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Michael S. Wirtz / Inquirer Staff Photographer
Cheez Whiz being slathered in all its gooey glory at Pat's King of Steaks by general manager Tom Francano.
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Top 2 showdown: Which cheese belongs on a cheesesteak?
These were the top vote-getters in an earlier Inquirer poll. Cheez Whiz was well behind in third.
American
Provolone
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Original poll: What cheese belongs on a cheesesteak?
Posted on Fri, May. 23, 2008


Whiz on a cheesesteak: Hit or myth?

By Peter Mucha

Inquirer Staff Writer

You've read it, heard it, tasted it, savored it, seen it in photo op action: Want a "classic" or "authentic" Philly cheesesteak? Gotta go with Cheez Whiz.

Maybe it's time to melt that myth.

True, Whiz is king at Pat's and Geno's, those legendary South Philly sites at Ninth and Passyunk. During the Pennsylvania primary, Comedy Central's Stephen Colbert said their feud was fiercer than the Democrats' - and showed a sandwich dripping with Whiz.

Barack and Michelle Obama, as well as Bill and Chelsea Clinton, ate at Pat's - and had Whiz.

But pundits, pleez note: Whiz wasn't first historically, and it's no runaway favorite regionwide.

At John's Roast Pork, which serves up taste-test winners on Snyder Avenue, the processed cheese sauce isn't even served.

"I'm a cheese eater, sweetheart, and I love cheese, but Whiz is not cheese," says owner Vonda Bucci, 75. "It's a lot of grease and coloring."

"We won't do it. We will not carry Cheez Whiz," said Jack Mullan, 50, co-owner of popular Leo's Steak Shop in Folcroft. And customers never complain.

A recent Philly.com poll asked, "What cheese belongs on a cheesesteak?" and Whiz finished third. American edged out provolone - suggesting a runoff poll to settle the issue - after more than 5,700 votes were cast. (See poll, at right.)

Even Geno's owner Joey Vento, 68, downplays Whiz. "To be honest with you, I've never eaten Cheez Whiz, and I'm the owner," he said. "... We always recommend the provolone. ... That's the real cheese."

The yellow runny goo, though, is the top choice of his customers, the locals as well as tourists, he said.

Ditto at Pat's King of Steaks, where Whiz oozed its way into history, said owner Frank Olivieri Jr., 44.

Originally, the Philly steak sandwich, invented by his Uncle Pat in the early 1930s, had no cheese, he said.

By and by, cheese was introduced. "Customers got tired of eating with or without onions, just like my Uncle Pat got tired of eating hot dogs," Frank Jr. said.

American or sharp provolone? was the original debate, he said.

In the mid 1950s - not long after Cheez Whiz hit the market - his father, Frank Sr., began keeping some by the grill, and telling customers to try it.

"It worked well, it tasted good ... it caught on," Frank Jr. said.

Other places started "impostoring us," he said.

But not immediately.

Patent attorney Stuart Beck, 67, remembers American as the standard for steaks, in the mid '50s and early '60s when he was a student at Overbrook High, then Drexel University.

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Comments   
Posted 06:21 PM, 05/23/2008
jtap1981
american whiz at chickie's and pete's is good
Posted 06:23 PM, 05/23/2008
MikeP
Cheese Whiz is disgusting and American is garbage processed cheese. Provolone is the way to go. Eat a slice of Provolone. Yum. Can you eat a couple spoonfuls of Whiz aline. Yuck. Everyone knows Pat's and Geno's are tourist traps that serve lousy steaks. I've tried both and couldn't eat them. One bite and in the trash. Never been back. Fried onions, salt, ketchup and sometimes dried pepper flakes.
Posted 08:29 PM, 05/23/2008
cmp1968
MikeP: You lost all credibility when you said that you put ketchup on a steak.
Posted 09:04 PM, 05/23/2008
PhillyHockeyBuff
Oh, funk those guys! If ya want a real good steak, ya gotta go to Steak 'Em Up in South Philly. Yeah, Tony Luke's IS good, don't know about Pat's or Geno's because I've never been there, but Steak 'Em Up in South Philly made some of the best cheesesteaks I ever got in Philly! Look 'em up sometime! Your stomachs will thank you later for it, trust me!
Posted 09:43 PM, 05/23/2008
mikejgrant
Ketchup goes on those fake ones made with Steak ums. Gah!!
Posted 10:51 PM, 05/23/2008
bgpoppapump
Whiz sucks, they put it on at those places to cover up the crappy meat. American or nothing.
Posted 04:06 PM, 05/28/2008
Tommy2Tone
Larry's!
Posted 11:44 AM, 06/26/2009
Bud Fox
whiz is NOT the only way to have a real cheesesteak. in fact, it's gross. American with, baby!
8 comments
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