Vegan cheesesteak contest is around the corner

Philly, get your napkins ready!

The Best Vegan Cheesesteak in Philly contest returns for a fourth year this Friday, March 10. Online voting will be officially launched at noon by Christina Pirello and Pat's Steaks' Frank Olivieri, Jr., and will continue till noon on March 20. The final judging event will be held on March 23 at the Ethical Society at 6 p.m.

Contest fans know that first-year winner Blackbird was 'Best'ed in 2015 by Royal Tavern, surging back in 2016 to retake the crown. This year promises more drama: In addition to more than two dozen regular competitors, the current champ will face several newcomers including Wiz Kid in the new Whole Foods - the vegan cheesesteak created by Rich Landau, vegan-dining superstar... and one-time boss of Blackbird's Mark Mebus.

Pass the popcorn!

Among other newcomers this year will be sandwich stalwarts Campo's Deli, whose stadium franchise took heat over a "vegan cheesesteak" with no vegan cheese and only nonvegan rolls on hand. It's terrific that more spots are providing vegan cheeses with their vegan meat, but many cheesesteak lovers may not be aware that many hoagie-style rolls contain dough conditioners that are commonly animal-derived. For nonvegan cheesesteaks, of course, it's a wash; for ours, it's, er, unwashed. (Venues with nonvegan bread can be nominees but all finalist sandwiches must use vegan rolls.)

Campo's did step up after the ballpark bean-ball and now offers at its main location (2nd and Market) a fully vegan cheesesteak, and a very tasty one, on a vegan roll (with hopeful signs but nothing definite yet for the stadium franchise). Like many vegan-curious traditional outlets, this place looked for and found a growing number of Philly-area bakeries now offering all-vegan rolls. Here's a quick list of some of the most popular, courtesy of a local vegan-roll connoisseur:

Baker Street Bread Co. (215-248-2500)
Cacia's Bakery (215-334-1340)
Four Worlds Bakery (215-967-1458)
Metropolitan (215-854-0729)
Philly Bread (339-788-8599)
Sarcones Bakery (215-922-0445)

If a vegan cheesesteak eater who knows a venue newly offering a vegan cheesesteak, or you are that venue, be sure to tip me to it here. New sandwiches can be added after voting starts but must be on the regular menu by Tuesday March 14 to qualify.

Check this space for complete contest details Friday!