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Having lived at the Jersey Shore since I was eight I grew up with the myth of the Philly Cheesesteak, the names of the shops were spoken like the names of saints: Pat's, Geno's, Jim's and so on. I remember walking down the boardwalk and seeing bright red neon signs the read "Philly Cheesesteaks" and then eating a plain old Jersey cheesesteak on the way home because everything on the boardwalk cost so much. I remember years of feeling like I was being robbed of some great joy and that I was truly missing out on something magical.

I turned eighteen and went to college just outside of Philadelphia. One night my friends and I went to a concert at the old Spectrum and on the way home one friend said "let's stop and get a Pat's steak." I was so excited. There I stood at the place where Rocky had stood, the sign said so. There were pictures everywhere of celebrities who had eaten at Pat's before me. I read the sign and made sure I knew how to order correctly, failure to do so is a cardinal sin in eating at one of these revered places.

Finally I stood there with my first real Philly cheesesteak in my hands and I bit in. There was roll and onion and some kind of processed cheese spread and somewhere under all of that I could taste some meat, maybe. Any Philadelphian will tell you that it's not the meat that makes a cheesesteak it's the roll. That's because there's hardly any meat on any Philly cheesesteak. Silly me I thought that something with the word "steak" in it would be predominantly meat.

I've given many other cheesesteak places in Philadelphia chances many times over the last twenty years and always find the same thing: big rolls, tons of onions and peppers, globs of whatever cheese I opt for and a dab of meat. Every one of the place charges a ridiculous sum for this onion and cheese sandwich and every one also has a sign out front claiming to have the best cheesesteak in Philadelphia or on South Street or in whatever neighborhood it is in. While it may be the best in that area or even the city their cheesesteaks still are nowhere near as good as what I get at home.

"Down the shore" as Philadelphians say we put plenty of meat on a cheesesteak. The roll, cheese and any other toppings are there to add flavor not create the illusion of size.

So give me a Jersey shore cheesesteak and change for my ten over a Philadelphia cheesesteak any day.

Learn more about this author, Robert Spalding.
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