With the abundance of quick-service food options available today, plus the wider availability of delivery and takeout, customers are demanding high-quality meals. If they aren’t getting them from your restaurant, they’ll go elsewhere. Food reviews are flooding social media, and certain food items have been trending thanks to their “instagrammability”—like the Philly cheesesteak.
Many of your customers may never have had an authentic Philly cheesesteak. Maybe you haven’t, either. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be serving them. The cheesesteak is a staple for a reason, and though most of the harshest critics are Philadelphians themselves, all customers deserve a high quality and delicious cheesesteak. While the iconic sandwich is not complicated—bread, meat, cheese, plus toppings—one thing is certain: there’s a right way to prepare and serve an authentic version. Why should you listen to us? We’re the meat providers for some of the highest-rated cheesesteak shops in the world and have three decades of experience behind us.
For quick service restaurants looking to perfect their cheesesteak offerings, it’s not just about how they’re cooked. There needs to be strategic thought behind the ingredients you’re using, the partners you’re working with and, of course, how you’re preparing the cheesesteaks. Here are some best practices that can help get you started on the path of cheesesteak excellence.
Part A: The Ingredients
Before you can cook a cheesesteak, you have to think about what goes into it. There are different cuts of meat, different styles of bread, and various types of cheese to choose from. In the Philadelphia market and beyond, the ingredients you choose carry weight with customers.
- Find a meat sourcing partner with experience in quick service
An excellent cheesesteak begins with your meat sourcing partner. It’s important to work with a provider who understands how a kitchen functions, how a grill works and the challenges that come with high-volume, quick-service settings. A good partner will take the time to understand your kitchen space, learn how rotations work with your cooks, see what deliveries you need and know how your distributor stocks your inventory. Your meat sourcing partner should act as an extension of your team and be invested in your success.
- Make sure the meat is high quality
Even we, the meat experts, know that the steak meat is only the second most important part of a cheesesteak (the bread is No. 1, more on that later). But, if the steak isn’t fresh and high quality, it’s not it. Here are some of the key characteristics you should look for in high quality steaks:
- Bright red coloring
- Evenly distributed fat—no clumps
- Trimmed with crisp and clean edges
- Rounded at the corners, not frayed
- Packaged well and neatly stacked
- Select the steak cut that’s right for your restaurant
There are three standard cuts for cheesesteaks: ribeye, sirloin and loin tail. All offer rich flavor and high quality but have their own unique characteristics that can make a difference. While price is certainly one factor for quick-service restaurants to consider, the choice should really come down to the experience you want to provide for your customers. If you want to offer a “traditional” Philly cheesesteak, opt for ribeye that can be served in bigger pieces. If you want finely chopped, go with sirloin, which will maintain moisture and flavor in smaller pieces.
- Store your meat properly for optimal freshness
Once you’ve secured your steak meat, properly storing it will be crucial to ensure freshness and maintained quality. The ideal storage environment for steaks is a freezer at zero degrees Fahrenheit or lower. To check if your steak is retaining freshness, look at the color. You want it to stay bright red for as long as possible, and a colder environment will help you do that.
- Choose your bread and cheese wisely
From Liscio’s rolls to Cooper Sharp American cheese, some customers see these choice ingredients as selling points. This is becoming so true that restaurants in Philly are even starting to list the exact ingredients and brands used in their cheesesteaks on menus to influence customers to buy.
There are obvious reasons why that works. Every Philadelphian knows no good cheesesteaks are served on bad bread. The bread is the first thing your customers bite into, so it should always be fresh. When it comes to cheese, what you want to focus on is the way it melts—specifics on that later.
Part B: The Recipe
Now you can move into phase two: mastering the art of cooking a perfect cheesesteak. This is a nuanced business—ask any cook in Philadelphia—and there are many tricks to delivering an award-winning cheesesteak. But these are the core tips that can help any quick-service restaurant.
- Prep your meat
In a high-volume setting like a quick-service restaurant, it’s not always going to be possible to cook your steak meat from frozen. To keep up with traffic, tempering the meat will be a key step. You should aim to warm it to close to 20–25 degrees Fahrenheit, and no warmer than 27 degrees, to avoid loss of moisture before cooking.
- Let it sizzle
How you cook the steak is going to depend on whether it’s marinated or not. Marinated steak needs to be cooked at higher temps, 325–375 degrees Fahrenheit. Non-marinated steaks can be cooked at a lower temperature, 300–325 degrees Fahrenheit, and an oil or fat coating should be used on the grill to prevent drying out. Ideally, the steak should be seared on both sides for 45 seconds before you start chopping.
- Find the perfect blend
There’s an art to blending the cheese in with the meat so that every bite has the right balance and texture. You want to mix your cheese in while still on the heat so that it fully melts. Every cheese behaves differently, so you will need to adapt your blending technique to the type and brand you’re using. A cheese like Cooper Sharp is one of the easiest to work with due to its low melting point and creaminess.
- Load it up
If you’re using fresh bread, the choice of toasting or warming up the bread is up to your kitchen or customer preferences. Most cheesesteak shops will warm the roll up on the grill, but some people like a crispy bite – if those are your customers, be different and toast your bread. When it comes to toppings like onions, peppers, mushrooms, etc., do what makes sense for your kitchen. If you can sustain cooking and adding toppings, do it. If you can’t, just keep it simple.
- Serve the perfect cheesesteak
When it comes to serving, think about the flow of your quick-service restaurant. Do you have on-premises seating? Use a foil-lined cardboard box with a vent and cut the steak in half for convenient eating. Are you mostly take-out and deliveries? Use wax paper lined with parchment paper to lock in heat while preventing the cheese from sticking to the paper. You should also think of your packaging as an extension of your brand, so slap your name or logo on it. A unique wrapper elevates the customer experience.
Partnering with a Cheesesteak Expert
Your customers demand and deserve the best. In the saturated quick-service market, anything less than high-quality offerings isn’t going to cut it. To stand out from the competition, quick-service restaurants need to partner with ingredient providers who not only care about the quality of their product, but about the success of your business and the satisfaction of your customers. A true partner doesn’t just deliver the best ingredients, they work with you to finetune your preparation techniques, making sure you’re putting the best food in front of your customers.
Zafeiris Akranis is the President of Philly’s Best Steak Company, a trusted, family-owned supplier of authentic Philly cheesesteak meats. Raised in a hardworking family of immigrants, Zafeiris grew up in the business cutting meat, packing boxes, and building relationships with restaurants. Early on, he learned that making a great sandwich isn’t just about the ingredients, it’s about the details, the prep, and the care. For the past 15 years, he’s explored nearly every cheesesteak combination out there—not just because it’s his job, but because it’s his passion. To him, the Philly cheesesteak represents the apex of what a sandwich can be. Today, that hands-on experience defines his leadership. Zafeiris stays close to the product and the people, helping restaurants deliver a Philly-style experience that’s built for loyalty, not trends—authentic, satisfying, and made to last.
