The Best Cheesesteaks In Philadelphia Part 2: Pat's King Of Steaks

This is part one of a series of 10 discovering the best cheesesteaks in Philadelphia. Stay tuned for the full ranking, and find part one here.

On the intersection of South Ninth Street, Wharton Street, and East Passyunk Avenue in South Philadelphia are two cheesesteak giants: Pat's and Geno's. They both have a fiercely loyal clientele, each of which will tell you that their favorite is the superior one. Pat's claims to have invented the cheesesteak as we know it: As the story goes, in May 1933 brothers Pat and Harry Olivieri, who owned a hot dog stand on the corner, thinly sliced a steak and fried it with onions, and a legend was born.

Pat's and Geno's serve a similar product (with both using thinly sliced ribeye steak), but there's one main difference: Pat's chops up its meat while it's on the grill, and Geno's keeps its slices whole. Which one you prefer comes down to personal preference, but the only way to find out is to try them both. Just make sure you learn the lingo first — "wit" means with onions, "wit-out" means without onions — and know which kind of cheese you want (Cheez Whiz, provolone, American, mozzarella, or none) before you start your order.