Only a brave Baltimorean would ask Philadelphia native Mary Miles to gut the bread on one of her cheesesteaks.
Miles, the owner of Dimples Bar and Grill in Locust Point, said it’s not authentic to scoop out the inside of her Amoroso’s Italian rolls, which she ships from Delaware. It’s the only bread she trusts to hold her cheese-drenched ribeye and maintain a chewy center.
She also doesn’t see the need for lettuce and tomatoes, which a lot of people have ordered since she opened in November. “It’s goofy,” she said of the combination, known as a cheesesteak hoagie or the “Baltimore way.”
Miles and her latest South Baltimore business are among several new cheesesteak eateries arriving in the Charm City area, each promising to deliver a more dreamy, authentic version of the beloved steak sandwich than the next. It’s part of a growing Philadelphia-bre(a)d insurgency.
On March 5, the South Philadelphia staple Geno’s Steaks will open to the public at Power Plant Live! in downtown Baltimore, and last Thursday, Elkridge’s Cheesesteak and Co. announced it would open a new location in Owings Mills. Then there’s the growing popularity of Catonsville food truck 5th & Steaks and places like Frank’s Pizza & Pasta, which got a rave review from Barstool Sports’ Dave Portnoy last year.
“You know, people come in and say, ‘Do you think you could beat MaGerk’s [Pub & Grill Federal Hill] or you think you can beat Cheesesteak and Co.?” Miles said.
But to Miles, it isn’t a competition.
She believes it all comes down to quality ingredients and individual preference. Growing up in Philadelphia, Miles remembers Geno’s as part of the old-school tradition of cheesesteak making: “It’s their thing,” she said. When that shop opened in 1966, the cheesesteak had yet to reach national acclaim. Geno’s competed closely with neighboring Pat’s King of Steaks, a business just across the street long credited with popularizing the sandwich in the 1930s.
The two developed distinct styles. Pat’s championed well-diced, chopped chunks of steak, while Geno’s offered larger slices of steak and more seasoned meat. Pat’s has stuck to its single location in Philadelphia. Geno’s took a different route, expanding into Virginia and now Maryland.
Owner Geno Vento said in a statement that he’s excited to finally bring a piece of Philadelphia food culture to Baltimore. Anthony Matteo, director of operations for Power Plant Live! described it as a “huge moment” for Baltimore, as well as the Inner Harbor building that will soon be home to Geno’s.
Miles said Charm City has become popular for cheesesteaks because of its perception as the “little cousin of Philadelphia.” When she set out to open her business, Miles zeroed in on Maryland, where she was living at the time. It was an opportunity to earn converts to a food culture that brought her joy.
Now, when people walk into her 1401 East Clement St. shop, she encourages them to try “the Philly way.”
Armand Miles cooks steak on the grill. Armand and his wife, Mary, run Dimples. (KT Kanazawich for The Banner)
Armand Miles prepares a cheesesteak for a customer. (KT Kanazawich for The Banner)
That means picking from a blend of cheeses, anything from Cooper Sharp, a white American cheese often used at cheesesteak restaurants, to provolone and Wiz, a tangy sauce made with Cheez Whiz. Lettuce and tomatoes are filler for lower-quality meat, which her ribeye, she says, is not.
Her steak is halal and cut from the loin; the fat is used to cultivate a stronger flavor. She and Armand Miles, her husband and business partner, taste-tested meats from local farms and retailers to find a fresh product without preservatives or sulfites that feels “as if you’re sitting next to the cow,” she said. They bite into it each week to make sure it still has the buttery, seasoned flavor they first fell in love with.
Miles calls the ribeye and bread the “stars,” comparing their relationship to that of mutually supportive best friends. The roll needs to withstand the juices and weight of the meat without wilting, and the meat must generate enough moisture to create a soft interior.
“You have to be born and bred in Philadelphia to understand and appreciate: It’s not just meat in bread. It’s the meat and the bread,” she said.
To prep the meat, it is cut up and frozen for about five hours. The frost allows smooth slicing without any blood flying around: “Girl, we tried, when we first did it three years ago, we were like Desi Arnaz or Lucille Ball. It was blood flying all over the place,” Miles said.
Armand Miles grills bread and meat for a cheesesteak. (KT Kanazawich for The Banner)
Mary Miles’ South Baltimore business is one of several new cheesesteak eateries arriving in the Charm City area. (KT Kanazawich for The Banner)
That was when she opened her first shop, which burned down in an overnight fire three months later. She and Armand invested their retirement savings in the eatery, which opened in Elkton as the first African American business on the town’s Main Street. They named it Dimples for Mary Miles’ mother, who earned the nickname for her smile. She died in 2022.
The insurance settlement helped pay for the South Baltimore eatery. A lot has changed for Miles since then. The mounting price of beef alone is enough to make her head spin. What was once $37 per loin is now almost $70, she said.
Rising beef prices make it hard for shops like Dimples to keep up with larger brands. She hopes a new liquor license that allows her to sell beer, the way her mother liked, will attract more customers.
The latest Dimples Bar and Grill is homey. One of Miles’ daughters, the youngest of her seven kids, works as a server while Miles and her husband run the kitchen. A memorial wall features her mother, a close aunt from Philadelphia and a cousin who died of pancreatic cancer who she describes as like a little sister.
Family photos decorate the walls at Dimples, which was named after owner Mary Miles’ mother, who is pictured on the left side of the photo on the right, alongside Miles’ uncles. (KT Kanazawich for The Banner)
Mary Miles rings up a customer from the bar. (KT Kanazawich for The Banner)
The restaurant is filled with purple decor and string lights with a menu that also includes smash burgers and Italian hoagies for the Charm City crowd.
But Miles will never stop trying to bring Philadelphia to Baltimore. She says she’s keeping up the grungy, darkly colored “hole in the wall” aesthetic she grew up around, all the way down to the familiar smells of ginger ale and grilled onions from the kitchen.
“If you go into a Philadelphia bar,” she said, “you’ll see it.”