Gaul & Co. Malt House

3133 Gaul Street
Philadelphia, PA 19134
(215) 423-7878
Website

Up near the Polish area of Port Richmond is a hidden gem of a bar.  When I first walked in, there were a couple of locals having some bottled domestics and talking over the TV. While this is my typical type of respite, I thought maybe I was in the wrong place for the famous kielbasa cheesesteak that had come so highly recommended by a reader. I decided to persevere and was brilliantly rewarded from the previous neighborhood hang known as Shenanigans.

The wings smelled fantastic, so I obviously indulged. Perfectly crispy (I ordered them well done) and rendered to their bare essence, the sauce was a kicked up version of the traditional Frank's and butter.

The portion was fair for the price, and the sauce was perfect.

Cheese fries were also of interest (I am obviously cutting carbs). Perfectly fried and the American cheese sauce was just delicious.

Don't get me wrong, I love a good orange Wiz, and I do usually get my cheese sauce on the side. This application was perfect because not only was the cheese sauce white and deliciously tasting of American and cheddar, it was just the right viscosity to lightly coat the fries, make them glisten, and not lose their crispy outer shell.

Now the star of the show was undoubtedly the "Wit or Witowski". A cheesesteak, made of kielbasa. Yes.

Local 'bassi sliced thin and fried. Like a cheesesteak, just around fifty times better. It brought to mind the fried pastrami cheesesteak at the late great Cisco's in Flourtown. Topped with fried onions and American cheese wiz. It is spicy, salty, and one of the best sandwiches I have ever had.

Look at those thin bits of beautiful kielbasa meat. This might be my death row meal. I know it looks a bit like a creamed chipped beef, but believe me, this was well beyond and took me sailing through Polish flavor town.

The roast beef with au jus was good sandwich, just not as great as its counterpart. I would order two kielbasa next time. Just because. But the beef was well cooked, nicely seasoned, and would ordinarily be a hit. It was just outclassed this time.

The thinly sliced fold of beef was nice and tender.

Gaul & Co. Malt House features a somewhat compact menu, but they execute everything just right. Although it's a bit up there, I'll be back, you can count on that.

Pic-A-Lilli Inn

866 US-206
Shamong, NJ 08088
(609) 268-2066
Website

South Jersey has some of the best food around. They make great cheesesteaks and hoagies, and their wings are only rivaled by the Philly 'burbs. The Pic-A-Lilli Inn is sister restaurant to the Pic-A-Lilli Pub in Atlantic City. Cheap beer and great wings can be had at both. The Inn is located smack dab in the middle of the Pine Barrens. So you can go ride bikes/motorcycles or kayaks, and then grab some cold ones and some wings after.

The cheesesteak at the Pic-A-Lilli is no slouch either. Served on a Liscio's roll, the meat is finely chopped, well seasoned, and came with a hearty ratio of American. The onions were fried well, sweet and caramelized without becoming mush.

Curly fries with a side of wiz rounded out this low calorie, low carb lunch. It was basically diet food.

The wings are actually counted in half wing. So an order of ten works out to be about fifteen to twenty wings. An order of six is shown below. The sauce can get hot quick, so if you skip "spicy" and go to "hot" be warned, they have the burn.

The meat is tender, and the skin well rendered. These are not the crispiest wings you will eat, but they just work. A combination of the deep flavor of the sauce, and the little morsels of deliciousness is enough to satisfy anyone from a biker (you will see lots here) to a chubby food writer (likely to find me here as well).

Nixon's General Store

540 Chatsworth Rd.
Tabernacle, NJ 08088
(609) 268-9800
Website

Deep in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, the Pineys know a few things. One is where to catch the Jersey Devil and another is how to make some amazing cheesesteaks. Nixon's is a step back in time, like a gift shop mixed with a local WAWA, and crossed with a high end deli.

You walk in and make your way to the back. The barrels are set up with made-to-order screens that let you pick about any option you can think of. Want your cheesesteak meat in slices? No problem. Finely chopped, there is an option for that too. Add salt and pepper? Copper sharp instead of American (god yes)? They have you covered. You can even get wiz and another cheese. Simply amazing.

I got here at breakfast, so I decided to branch out and go with the bacon cheesesteak hoagie. It had bacon, steak (finely chopped/salt/pepper), lettuce, tomato, fried onions (well done option), and Cooper sharp. You can literally customize these things about any way you can imagine. I have never seen anything to this level of detail off of an ordering screen. Click the link to their sandwiches above and build your own. It's amazing. So one thing, this place is NOT cheap. My cheesesteak as pictured below was $15 and change. But it was worth every penny. The quality was outstanding. Look at these tomatoes.

These ripe beauties (assisted by the seasonality of my visit) we the best looking (and tasting) tomatoes I remember having on a hoagie in quite a while.

As I had just come back from a camping trip in the Pines, I put down the gate on the truck, pulled out the camping cutting board and knife, and sliced up breakfast.

The bread (courtesy of nearby Aversa's Bakery) was outstanding, with perfectly seasoned meat, and the perfect amount of sharp and melty cheese.

Did this sandwich need bacon? No. Was it like a cheesesteak BLT? Yes. Would I do it over again? Without a doubt.

Being the glutton I am, I couldn't JUST get a foot and half long bacon cheesesteak for breakfast, so I gave a nod to the age old Jersey dispute and got a pork roll, egg and cheese. Now one of the best food songs aside, this is a staple of breakfast on the east side of the Delaware. And we love it in Pennsylvania as well. Also - it's pork roll here, not Taylor ham. To quote Jerseyporkroll.com  "In 1910 it was described as 'a food article made of pork, packed in a cylindrical cotton sack or bag in such form that it could be quickly prepared for cooking by slicing without removal from the bag.'"

Nixon's fries the pork roll, tops it with a fried egg and cheese (more Cooper sharp), and then since the sky's the limit here, I added some banana peppers, mayo and hotsauce (the last three due to my computer ordering frenzy).

A simple, perfect breakfast sandwich. This is the food of the working class. And you could do no better.

Square Bar

250 E Chestnut Street
West Chester, PA 19380
(610) 696-9825
Facebook

West Chester is a college town, which generally doesn't equate to to great food. But West Chester is also an exception, with some genuinely delicious cheap eats. Square Bar is a hidden gem of a drinkery, but they also offer a surprisingly good cheesesteak.

The bar itself is a huge wrap around, which leads to many conversations with strangers, a sure sign of good times.

I decided to skip the wings this time, because I saw someone eating a cheesesteak. Believe me, it had nothing to do with the "sweat" teriyaki flavored "souce." I'll be back sooner than later to give you a full report there...

Boy, was I glad that I went this route. The meat was very finely chopped (big fan), and the serving was hearty. Extra cheese and fried onions were all this needed, and I preemptively knew that. I usually always order that way.

The gooey cheese punctuated the well seasoned meat, with the soft roll soaking up all of the grease. It was close to perfection. Yes, I did just say that. Nearing cheesesteak perfection. Nowhere near downtown Philadelphia.

Not even an inkling of chewy gristle stuff in there.

And just look at that perfect ratio of meat to cheese to onion to roll.

They use Amoroso's rolls, which do the job just right. You may know that I have a soft spot for Liscio's above all others, but I will give the former a pass here because whoever's in the kitchen here knows what they're doing.

Cheap drinks, good people, and an amazing interior might just make the Square Bar my new spot.

AC's Bar & Grill

467 King Street
Charleston, SC 29403
(843) 577-6742
Website

When visiting other cities, I often like to check out the places who try and present their take on an authentic cheesesteak. If that coincides with a great divey bar, then all the better. I was into AC's, in particular, because I'd heard that the owner is from PA.

It's is located downtown in Charleston, right between all the hot clubs and expensive shopping spots. But it had all the trappings of a dark, fantastic, late-night bar. Great dim lighting, booths, perfectly greasy bar food, and fantastic drink prices. I'd spoken with the owner, Jim Curley, for the better part of my meal & drink experience and I must say, he adds to the appeal here. Born in the Pittsburgh area, he's been living in The South for all of his life; worked at AC's for about 21 years and has owned it for about the last 15 and although he's technically not 'working' there now, he definitely spends a lot of his time there, delivering food and drinks to customers.

They are famous for their chili cheeseburger and their cheesesteak. Although I had literally just come from a dinner party, I threw caution to the wind and had to try both.

The chili cheeseburger did not slouch on the quantity of chili. Beans, green peppers, and onions strewn about the loose beef, this chili would make a Texan cry. On top of a burger, it made me smile. At $5.50, it made my wallet smile as well.

A nice medium cook on the patty, and much more manageable to eat than the initial picture conveyed. This was spot on bar food. Well seasoned, enough fat to cut the whiskey you just shot, and some carbs to soak up those ten beers.

The cheesesteak was the surprise of the night. Amoroso roll aside, it was a great replica. The meat was heavily salt and peppered, and had some mighty caramelized onions.

Look at the amount of melted American cheese intermingled with meat grease. Perfect.

I hate a dry steak, and this was quite the opposite. The roll did marginally well, and though I am a Liscio's lover, I was okay with this low brow replacement. I think that Jim's attention to quality control in the kitchen is key. He knows what a great cheesesteak can be and he doesn't let his own standards suffer, much to my appreciation.

There was no lack of meat or flavor on this cheesesteak. Never did I think that a place in the Lowcountry could compete with some of the Philadelphia area middle of the steak joints. Now I know.