Homemade Cheez Whiz and Hoagie Rolls: How a Philly-Themed Bar in Tokyo Recreated a Picture-Perfect Cheesesteak 6,700 Miles Away

A years-long obsession with Philadelphia—and countless meals in the name of research—fueled this Japanese couple’s business.

Kosuke Chujo ladles homemade cheese sauce onto cheesesteaks at Nihonbashi Philly. Jenn Ladd/The Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS

By Jenn Ladd From The Philadelphia Inquirer

TOKYO—There’s a little bar in Tokyo where a Philadelphian would feel right at home. It’s a 12-seat tavern plastered with familiar mementos: a SEPTA Regional Rail map, a Phillies pennant, Dallas Sucks beer koozies, and stuffed animal representations of four Philadelphia team mascots. There’s Eagles-branded whiskey and vodka on the menu, and Sixers and Phillies games on the TV. From the compact kitchen just behind the bar, you can hear the rapid-fire tap of metal on metal—the sound of a cook breaking up sizzling short rib on the flattop grill.