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The 52 Cheesesteak Challenge
After ten years in Europe I had come back to America and to Pennsylvania, a state I had never lived in before. There’s much to know and love about this area, particularly the history. But besides that, I didn’t know how seriously Philadelphia-area people took cheesesteaks. I heard all kinds of opinions, both in person and online, and before too long I had come up with a challenge for myself: eat 52 cheesesteaks in a year.
At the time, 52 sounded reasonable. That would mean effectively one a week; it would allow me to space things out and reflect, and I could plan ahead to try all the best-known spots.
Long before the end of this quest, I regretted coming up with the idea in the first place but I persevered and am happy to share my findings with you.
There’s a saying in Latin: “de gustibus non disputandum,” which roughly means that regarding taste (about food, art, music, etc.), there isn’t an argument to be had. How can you really argue that one type of cheese is better than another, particularly when one person might have fond childhood memories associated with one and the other person might find that same cheese repugnant? So, in that spirit of “no correct answer” for the “best cheesesteak” let me outline the construction of this magnificent sandwich and then explain my own ratings.
