rev:text
| - So in the last few months I haven't written many reviews due to a horrible case of writer's block. It was going to take something of amazing to break me out of this spell. It was going to take..... the best Philly Cheesesteak I've had in Vegas.
A little background: My dad is from Philly and as such I've grown up with cheesesteaks my entire life. I've been back east with him a few times and each and every time I have a cheesesteak or two and formulate mental comparisons. My favorites that I've had there are Jim's and Steve's (side note: how come 95% of cheesesteak places are opened by people with the most common one syllable names in the US?) When I read about Hank's opening up, and right by my house nonetheless, I'll be honest I was a little wary. While I'm not picky in the least bit and can eat anything from a homemade cheesesteak using steak-umms and american cheese to capriotti's version to stake out's etc etc and be happy, I also realize that it's incredibly difficult to replicate geographic favorites all the way across the country. I tried to keep expectations low knowing that there was a good chance this would be "just another cheesesteak"
After chatting with the owners for a few minutes, my hope started to rise. Hank (is it safe to presume his name was Hank? I forgot what he told me) was telling me about the kind of meat, the differences in meats between various places back East, and basically was a walking encyclopedia of cheesesteak knowledge. If this guy isn't updating the wikipedia entry on cheesesteaks, he should be. Then the golden words: he told me that his cheesesteak was most closely going to resemble Steve's from Philly. SOLD.
I ordered a Philly Joe based on recommendations here, and I also ordered cheese fries and some hot cherry peppers on the side because I'm a glutton for lactose intolerance and hot fiery things in my belly induced punishment. It was definitely worth it. For $6.95 you get 9 inches of the best quality steak I've had on a cheesesteak out here. Whatever it's costing him to fly this meat out to Vegas, it's worth every penny. The cheese got all gooey and messy and it helped that I devoured the whole thing in about the same amount of time it would take most people to finish unwrapping it. This was the closest I've come in Vegas to the taste of the cheesesteaks I've had in Philly.
The cheese fries were good, and I easily finished off the order, but they wouldn't be something I would order regularly since I try not to eat like a complete degenerate every time I go out. The cheesesteak though might be too good to resist.
5 stars for officially setting the bar for me on a Vegas Cheesesteak.
|