How to tackle the Super Bowl spread with Kansas City, Philadelphia flavors
It’s cheesesteaks vs. barbecue, but there’s so much more.
No matter which team you are rooting for to win Super Bowl LVII, make sure your food game is strong by incorporating some of the two competing cities’ authentic fare into a watch party menu.
Philadelphia, known as the “City of Brotherly Love,” located 300 miles across Pennsylvania, is known for those popular cheesesteaks. So many shops in Philly claim to have the best.
The town is also home to soft pretzels, tomato pie, water ice, roast pork and Tastykake, according to Binh Nguyen, senior director of communications for Visit Philadelphia, which promotes Philly tourism.
Eight hundred miles away in Kansas City, barbecue is king. There are more than 100 establishments. Every fall, the city hosts 600 teams at the world’s largest barbecue competition, the “American Royal World Series of Barbecue,” according to Visit KC, the official tourism site for the city.
Kansas City’s barbecue craze can be traced back to Henry Perry, who in the early 1920s started barbecuing in an outdoor pit adjacent to his streetcar barn, serving slabs of food wrapped in newspaper, according to Visit KC.
Kansas City barbecue sauce is on the sweeter side. However, diners will find savory selections as well.
One way to order barbecue in Kansas City is to ask for a plate of “burnt ends,” the crispy ends of a slab of meat that at one time were tossed because they were too crispy, according to Derek Byrne, director of content for Visit KC.
“Some chefs realized they were really flavorful and cut them in cubes and they became a popular dish,” Byrne said. “A way to describe them is similar to brownies — some people like the ends and others like the middle.”
Byrne added that while Kansas City is famous for barbecue, the city has plenty of other dining options for those who don’t eat red meat.
Kansas City is also known for food-related inventions such as the McDonald’s Happy Meal, the Crock Pot and the coating on M&M’s, Byrne said.
Those inventions are prevalent in Western Pennsylvania, as are plenty of barbecue choices.
Angelo Poulich of Hempfield co-owns Poulich Pit BBQ in New Stanton with his wife Aislinn. Even though the business is closed for winter, they are taking orders via text message for trays of shredded pork and sliced brisket along with homemade barbecue sauces. Angelo Poulich said the sauce resembles a Kansas City style — tomato based with a sweet, spicy and tangy flavor. He slow cooks the meat over reverse flow heat — not directly over direct heat as one would do on a charcoal grill.
As with Kansas City ribs, side dishes like French fries, coleslaw and loaded potatoes are popular, Angelo Poulich said. Barbecue also lends itself to accommodating various tastes with the multitude of sauce choices, he said.
“You can serve a lot of people with barbecue,” Poulich said. “It’s also easy to heat up and serve. And if you have leftovers, they are just as good the next day.”
Nanette Schmidt, event coordinator for Pittsburgh Barbecue, concurs. She said the Delmont location is offering a special this weekend — a rack of St. Louis ribs, three pounds of pulled pork, four large family-size sides, fresh buns and 12 ounces of regular and spicy barbecue sauce for $99.99.
The sauces are ketchup based with vinegar and sugar and other secret ingredients, she said.
“Ribs and pork are perfect for the game,” Schmidt said. “It’s great to have before, during or after. And you can feed a lot of people.”
Pittsburgh Barbecue also sells homemade brisket chili, which can be a great side dish, appetizer or hot dog topping, Schmidt said.
The barbecue favorite at Big Shot Bob’s, which has 20 locations including Greensburg and Allegheny Township, is a sauce for chicken wings. This is the biggest weekend of the year for wings, according to Josh Helfer, who owns the Bloomfield and Cranberry stores.
For those hosting a party, Big Shot Bob’s version of a Philly cheesesteak has eight ounces of steak, green peppers, onions, mushrooms, provolone cheese and mayonnaise.
The cheesesteak is aplenty throughout Philly, Nguyen said. It has thinly sliced chopped ribeye steak topped with melted American cheese, provolone, or Cheez Whiz and is served on a hoagie roll with fried onions and peppers.
The cheesesteak was invented by Pat Olivieri of Pat’s Steaks in 1930. It’s been imitated by many, according to Visit Philly. The choice of cheese — provolone, American or Cheez Whiz — is a matter of great debate.
So is the choice of sandwich shop.
The hoagie, Philly’s signature answer to the sub or hero, comes stuffed with fresh meats, cheeses and veggies — or some variation of these ingredients. The quality of the bread is paramount, Nguyen said.
Philly’s tomato pie is a thick Focaccia-style dough with fresh tomato sauce and oregano and sprinkled with Parmesan cheese.
In Philadelphia, red pasta sauce is referred to as gravy.
The city is known for water ice, which is fruit or syrup with finely shaved ice. Traditional flavors are cherry, lemon and mango, but some shops in Philly sell choices such as strawberry daiquiri cantaloupe and white grape. Water ice, sometimes called “wooder ice” by locals, is available year-round.
A similar style available now can be found at LaScola’s Italian Ice and Custard in Highland Park. One of the first signs of spring in Pittsburgh is when Gus & Yiayia’s ice ball stand on Pittsburgh North Side opens.
For dessert, Tastykake butterscotch Krimpets or crème filled chocolate cupcakes will satisfy a Philly fanatic. The treats are available in grocery and convenience stores as are Goldenberg Peanut Chews, dense candy bars of nuts and sweet syrup in chocolate.
Introduced to the region by German settlers centuries ago, pretzels have long been a favorite local snack for Philadelphians. And their favorite pretzel topping? Mustard, of course.
There are several mustard options as well as other dips available at Philly Pretzel Factory, based and founded in Bensalem.
Company president Marty Ferrill said the pretzels are “true Philly style.” The shape of the pretzel is different than what most people think of when they think of a traditional style, he said. They are also baked in rows of five in a “paper clip” shape, Ferrill said. Pittsburgh has locations in Bridgeville, Ross, Monroeville and Cranberry. The nuggets — the smaller pretzel bites – are called rivets.
“If you are from Philly, you know,” said Ferrill. “They are made fresh in-store daily. All of the pretzels are great for the Super Bowl, but the rivet party trays are extremely popular for this game. They are bite size and with the dips make a great game-day snack.”
He said they are gearing up for the busiest day of the year.
“The last time the Eagles were in the Super Bowl it was our busiest day ever, so we will be prepared,” he said. “We have a game plan in place.”
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region's diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of "A Daughter's Promise." She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com.
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