Rays (the steak and cheese!)
I celebrated National Sandwich Day yesterday the best way I could: with a steak and cheese sandwich at Michael Landrum’s newest restaurant.
One of my Clarendon 1021 neighbors came with me. She and I have become fast foodie friends. She’s also from Texas, and loves going on food adventures as much as I do. The way it works is that we’ll agree on a specific dish, and then scour the internet and the city looking for the best. Our latest finds: best eclair (Paul’s Bakery in downtown) and best french onion soup (Le Refuge in Alexandria.)
Our very first adventure together was to find the best steak and cheese in the area. Of the places we tried: Mario’s, The Broiler, Billy’s on Lee Highway, and Faccia Luna (the owner is from PA and supposedly did it well.) None totally impressed us, and we almost gave up.
So as I’m out shopping the other day, I scrolled down my news feed, and saw the ArlNow.com story about Landrum’s new restaurant. This was the text exchange that ensued:
… and off to lunch we went! Something to note: Michael Landrum is in no way trying to pull off an authentic Philly cheesesteak, so don’t consider it a cheesesteak. Don’t even accidentally use the word cheesesteak. I feel bad even using the word so much in this post, because a cheesesteak is exactly what this sandwich ISN’T.
It’s a steak and cheese sandwich using the same steak that made him famous at Ray’s the Steaks. In addition to the steak and cheese (a mix of American and Provolone), the sandwich includes lettuce, tomatoes, and grilled onions. You can also request other toppings, such as sauteed mushrooms, peppers, or jalapenos.
Without further ado, here’s it is:
I’m a “cut my sandwiches in half” person, so I grabbed a plastic knife, and cut it in half. I honestly couldn’t believe how easily the sandwich cut. No kidding - it cut like butter. You can see how straight of a cut I got in the picture below. The meat didn’t put up a fight - it completely surrendered its juicy tenderness to the plastic knife.
My friend and I could hardly talk to each other because we were so busy stuffing our faces. (We also happened to be the only women in the restaurant, which was a little bit odd, but we managed to look like ‘one of the guys’ by how quickly we ate.) The sandwich was everything we wanted it to be. The meat was amazing, as always - tender, juicy, and bursting with flavor. The combination of cheeses was delicious, the lettuce, tomatoes, and grilled onions were the perfect compliment.
This was the best steak and cheese we had in the area - no competition. We knew that all those other sandwiches we journeyed to find will never again be eaten, or even thought about. I can’t say Ray’s steak and cheese was perfect, but it was as close to perfect as I’d be willing to declare, especially after trying to many others. If I were Landrum, I might explore more bread options, but the bread he chose was perfectly acceptable.
The tater tots were just tater tots. They were only unique in the sense that Landrum chose to serve tater tots instead of fries. He’s not aspiring to be the potato king, though. He’s the king of meat around here, and I doubt he’ll ever be dethroned.
