I first read about The Philly Way up in Milwaukee while waiting on a cheesesteak from Philly's Best in Chicago. Philadelphia Magazine did an article a few years back about the best cheesesteaks in America outside the Philly/Delaware region. It was framed on the wall at Philly's Best because they were featured in the article as was The Philly Way. Just like Philly's Best, The Philly Way was started by a transplant to Milwaukee from Philadelphia. The article proclaimed these the best cheesesteaks outside the region where they originate.
a locals favorite in Milwaukee
The owner got his Philly cheesesteak degree at Pat's in the Italian Market strip in South Philly and he does everything the Philly way. We visited on a Friday around 1p after the wait was out the door at Sobleman's we headed to The Philly Way to try a sandwich first. It's about a five minute drive from the popular Sobleman's tavern located near the industrial district there. I posted about it in this thread because I thought this might be a hidden food gem to us in Chicago, but its definitely not under the radar in Milwaukee. It's a small spot with a few tables with three stools around each and a counter with about four seats in front of the kitchen. There is a tented patio spot next door making there more room but when we were there, they had over 15 people crammed into the spot and no one wasn't willing to wait which was a great sign.
Packed in ordering are (Up L) Philly sports gear (Up R) cheez whiz (Low L) eating area next door (Low R)
The menu - No 'Philly' in front of the cheesesteak...
Well obviously we were there for the cheesesteaks. They offer a few types of cheese including whiz but I prefer mine with white American. The grill is small and you gotta respect that they don't throw tons of shaved ribeye on it so that it steams instead of browns up. With about eight people ahead of us, our order took about 20-25 minutes which wasn't a prob for me. When our names were called we took the sandwiches to the tented eating area next door where they also have a window if you wanna watch them make the steaks.
"real" cheese steak sandwich
So enough storytelling already, how were they? Excellent! No I'm no real Philly cheesesteak expert but one of my two friends who was with me is, he's born and raised in Philly and even he was singing it's praises. Hell, he even got another one to take back home to Chicago. The meat was excellent, no steak umm like flavor with these bad boys. We both agreed these were much better than Philly's Best. I guess they have the bread made by a local baker to the exact specifications of the owner which is the real Philly way. The onions were pleasantly potent and my only little complain is that the cheese could have been better melted but I did that myself by squeezing the thing together. I'll be back to the Philly Way next time I'm in Milwaukee. Good stuff.
mmm mmm
The Philly Way
405 South 2nd Street
Milwaukee, WI 53204-1612
(414) 273-2355
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