Where Passyunk Ave crosses 9th St and Wharton Ave in South Philly, two restaurants stand tall amongst others who serve the ubiquitous Philly cheesesteaks. Both claim to have originated it, and obviously both claim to be the best.
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Now, in the interest of science, we went to both establishments. First, we stopped at Geno's. Thinking we couldn't all eat one ourselves, two of us split one....Whiz without (real cheesesteaks are made with Cheez Whiz...I hadn't known that prior to this trip). Without meaning without onions. All in all, a pretty good sandwich. But, Pat's got to have a turn. This time, the two testers got whole sandwiches (Whiz without for me, Whiz with for my buddy). The sandwich at Pat's had more cheese-type product on it. Again, pretty good.
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So, who wins? For me, I liked that there was more cheese-type product at Pat's. But, those of us who ate the cheesesteaks liked the bread better at Geno's. The steak itself was a wash in my opinion, and the amount of cheese at Geno's was fine. So, for me, the winner (but not by much) was Geno's.
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After the great debate, we went and saw where some real debating happened in the 1770s, Independence Hall. I will have more to say about this later on...
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That night, after a side trip to Delaware (come on, how many chances do you get to go there as a Midwesterner), we went to Chickie and Pete's, where more stellar food was served. Oh, and that is where I celebrated my winning the office pool. Bragging rights only, of course.
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Next: DC, baby!!!
6 comments:
Cheez Whiz... who knew? Processed cheese-ish foodlike substance squirted from a can... Yum!
i hope you ordered in english at Geno's.
It almost reminds me of the gyros battle between Zorba's and the Parthenon on State Street in Madison. The Parthenon had better sauce, but Zorba's would (usually) give you more meat. I heard that Zorba's is no more, though -- is that true, Marge?
I take most of my Philly cheesesteak in pizza form :) Must admit that the idea of Cheez Whiz on the PCS doesn't make it sound appetizing, but if/when I ever go to Philly, I will remember the recommendation!
(My ex-boyf (from Madison area) swore by the Parthenon - said it was the best ever.)
'Tis sadly true... Zorba's has been gone for quite a few years now. I think there's some sort of Japanese restaurant there now.
Parthenon is good, but there's no comparison to Zorba's. Zorba's did give you more meat (especially if you went there with Pat, who would talk nice to Jim. Also Zorba's had a nifty, cheesy decor that you had to love. I kinda miss Zorba's!
I don't believe I ever ate at Zorba's, so I can't say for sure...but, in comparison to any gyros I have eaten in Minnesota, Parthenon absolutely rules!!
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