden, NJ. I think you should avoid the places that are supposed to be the best, and hit a few dives. You'd be surprised what you can find on your own. Having found it yourself adds a little something to experience.

 

There's a place within walking distance of the VA Hospital in
South Philly that has a great sandwich ... Can't remember the
name though, ANy South Phillian's here? Man it was GOOD.

 

Amateur


And that Pat's line was nothing.


Now you gotta come back and hit the grease trucks of New Brunswick.

 

Roach-coach? Grease-Truck? Whatever you call it, there's some good food to find off the back of a chuck-wagon. The meat pies in NYC are great, too. They'll cut right through you though.