Food Fights: The Difference Between Cheesesteak and BBQ Lovers

Ed. Note: Long-time Simmer favorite Belmontmedina is pretty pissed off about what a certain Washington Post reporter tweeted yesterday. Let the rant begin.

The Washington Post‘s Tim Carman (who I am quite fond of, since his days helming the food coverage at Washington City Paper) ventured this opinion on twitter yesterday, pictured above.

FALSE.

Pizza and burgers I get. I am obsessive about pizza. Everyone has a favorite crust, preferred toppings, feelings about sauce (classic Neapolitan with buffalo mozz for me please). And burgers…well, you’re talking to a girl who stuffs various cuts of meat in her grinder like a mad scientist (chicken burgers are actually quite tasty with ground thighs). But Cheesesteaks? Not igniting the passion of BBQ? Please.

Let’s examine, shall we?

Pizza and burgers are pretty universal, with various regions claiming various styles. So it makes sense that pizza and burgers would inspire strong convictions across the board. But I am under the (perhaps mistaken) impression that no one outside Philly and its immediate environs cares about cheesesteaks. (Except, of course, for those transplants that insist on irritating the rest of us by going on and on about cheesesteaks and the Eagles– sorry gansie).

But I’ll be charitable. Let’s give the cheesesteak-ers the Eastern seaboard from DC to Boston and the entire state of Pennsylvania, although I hear Pittsburgh is more Primanti Bros. than cheesesteak. Done.

Moving on to BBQ. I think we can all agree it inspires great passion. There are books. There are maps. There is an episode of Good Eats. You can immediately tell where someone is from based on their barbecue allegiance.

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March Food Madness: All 68 NCAA Tournament Teams Ranked by Their Best Drunk College Food: Part 2

Read Part 1 of the List

35. Notre Dame: Four Horsemen Basket

Ribs, chicken strips, mozzarella sticks, Parmesan shrimp and breadsticks. Perhaps designed to be eaten by a group, but on many occasion consumed by a single drunken Irish fan. Between the Buns; South Bend, Indiana (Photo: BtB)

34. Marquette: Chili Cheese Atomic Dog

Spicy Vienna beef Polish hot dog fried crispy and topped with onions, tomato wedges, chili and cheese.

Dogg Haus; Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Photo: Dogg Haus)

33. Texas A&M: Spicy Bacon Chicken Baked Potato

Thought a baked potato was only a vessel for sour cream and cheese? Think again. This one has BBQ chicken, bacon, butter, sour cream and cheese.

Potato Shack; College Station, Texas (Photo: DerekSteen)

32. Florida State: Wake ‘n’ Bake Dog

Too late for dinner, too early for breakfast? Try a hot dog wrapped in bacon on a fried egg with cheese.

VooDoo Dog; Tallahassee, Florida (Photo: VooDoo Dog)

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