Cheesesteak

Let's be frank: Philly really isn't a hot dog town. Cheesesteaks? Yes. Hoagies? Of course. But when it comes to the wiener, well, let's just say it's not a food we relish. So be nice and don't tell Tony Luke Jr. he's crazy. His dad's already told him that. And then some. Why, ask Tony Sr. and others who love the son of the city's First Family of pork sandwiches, would you go into the heart of South Philadelphia - the belly of the cheesesteak beast - and open up a...gulp.

In an effort to end what he characterized as a "cheesesteak war," U.S. District Judge Joseph G. McGlynn Jr. yesterday permanently barred a corporation and its New Jersey subsidiary from using the name "Pat's King of Steaks. " The decision came in a complicated yearlong battle that pitted Herb Olivieri, whose father is credited with inventing the cheesesteak back in 1932 and who owns the legal rights to the name, against Pat's International Ltd. (PIL) and its Casino Steaks Inc. subsidiary.

The next time you order a Philly cheesesteak, Mayor Street wants you to say, "Hold the meat. " It's one way to reduce your saturated-fat intake and to cut calories. And Street has made that a major aim of his new administration. (Philadelphia was recently proclaimed the fattest city in America by Men's Fitness magazine.) Now, depending on where you are, ordering a veggie cheesesteak could mean getting a cheese and fried-onion sandwich with maybe some mushrooms and fried green peppers.

Although she's busy filming the successful UPN sitcom "Malcolm & Eddie," Karen Malina White always manages to find the time to take care of her body. "I go to body-sculpting classes in L.A.," the South Philly-born actress said. "It mostly consists of aerobics, cardio work and weightlifting. We also do a lot of sit-ups and leg squats. " White attends classes four days a week taught by a fitness trainer who goes by the name of Dove. Pauletta Washington, the wife of Hollywood's Denzel, and actress Jennifer Lewis are among the women who kick out $12 a day for one of Dove's morning workouts.

They whine. They boo. They've even thrown snowballs at Santa Claus. Philadelphia's notoriously fickle sports fans wrapped up another dismal season yesterday, barely mustering the energy to cheer and chide the Eagles to their 13th loss of the year, a franchise record. But fans were thankful for the world's largest cheesesteak, a record-breaking culinary creation that was assembled and served up free - courtesy of the Eagles and Quality Foods - along Pattison Avenue hours before kickoff across the street at Veterans Stadium, where the Eagles eventually lost to the Giants, 20-10.

Calling him a "warrior for fitness," television legend Oprah Winfrey enlisted a new soldier in America's battle against the bulge: Philadelphia Mayor John F. Street. Street made a whirlwind trip to Chicago yesterday to tape a coming episode of the top-ranked Oprah Winfrey Show focusing on health and wellness. Pumped up and passionate about good living, Street talked about the city's weight problem and his plans to get Philadelphians in shape. He vowed to hire a "fitness czar" to lead the effort in City Hall.

A Cleveland company that thinks the cheesesteak can have the same nationwide recognition as the Big Mac is ready to move into Philadelphia, the city where the cheesesteak began. Restaurant Developers Corp., which got its start as a corner sub shop, has begun seeking franchisees to operate at least 40 stores - the total it thinks would be needed to make a splash in the Philadelphia market. The stores will bear the name Mr. Philly. "We had reservations about going into Philadelphia," said Joe McClellan, the director of franchise marketing for Restaurant Developers.

It used to be the New Hampshire primary that augured the chances of a candidate. But now - at last - the cheesesteak has got its due as the true ring of fire any Oval Office hopeful must survive. Just ask Sen. John F. Kerry, who's going to have to do some fancy chewing if he hopes to recover his front-runner image after stumbling this week through his first try at Pat's King of Steaks. He ordered a steak with Swiss cheese. Gasp! Swiss cheese, as any local knows, is not an option.

Two notable trenchermen met yesterday over a Philadelphia cheesesteak. What happened to the cheesesteak is in dispute. What is known is that one of them, President Clinton, ate half of it. The other half disappeared. Why did the president eat only half a cheesesteak, the press demanded to know. U.S. Rep. Thomas Foglietta, a South Philadelphian who knows something about cheesesteaks, ventured a tongue-in-cheek guess: "Ed got to it first. " Ed is Mayor Rendell, who accompanied the president on a brisk tour of the city yesterday as part of Clinton's coast-to-coast fund-raising tour in advance of the next presidential election.

Frozen steak sandwich in a boil-in bag? It doesn't exactly have the mouth-watering appeal that comes from the sound of thin steak sizzling on a griddle and, oh my, the aroma of those onions frying next to it. But after nearly two years - and more than 100 attempts - South Philly sandwich impresario Tony Lucidonio Jr. says he has found the winning formula for preparing frozen cheesesteak sandwiches for sale in grocery stores that won't result...