Pat's Steaks
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Pat's Steaks (or Pat's King of Steaks) is a Philadelphia restaurant located "where 9th street crosses Wharton & Passyunk Ave." in south Philadelphia.
There is no indoor seating for the public.
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[edit] History
Pat's was founded by Pat Olivieri in 1930. He was joined in the business by his younger brother Harry Olivieri. Pat Olivieri claims to be the originator of the sandwich most people associate with the city of Philadelphia, the cheesesteak.
Originally a hot dog vendor, Olivieri told the story that he decided one day for his own lunch to use chopped-up steak bits instead of a normal wiener. At the suggestion of a cabbie who sampled and enjoyed the new sandwich, he opened Pat's Steaks to sell the steak sandwiches.
The Olivieri family still owns the establishment.
In October of 2006, Pat's operator Frank Oliveri Jr. sued another Philadelphia eatery, Rick's Steaks, run by his cousin, Rick Oliveri, asking Rick's to discontinue any reference to Pat's in its signage and literature. Herbert Oliveri (the son of Harry) opened Rick's in 1981 inside Philadelphia's Reading Terminal Market, with son Rick Oliveri taking over in 1995. The lawsuit stems from Rick's gain in notoriety after it opened a second location at Citizens Bank Park in 2006, a spot Geno's Steaks abandoned after two seasons.
[edit] The "cheese" steak
The innovation of adding cheese is claimed by rival Geno's Steaks, which opened across the street in 1966. The rivalry between the two establishments has gained public attention and fueled debates over who serves a better cheesesteak.
Pat's Steaks follows the South Philly tradition of using Cheez Whiz, also offering Provolone or American.
Cheez Whiz[1] was introduced at Pat's in 1952.
[edit] Ordering technique
When ordering a cheesesteak at Pat's, one must know how to do so properly. [2]
In keeping with the tough South Philly stereotype, customers have been known to find themselves sent to the back of the (usually long) line for ordering incorrectly, though a greater offense is to order anything but a steak at the first window.
Typical orders consist of two or three words per steak ordered.
The first word specifies the cheese wanted for the steak: "American," "Provolone," "Whiz" for Cheese Whiz or "Plain" for no cheese, and for a pizza steak, "Pizza."
The second word of the order should then indicate if the steak should be made with or without fried onions, customers often saying it as "wit" or "wit-out."
This ordering format contradicts the famous "posted rules," which instruct that the onion preference should be made first, but typical orders are: "Whiz wit," "American wit-out," and not the other way around.
Three-word orders come into play for such orders like "American mushroom wit," though "mushroom American wit" would not be out of line. Pizza steaks will come with Cheez Whiz unless ordered as "Pizza American" or "Pizza provolone."
Regardless, the last word is almost always "wit" or "wit-out." For non-standard toppings such as lettuce or tomatoes one would say "Whiz wit, with lettuce and tomato," and not be admonished.
Finally, have money ready. The cashier will expect to be handed it as soon as an order is placed. It is also normal to step slightly to the left after paying, since the cashier will make your change while already taking the order of the next customer.
Unless a large order was placed, the cook or a third person working the main window will provide the steak, usually within seconds.
When ordering fries and drinks at the second window, remember there is one size for both. Ordering a "small" or "large" almost always prompts a swift correction by the cashier. Cheese fries consist of a healthy dollop of Cheez Whiz, with pizza fries also coming with pizza sauce. Forks are provided.
Hats, T-shirts and sweatshirts are also sold at the second window.
[edit] Beverage selection
Pat's serves Pepsi products after a long affiliation with Coca-Cola (pictures at official Web site Pat's King of Steaks website are outdated). One notable beverage selection is a unique and popular "Cherry" soft drink, different than Pepsi Wild Cherry, which is also available.
[edit] Prices
Menu prices at the official Web site are outdated. As of August 30, 2006, prices are: plain steak ($6.50), cheese steak ($7), pizza steak ($7.50), soda ($1.50), french fries ($2.50) and cheese fries ($3.50).
[edit] Trivia
A brief scene from the 1976 movie Rocky was filmed on location here. In the scene, Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) brings a steak over to Tony Gazzo (Joe Spinell), who is waiting in his car. A plaque on the ground near the "fries" window commemorates Pat's appearance.[3]
Numerous celebrities, including N'Sync singer Chris Kirkpatrick, Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, talk show host Larry King, and Senator John McCain, have dined at Pat's.
Once, on The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air (Season 1 Episode 5), Will Smith's character says Pat's has the best cheesesteaks in Philadelphia.
During a campaign stop in Philadelphia on August 11, 2003, Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry requested a cheesesteak with Swiss cheese at Pat's. In political terms, this nontraditional choice was a serious miscalculation, as it could help reinforce images of Kerry as effete, aloof, and out of touch with the average American. The owner of Pat's Steaks convinced Kerry to change his order, but the incident nevertheless earned Kerry some ridicule in the press.
[edit] External links
- Pat's King of Steaks website
- Philadelphia Daily News story about Kerry visit
- Fortune magazine story on Pat's and Geno's
- An opinion on the relative merits of Pat's and Geno's
[edit] References
- ^ The New York Times, 1985, op. cit.
- ^ Pat's King of Steaks: How to order a Steak sandwich. [1] Retrieved 2006-08-09
- ^ "Filming Locations for Rocky". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved on 2006-05-31.
