Established 1934, Primanti Brothers is a Pittsburgh tradition. Every visitor
must try one of their sloppy sandwiches with fries and slaw on the bread with the meat. If
you don’t mind loud music (you can still talk!) or young men plunging their bare hands
into your coleslaw (they look pretty healthy!), then one of Primanti’s seven downtown
locations is for you. If you insist on your food being untouched by human hands, then go
to Subway, but it’s not as good! There are more locations in other Pittsburgh
neighborhoods. For those, menus, and "Primanti Gear," click here. Gear? Yes, everyone will
tell you: they’re "almost famous."
We stray from the river to Market Square. I’m sure that at least one of their stores must
be on water, but Market Square is easy to find. This can be a noisy, crowded place where
you must elbow your way to the counter to place your order. Stand back three-deep and
wait, because nobody is going to bring it to you. Heck, nobody can get through! Our first
glimpse of the outside tells us this isn’t one of those days.
Late Friday afternoon, we even find parking on the square. Inside, the sparse happy-hour
crowd is sedate. Decor reminds us of an established city institution, well-known to locals
and visitors alike.
Except for the fact that music for this low-key afternoon crowd could be a few decibels
lower, we feel relaxed sitting at the bar with the menu spread out before us on the wall. I
hardly look at it and ask the server what is best. He recommends pastrami.
After studying the menu, David decides against all the Italian meats that sound good to
me and orders the cheesesteak. Oops, he doesn’t know that all Primanti’s sandwiches
have sweet-and-sour slaw on them unless otherwise specified. I have to explain to him
that he won’t be getting a Philly cheesesteak!
No, this is a "Pittsburgh cheesesteak." The best part is the homemade Italian bread, but
the sweet-and-sour sauce is good, too. David rakes off his slaw with his finger, and I get
a side helping of it after I ask for a plastic fork and extra wax paper--well, there’s no
room for it on my sandwich!
Yum! I’m so glad I ordered the pastrami. Now, how to handle it?
Fries inevitably fall off, so I ask for ketchup and squirt it on the paper. You know, I think
articles have been written about "How to Eat a Primanti Sandwich," but there are no
hard-and-fast rules. You can even pick up those blops of slaw with your fingers when
they fall on your paper. Just don’t plan on getting finished anytime soon. Allow extra
time--and not because service is slow.
It’s a full-meal deal, most for under 5 bucks. I count five courses on those sandwiches,
so I don’t need to regret not going somewhere else for a dinner. Besides, sometimes I’m
just in the mood for Primanti Brothers.