DUDES ROCK: Japanese Guy Dedicates His Life To Honoring Philadelphia Culture By Creating The Perfect Cheesesteak, Now Runs A Thriving Philly Themed Restaurant In Japan
(Philly Eagles) - "My husband loves the music of Philadelphia International Records, so he studied about Philadelphia's history and foods on books and photo books when he was young. Of course, he knew cheesesteak even before he opened our restaurant. He has known cheesesteak since he was young. Also, Pat's (Pat's King of Steaks) appeared in Rocky,"
"After we got married, I said, 'So the restaurant name is Philly, why don't you make cheesesteak,' because it's a bit strange, and he said, 'I never ate a cheesesteak before,' so he was thinking the food is part of the history of each place, so he didn't want to make before eating cheesesteak."
This Japanese couple had a little viral moment last year and thankfully they've been successful enough to keep the internet hits coming. A true rags to whiz-wit story. We'll get into the details below but essentially, Kosuke & Tomomi Chujo taught themselves through a cheesesteak crash course. And learned such greatness within that cheesy craft that they're now doing pop-up appearances in America.
Advertisement
IN THE HEARTLAND ITSELF, sunny Philadelphia.
It's the American Japanese Delco Dream. Tale as old as time!
This dude Kosuke sold his family business to start a Philly themed restaurant in 2011 Japan, all inspired by his love for Patti LaBelle. Then he met his future wife Tomomi as a customer in 2012 and destiny became inevitable. She encouraged him to actually take a trip to Philly to learn exactly how a cheesesteak is made. You see up until that point he was curious, but hesitant to possibly insult the sanctity of something so culturally important. Also he got sick on airplanes. But we love a respectful king.
They were finally able to make a pilgrimage in 2021 and during that trip tried every top spot possible. Kosuke got scientific with this bitch too, even bringing a scale + measuring tape with him to recreate his cheesy lore as authentically as possible.
"As he (Kosuke) said, food is history. He doesn't want to change the history," Kodai Wakayashi, an employee who the Chujos view as family, said in translation for Kosuke.
"He respects it (the history) so much, so that's why we measure and take notes of the taste as well."
So, what does he do with the weights he measures on the scale? He takes the average weight and uses that for his own restaurant, although it is something that changes based off the taste."
They were able to do another trip in 2024 for even more knowledge and now have their Philly pop-up coming on April 30th & May 5th. Pretty cool to see how far they've come from the Mark I cheesesteak, I would ASOLUTELY try either.
Advertisement
"The original "cheesesteak" from Nihonbashi Philly used teriyaki sauce, cheese, and beef, which according to them and their customers, wasn't bad. But it wasn't what an authentic cheesesteak tasted like, which they would later find out from Kosuke's high school friend, Go Inoue, who studied at Penn. Inoue said that it "looks like a cheesesteak but tastes completely different," causing them to rethink their original attempt.
Now they have American and provolone cheese, peppers, onions, mayonnaise, and ketchup as topping options – all typical with a cheesesteak, but there are two ingredients that you likely won't find in a Philly cheesesteak – fresh mushrooms and jalapeños – that is one of the restaurant's most popular orders."
It can be pretty damn easy to get jaded off the internet but this is a rare 10% case of just pure wholesome awesomeness. Plus I know this dude is legit cause the only mutual follower on IG was our very own Rone. That's a double boy dad who literally only fucks with good stuff.
Advertisement
Homemade rolls, homemade whiz, 4am Eagles games with standing room only… What more could you want in life?
Go try some Japanese Philly cheesesteaks. We need more Dudes like this out there.
If you love food follow @VivaLaFood for daily posts of reviews, recipies, top spots to dine from Barstool Sports