Gaul & Co. Malt House

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

Billy Murphy's Irish Saloon

3335 Conrad Street
Philadelphia (East Falls), PA 19129
(215) 844-9683
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Billy Murphy's Irish Saloon is an East Falls staple. It's the quintessential corner bar, low key, no frills, but a great place to get a couple of beers and some delicious food.

Anytime there are pig wings on the menu, I have to order them. This was one of those times. Braised pork shanks, cooked until extremely tender, then fried to crisp up the exterior and tossed in wing sauce. Hiding under the discard boat, they peaked out like a seductive, sticky temptress.

As usual, these were incredible. It's a pork lollipop, with nothing but tender meat perched on a shank. The sauce was spicy and sticky, and had enough body to stay put.

The "Von Hayes" sandwich seemed remarkably similar to another famous Philadelphia athlete-inspired cheesesteak variation. Steak meat, cheese, fried onions, tomatoes, special sauce. It was an exercise in gluttony. Keep in mind, its pretty dark in here, so I struggled with photos a bit.

The famous "turf burger" is $5 on Tuesdays. This one has special sauce, American cheese, jalapenos, fried onions, lots of bacon, and more special sauce. A steal at $5, this is the kind of burger that makes for a great corner bar. Just bring cash (they don't take cards).

Square Bar

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

Gleason's Place

1973 Clayton Williamstown Rd
Franklinville, NJ
(856) 629-7470
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Gleason's Place is one of those bars you might be planning to visit for the first time, but when you near your destination, you continue on out of fear. But in this case, I urge you to not judge the book by its cover. I hadn't been there in a year or so, but like to stop by on my way to the shore (backroads). They have great wings, and good drink specials. Don't let the exterior fool you, this place is staffed by great people, and the regulars are mostly friendly.

They actually have an expansive menu, and they offer little known favorites like hoagie dip, and stuffed long hots.

The wings are the main draw, and I settled into some "Gleason's Sauce" style pretty quickly. The sauce is a buffalo sauce that has oregano and some other spices in it, for a unique and delicious twist on the original.

They were well rendered, and plenty tender. I was licking the sauce off of the plate. It was like they took a dry rub mix and threw it right into the sauce, best of both worlds.

Crispy skin is what good wings are all about, and these did not disappoint.

Even though I was stopping for a light lunch, I also tried the loaded tots. This platter is ridiculous. It's tots for ten, or at least four. The tots were fried hard and smothered in cheese sauce, sour cream, nacho cheese, and bacon. Not for those on a diet.

I could not even get close to eating this whole platter. However, I did my damnedest.

It was dead while I was there, but it WAS a holiday weekend on an early Friday. Still – shuffleboard, pool, lots of tvs and large portions of great fried food. If you go, don't sleep on the cheesesteak. Also, they have some ridiculous lunch specials like $3 sandwiches, just depends what day you are there.

Whiskey Business

87 Wood Street
Wilkes-Barre, PA 18702
(570) 829-4567
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This gem of NEPA may not be around for long, judging by the FOR SALE signs out front. But if you get the chance, get in while the getting is good. The wings are incredible, and the smoking not too bad (at least when I was there).

Creepy guy hiding in the mirrored specials wall.

The interior is one giant snaking bar (and snacking), with plenty of room to sidle up. I am sincerely disappointed that this place isn't closer to Philly. It's everything a dive bar should strive to be.

I decided to order a pepperoni and banana-pepper pie, because the bartender told me she loved the pizza. It was thick crust, with a puffy dough, but was surprisingly tasty. The greasy pepperoni and spicy peppers definitely helped build out the flavor.

The cheese wasn't completely mozzarella, it was some kind of blend that added a bit of sharpness. I don't know if it was prov or cheddar, but it was tasty.

The wings were the real star, however. I got an order of half honey hot, half chipotle ranch. They were perfectly rendered, and stayed impossibly crispy even though they were coated in a generous amount of sauce. The honey hot had just enough sweetness, and a well measured dose of heat. Why is it so hard for other places to get this right?

The chipotle ranch were next level delicious though. It was like a ranch gravy boat spilled into a hot pepper plant that was aflame. The perfect combination of cooling ranch, spicy chipotle, and perfectly cooked wings. I hope if they do sell, they don't change a thing.

AC's Bar & Grill

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