Maybe next month Maxim will have Sy Hersh track down someone who actually eats that thing.
Thanks for the sandwich documentary info. One of the few things I really miss about Chicago is the ready availability of good Italian Beef sandwiches. God I love those. But now I have places to seek out when I'm travelling.
For some reason, in Philly it's all about Italian pork sanwiches. Everywhere I go there are painted signs featuring betoqued cartoon pigs urging me to eat pork.
Was this entry edited? I swear that an hour ago there was a mention of a place in Chicago.
Yeah, I took it out because it seemed silly. There was mention of Buona Beef in Chicago. It's referred to in the STYWL site, which is linked in the main entry.
Any discussion of sandwiches that omits Primanti Bros. in Pittsburgh is an incomplete and inferior discussion. For pete's sake, they put fries on the sandwich!
Pret isn't good at all, there are about six within a four block radius of my office, and I very rarely go to any of them.
dude, sworn off cheesesteaks? what I wouldn't give for a whiz with right now. they don't do cheesesteak in singapore. mmmmmm. cheeeesesteak. and porky sandwiches with 10 kinds of italian pork product and provolone! what, did you convert to judaism or something? I gotta go visit my brother in phily.
Cheesesteaks -- though way delicious -- are gross. Slider notwithstanding, I'm trying to become a vegetarian (or at least a chickentarian), and for me part of the process is willing myself to think that cheesesteaks, pepperoni, and even bratwurst are gross. So far the pepperoni and the brats are a problem, but the gooey, greasy grossness of cheesesteaks -- even chicken cheesesteaks -- is easy.
(For those of you out of the know, "whiz with" (or Whiz wit') is sort of a shibboleth: it's a cheesesteak with Cheez Whiz, WITH onions. Belle clearly knows her stuff. Would-be connoisieurs sometimes order American with, on the theory that the blander American cheese doesn't overpower the beef. They're wrong. The cheese should be mostly about texture, and nothing beats the Whiz.)
As a Philly-area native (Croydon, L. Bucks Co.), I learned at a young age to sacrifice texture for taste. Cheesesteaks are much more palatable with provolone and mozzarella. Yes, I'm aware that this is beyond heterodoxy, even approaching apostasy.
Interestingly enough, I've found a place in my current hometown of Columbia, SC, that does Philly cheesesteaks well. It's runs by a Philly-native. They even have D'Amoroso rolls shipped down. It'll never be the same, but it's nice to be reminded once in a while.
BTW, good luck with being vegetarian. I could never give up bratwurst, so I admire you for trying.
ogged, you'd be shocked at how many people eat those sandwiches. I live right near there; the "grease trucks" are swarming with drunken college kids til all hours. Yep, I miss my college-age metabolism, that's for sure.
Cripes, you're right freakgirl. We used to go to Suzie's in Chicago at 2am for italian beef, chili cheese fries, and the so-much-better-than-it-sounds-you-can't-believe-it pina colada milkshakes. Now, we'd die if we did that.
I'm with billyfrombelfast. "Pret" is by and for yuppie scum. Just hearing that contraction makes me want to key a BMW.
I love Pret, sorry. They come up with interesting filling combinations, their stuff is reliably fresh, and the shops themselves are pleasant and efficient. Grubbier indie sandwich shops have their role, but so does Pret. Granted, I might feel different if my city were overrun by Prets. I have noticed, though, that my favorite coffee places are thriving -- and new ones are even appearing -- despite the ubiquity of Starbucks, which I also occasionally patronize.
Please don't key my Honda.
Ogged,
The place in Columbia is called Very's Fine Philadelphia Food.