While we are talking about bad worshiping, what's with Pat's vs. Geno's (Penn: credit, shop)

[eliza61nyc]

lol, the Wawa thread got me thinking about other Philly things I think are waaay over hyped.

The supposed Pat's vs. Geno's cheesesteak thing. Both of them have pretty lousy cheesesteaks IMO yet they are always touted as good. Not sure if it's a tourist thing or good marketing but I can think of 5 other pizza joints that make better steaks.

[kyb01]

Originally Posted by eliza61nyc

lol, the Wawa thread got me thinking about other Philly things I think are waaay over hyped.

The supposed Pat's vs. Geno's cheesesteak thing. Both of them have pretty lousy cheesesteaks IMO yet they are always touted as good. Not sure if it's a tourist thing or good marketing but I can think of 5 other pizza joints that make better steaks.

Pat's is credited with inventing it(most likely correct) so that's what they base their rep on. Geno's has a very clean operation and corner so that's good but their steaks are "meh". Both are about those tourists who don't know what to expect anyhow.
Some tourists do know what to expect and will seek out other places.

Tony Luke's used to be great. Not too bad now.

Jim's is okay

But my favorites are John's Roast Pork and Delassandros followed by Steve's and Cleavers.

[PHL10]

Originally Posted by eliza61nyc

The supposed Pat's vs. Geno's cheesesteak thing. Both of them have pretty lousy cheesesteaks IMO yet they are always touted as good. Not sure if it's a tourist thing or good marketing but I can think of 5 other pizza joints that make better steaks.

I think Pat's and Geno's are pretty good and much better than what you would get at a typical pizza joint that uses those 8 oz frozen steaks.

Originally Posted by kyb01

But my favorites are John's Roast Pork and Delassandros followed by Steve's and Cleavers.

Kyb, I like John's and Steve's too but I haven't had Cleavers or Delassandro's (despite driving by it a gazillion times over the years).

[kyb01]

Originally Posted by PHL10

I think Pat's and Geno's are pretty good and much better than what you would get at a typical pizza joint that uses those 8 oz frozen steaks.








Kyb, I like John's and Steve's too but I haven't had Cleavers or Delassandro's (despite driving by it a gazillion times over the years).

I have no idea how Delassandro's maintains their quality. They have good hoagies too. They're on the new best hoagies list in the Phila. Magazine.

[Fireshaker]

It's definitely a tourist / marketing thing. Every time someone from out of the area comes to visit us, they want to try Pat's & Geno's. They don't want the "good" cheeseteak from the awesome local place; they want to go to the place they've heard about and seen on every national sports broadcast. It's infuriating but there's nothing I can do about it.

(It's not that I think Pat's & Geno's are "bad" per se. They're fine. But if I'm having a cheesesteak, I really want it to be worth my while.)

[NewtownBucks]

Originally Posted by Fireshaker

It's definitely a tourist / marketing thing. Every time someone from out of the area comes to visit us, they want to try Pat's & Geno's. They don't want the "good" cheeseteak from the awesome local place; they want to go to the place they've heard about and seen on every national sports broadcast. It's infuriating but there's nothing I can do about it.

(It's not that I think Pat's & Geno's are "bad" per se. They're fine. But if I'm having a cheesesteak, I really want it to be worth my while.)

It's a tourist destination. Geno's even has a separate merchandise shop across the street.

[NewtownBucks]

Has anyone here had a cheesesteak at South Philly Bar & Grill? It would be pretty funny if they were better than Pat's/Geno's.

[PHL10]

Originally Posted by Fireshaker

It's definitely a tourist / marketing thing. Every time someone from out of the area comes to visit us, they want to try Pat's & Geno's. They don't want the "good" cheeseteak from the awesome local place;

As you said, both those places get crazy amounts of national press. So what establishments fall into your "awesome local place" category?

[NewtownBucks]

Originally Posted by PHL10

As you said, both those places get crazy amounts of national press. So what establishments fall into your "awesome local place" category?

I think my favorite was at Gooey Louie's in Pennsport, although my sample size is not nearly big enough to be considered an authority. They've stuffed the most meat I've ever seen anyone get in a hoagie roll.

[1ondoner]

I was a fan of Boyz II Men who shot Motownphilly outside Geno's and therefore I'm biased towards Geno's. However, I haven't been to South Philly ever since they opened a Geno's at the airport.