What is a Philly Cheesesteak?

Traditionally a cheesesteak is made up of thinly sliced, sautéed rib-eye beef and melted cheese on a long, crusty roll.

Where did it start?

According to Philadelphia’s official tourism site, Pat Olivieri invented the cheesesteak in the 1930s. He was a hot dog vendor in south Philadelphia who, as the story goes, decided to grill some beef from the butcher and put it on an Italian roll. A cab driver caught a whiff and asked for a steak sandwich.

Word spread rapidly through the cabbie rumour mill, and drivers from all over the city soon visited Olivieri for steak sandwiches. Olivieri eventually opened up Pat’s King of Steaks on 9th Street and Passyunk Avenue. Cheese was added to the mix in the ’40s by Pat’s manager Joe Lorenza, according to Philadelphia Magazine.

What makes a Passyunk Cheesesteak the best in London

We source our steaks from the best butchers in London. Our Rib Eye has the perfect fatty content to ensure a juicy and flavourful finish when shredded and cooked.

Our Wiz Cheese sauce is made from only the best British sourced Cheddars. We carefully source the best suppliers to ensure we can match the classic Philly taste, but make it from all-natural ingredients. All of our Wiz Cheese is made daily in our Central London kitchen.

If you’ve ever heard of Amoruso’s rolls in Philly, you know there is no substitute when it comes to Cheesesteaks and Italian Hoagies. We couldn’t import the real deal, but we did spend over three years perfecting our own recipe to recreate the classic.

Our Hoagie rolls are made specifically to ensure all the juice and sauce stays in the sandwich. The rolls are soft with just a very thin outside layer to keep everything in. Don’t think Baguette…think the best bread you can’t get anywhere else outside of Philly!

Onions in Philly are just a different kind of beast. The local weather and yearly rainfall ensures they cannot be replicated anywhere else in the world…We’re kidding. The onions come from fresh produce markets in Covent Garden.

You haven’t lived until you have tasted an authentic Philly Cheesesteak, so the next time you are in the area of one of our locations, you HAVE to come and see for yourself what it’s all about.

How to order a Cheesesteak like a pro

The process of ordering a Cheesesteak is a no-nonsense affair, skip the small talk and get right down to business. Firstly if you want to sound like a Philly native you need to say “wit” or “wit-out,” as this is how “with” and “without” sound in a Philadelphia accent. Your order should end up sounding something like this:

Yo! “one wiz without.” (You would like one cheesesteak with Cheez Whiz but without onions.)

No matter how you order your cheesesteak – once you’ve tried one of ours you will be back again for more!

Passyunk Avenue in London

Passyunk Avenue transports you to the neighbourhoods of South Philadelphia without having to get on a plane or clear immigration. Enjoy the relaxed vibe, the frank and friendly hospitality in venues that have been obsessively curated so that you experience life in a Philly dive bar.