There’s actually an American from Missouri here in Bangkok who makes a pretty mean cheesesteak. John, the owner of Cactus Club in the Soi Cowboy red-light district and likes to cook for a hobby. Even though his bar is not a restaurant or even licensed to serve food – not that anyone over here cares about licenses anyway – he likes to put on big feeds. He’ll cook up a bunch of food and sell it pretty much at cost just to get people in the door. He’s famous for his huge portions, and Philly cheesesteaks are one of his regular offerings.
Test Kitchen just did a segment on cheesesteak. They used skirt steak, partially frozen, then thinly sliced across grain and then chopped smaller with the grain (much easier than the spatula method if you don’t have a griddle). Heat oil in a pan, add the meat in batches to brown well. Remove to a colander to drain off any excess fat and moisture. Return to the pan, add salt and pepper, then add some grated Parmesan and layer on slices of American cheese. When it starts to melt, fold it in with the meat. Pile onto a bun of your choice, lightly toasted.
Purists will of course groan at some of that, but it sounded pretty good. Never had a cheesesteak in Philly, and most places in other towns that sell them do a shitty job, probably using some kind of food service meat. There was a place in Anchorage, opened by a couple of guys from Philly, that made excellent cheesesteaks, but I’ve yet to find a really good one here in Portland.
Let us not forget the importance of digging out the extra bread from the roll. A sandwich man who can accomplish exactly the right ratio is a genius.
I’ve had steaks from both places and from a couple of others, but the best sandwich I’ve ever had comes from a hole-in-the-wall in Camp Hill, some two hours west of Philadelphia. You might say the cook is a close personal friend. 
OP here.
Did a side-by-side showdown today. Unfortunately I messed up and got one provolone and one whiz (meant to get both with whiz).
Anyway, provolone from Geno’s:
Not impressed. The meat was dry, the cheese was skimpy (had to poke around to make sure they hadn’t forgotten it), the onions too hard, the roll just OK. Overall, a dry, almost tasteless experience.
Whiz from Pat’s:
Awesome. The roll seemed fresher than Geno’s. The meat tastier, the onions softer. The whiz, while not exactly gourmet, was damn tasty. Only drawback if I had to choose was that it was pretty messy. No biggie for me, might be for some.
I feel both are overpriced by the way.
And FWIW, Pat’s has better fries.
mmm
ETA: I did have a Geno’s with whiz 3 years ago and enjoyed it (but did not have Pat’s at that time to compare)
Refresh my memory. Which is the one facing south(-ish) and which facing north?
Pat’s is the small stand-alone building. Geno’s is across the street on the corner of a large building and has all the local sports team’s logos across the front.
Okay, I think that mean’s Pat’s is the one a little farther south then? I’m thinking I liked that one a little better. They were both good though. I’m pretty sure we had ours at both places with Whiz since that would be hard to find anywhere else in the world. We wanted the local flavor.
Another reason worth visiting Pat’s (or Geno’s) is to take a stroll north on 9th Street through the Italian market. When I first visited Philly, I had no idea that was there–I just went to Pat’s, then walked through the neighborhood and discovered the awesome, awesome food on that street. Some of the best sopressata I’ve ever had I bought at some place up on 9th.
Not sure if I can help direction-wise, but Geno’s is pretty garish, lots of bright orange and other colors. Pat’s is more modest appearing, mostly white building with red trim.
Both were very busy but Pat’s line moved noticeably quicker (at least when we were there).
Tip of the day: if you buy with whiz, be careful to hold the sandwiches away from your body as you walk around searching for a table. I saw two people (one I’m married to) who dripped whiz juice down the front of their clothes for a good while before realizing it.
mmm
Yes, thanks. Got them straight now. I’m pretty sure I’d give Pat’s a little bit of an edge, but Geno’s is good too.
I saw this recently, too. I think they did a pretty good job, given that they’re trying to make a recipe that’s accessible for most people in most parts of the country. There are a few quibbles. Cheesesteaks in Philly are usually made with ribeye steaks, though I suspect you could get away with skirt steak. It’s preferred to have the steak thinly sliced–even the cheapo slicer I have in my kitchen does a pretty good job on a semi-frozen steak–but ATK’s quasi fine-chop method–they really just knife slice it–would do in a pinch.
The one big thing that should be stressed–appropriate, given the thread–is that the American cheese should be the good stuff you get from a better-quality deli, something like Boar’s Head or Land-O-Lakes, not the pre-sliced shit like Kraft pasteurized processed cheese food product. And make sure it’s sliced nice and thin, meltingly thin; you don’t want the meat getting overcooked while waiting for the cheese to properly melt.
To me, the best cheesesteak has always been the one with white American cheese, not provolone. It’s richer and creamier and melts better. Provolone is a little too dry for a cheesesteak, unless it’s a pizza cheesesteak like I had for dinner last night; then provolone works a little better with the sauce and the pepperoni. I suspect many of the steak shops in Philly do use white American rather than provolone; people just assume it’s provolone because it’s white and cheese and on the Italianish sandwich that is a cheesesteak.
Here in the Bay Area the local Cheese Steak Shop chain (source of last night’s dinner) does a pretty good job. They bring in Amoroso’s rolls for their sandwiches, which helps a lot. Sometimes their quality goes up and down, but that’s usually about skimping on the meat, not the quality of the ingredients. And many of the shops will have a cache of Tastykakes varieties on hand, to make the meal that much more authentic.
But I think you can make a surprisingly good cheesesteak at home. I’ve done it, and was very pleased with the results. It’s just hard to get the right kind of bread.