Where Philly has cheesesteaks, Pittsburgh has Primanti Brothers, which is both a restaurant and a term for the sandwich style that represents the city. Rather than just throwing cheese and steak into a hoagie bun and calling it a day like on the other side of the state (I mean seriously, cheesesteak is delicious but hardly revolutionary), Primanti Brothers sandwiches are rich with blue collar history and innovation.
You see, these sandwiches were originally made for truckers on the go. And since truckers need one hand to pop speed and stay awake over long drives, they can only eat their meals with one hand. Thus, Primanti Brothers was born, with sandwiches stuffed to the gills with your usual sandwich sides known as fries and cole slaw (also tomatoes for odd reason). I ordered the Pitts-Burger, known as their #2 best-seller because, wait for it, beer is their #1.
The sandwich has a pretty basic burger patty as its base, topped with provolone cheese and served on some fluffy white bread. As you might guess, I forewent the cole slaw and tomatoes to have a meal unfettered with distractions. The result was something beautiful to behold. Fries leaked out of every sandwich opening and they weren’t just some crappy fries tossed in a sandwich as a gimmick. These fries were really tasty even outside the sandwich. The meat itself had great seasoning, but I couldn’t help wishing there was more of it. I know I always feel this way, but I especially felt this when I had to dig through fries just to find the patty.
Truth be told, I would probably opt for a different meat next time. Perhaps bacon or pastrami? Who knows? The sky is really the limit when fries in a sandwich are the norm and everything else is really just peripheral.
