Denver Ted's

As much as I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED the food, the service has been bad. There was one time I showed up at 11:15am and the door was locked. A minute later, some guy showed up, said he over slept, and it would be a half hour before he could cook something. Unfortunately, I was pressed for time that Saturday volunteering for a nonprofit and needed to get back. I haven't been to Ted's since because I didn't want to experience that again. :/

My wife Kristy K grew up in Pennsylvania as an avid Philly cheesesteak fanatic.  Over the years of visiting her at Penn State and her family in PA over holidays, I too became a lover of the meaty-cheesy goodness that is an authentic Philly cheesesteak.  Eating Philly cheesesteaks became a ritual for any visit to PA.

At first, I never bought the hype that you could not get a good Philly cheesesteak outside of the Philly area.  To me, it sounded like more of the same self-absorbed and snobby delusions of grandeur that you hear from New Yorkers claiming that you can't get a good slice of pizza outside of the NY boroughs.  How hard could it really be to put steak, onions, hot peppers, and cheese on a sandwich?  However, as I searched for good cheesesteaks in numerous major cities outside of PA, I was consistently left underwhelmed and disappointed.  Apparently, a great cheesesteak outside of PA is more elusive than you might think.  By the time that I had moved out west to Denver last year, I had pretty much given up hope on finding a great, authentic cheesesteak outside of the Philly area.  

But then Denver Ted's came along and, to my delight, blew up the old myth about Philadelphia's monopoly on good cheesesteaks.  Denver Ted's cheesesteaks are nearly identical to the cheesesteaks from my favorite cheesesteak joint in Kristy's hometown.  My typical Philly cheesesteak order is steak, onions, and hot pepper relish "wit Whiz."  I realize that the idea of processed Cheese Whiz on a sandwich probably sounds odd to an outsider, but there is just something about Whiz that goes wonderfully on a cheesesteak.  You can also get the cheesesteaks with American or Provolone, but for some reason it is just never quite the same to me that way (perhaps because my first cheesesteak in Philly was with Whiz).  The buns at Denver Ted's are shipped in from the Amoroso Bakery in Philly and have a delightful texture of outer crunchiness and inner chewiness to them.  The steak is sliced thin and cooked on a big flat top griddle, just as it is at any authentic joint in Philly.  The steak is always very flavorful and juicy.  The caramelIzed onions and hot pepper relish are great additions to the cheesesteak for flavor.  I think the hot pepper relish is a frequently overlooked ingredient by most people, but it adds a great spiciness to the sandwich.  If you want some extra spice, ask them to mix the hot pepper relish in with your steak while it cooks.  My wife and I pretty much go into full-blown animal mode when we eat at Denver Ted's -- rarely speaking as we devour our cheesesteaks, except for perhaps occasional primal moans of satisfaction.  My only complaint about Denver Ted's cheesesteaks is that I sometimes wish they did a better job mixing the cheese in throughout all of the fillings (as it occasionnally seems like the cheese is just placed on the bottom of the bun).  Overall, I couldn't be happier to have found delicious, authentic Philly cheesesteaks in Denver.

The fries are also quite tasty at Denver Ted's.  If we ever get cheesesteaks to go, the fries are always gone by the time we actually get home.  They also have chocolate-covered, peanut butter rice krispie treats, which they advertise as "the best rice krispie treats in the world."  It sounded like a pretty bold claim at first, but then again these are the guys that shattered my longstanding beliefs about cheesesteaks.  The World's Greatest Rice Krispie Treat did not disappoint, as it was certainly the best rice krispie I've ever had.  If you are ever having a total diet "cheat day" where calorie counting no longer exists, it's tough to beat a cheesesteak, fries, and a chocolate peanut butter rice krispie treat for the ultimate guilty pleasure meal.  

Denver Ted, thank you for bringing the best of Philly out west to Denver (and for giving me one less reason to visit the in-laws in Pennsylvania).

.....huh what!?! Sorry was mid review when i entered a cheesesteak-oma.  (the suspended nervous system , not the state South of Springfield and Shelbyville).

Denver TEDS has easily become my go to cheese steak place.  If you need to distract yourself from the meat sweats, then concentrate on your game of Sorry, that's built into every table....because your friend is cheating, they always are.