Steak sandwich

This is one of my mum's favorite things and she enjoys them however they're made but she will recognize right off it's not the real thing. In her world there is but one true Philadelphia steak sandwich and this is not it. 

You need to have the right bakery around the corner, and you need a big flattop grill, and the right cut of meat sliced just the right thickness, and authentic cheese sauce made from a single ingredient, that inexplicable American cheese, and cooks with east coast attitude that doesn't stop, those things together are transformative.

No it innt. I just made that up. If you would go there and have one you'll think it's not all that and wonder what the fuss is about. Probably. Then a week later crave that exact same thing again made the exact same way. Probably.

This sandwich is mind blowingly excellent and the bread is simply the best and all its elements fine but it hasn't satisfied a craving for Philadelphia steak sandwich ordinary as those things are.

This is a terrible thing to do to a steak, I realize that, but I don't care. 

Maybe it would help to say I don't have any teeth and slicing it up makes it easier to swallow. 

The other day at the neighborhood grocery there was a brief shuffle and a woman emerged apologetic for no reason at all, her two little kids were right there no problem that I saw but the woman was flustered, right there in front of the Polident as it happened. 

So I grabbed a box and held it up and asked the two boys if they knew what it is. They said,  "No." The woman was wondering who is this man who asks strange random questions no child could reasonably answer totally non sequitur like that to the shopping trolly scuffle.

"It holds your teeth in. It's glue. Temporary glue. 

Some people can take their entire teeth out and put them back in" 

I pantomimed someone removing their teeth. The boys were incredulous. 

"True faxs. My nana could take her whole teeth out. She did once and blew my mind. I tried to learn the magic trick of teeth removal for years. Never forgave her for messing with my mind like that. See ya." 

These onions were started first long before the meat was sliced. They're eventually caramelized which is a lot different from grilled. In Philadelphia you'll have grilled onions and they're wonderful not caramelized onions. It's one of the things that makes this sandwich better, that is different, and so also the reason why it will not satisfy a craving if the craving is for a particular Philadelphia steak sandwich. 

The bread was made and baked yesterday this is the bottom showing the segments. A segment is sliced off the size of a hotdog bun and then sliced. The two slices of a single bun are the thickness of Texas toast, but the crumb is more dense than that. These buns are actually meals themselves. The density of this bread and its sop-ability is akin to a muffin but with a rich yeasty aroma.

The bread you'll have for this in Philadelphia is excellent, delivered that morning, and it's integral to their sandwich. This bread is better than that, extraordinary even one day old. 

You can have whatever kind of cheese you want but the best seller in Philadelphia for this sandwich  is the liquid form of American cheese pumped from a #10 tin. 

I think. 

This is that with grated Asiago added. And, Man, is it ever delicious. I cannot explain why.