The Philly cheesesteak has an international reputation---I found a purveyor of them at a highway rest stop in Korea---even though it was invented remarkably recently. It shouldn't be surprising that Atlanta has a large selection of Philly cheesesteak vendors. Pennsylvanians are moving to Atlanta by the busload, bringing their tastes with them. I've been intending to evaluate Atlanta's offerings in this area and today was truly the first day of the rest of my life, so I went to Philly Connection in Decatur. I've been to Philadelphia's shrines of cheesesteak: Pat's, the inventor of the cheesesteak, and their archrival Geno's. I've also had a number of cheesesteaks in the Philadelphia area; naturally, their average level of competence in this dish is very high. I'd rate Philly Connection as fine but not exciting. They chop their steak a la Pat's rather than leaving the bigger chunks; they do serve with onions and give you your choice of cheeses. But I didn't find their cheese or their meat to be quite as rich as I had hoped. Pat's is known for using high-quality meat, and if you think that is a waste in a lowly sandwich, I suggest that you stand out in the snow at Pat's and find out what a cheesesteak should taste like.
Luella's is a nouvelle BBQ outfit on the north side of Asheville. It is nestled among the trees in a lovely neighborhood. The restaurant has lots of windows for inside seating and plenty of outside seating. Service was courteous and amazingly fast. This is a combination plate with pork and brisket. Both were very moist and tender. For the pork, I tried both the mild and hot vinegar sauces. To my surprise, I preferred the milder one because it didn't assert itself too much. I enjoyed the spicy tomato sauce for my brisket. The hushpuppies were very good. The fried okra was fresh out of the fryer and excellent. The slaw was of the vinegary variety, which I usually enjoy, but this version is heavy on the white stuff and didn't have quite enough variety in tastes for me.
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