October 02, 2026
Thom Carroll/for PhillyVoice
A customer threw a cheesesteak at a manager of Pat's King of Steaks around 5 p.m. Wednesday at the South Philly restaurant at 1237 E. Passyunk Ave.
The irate customer who hurled a cheesesteak at a manager of Pat's King of Steaks earlier this week has turned himself into the police, officials said.
This development brings a swift close to the public search that began Thursday after Pat's offered a $5,000 reward to anyone who could identify the man. According to employees of the famed South Philly shop, the customer threw his cheesesteak at general manager Tom Francano on Wednesday evening after complaining about the quality of his food. He then fled the scene.
Though the sandwich hit Francano in the face, he was not injured.
Pat's owner Frank Olivieri characterized the incident as an assault in an interview with CBS3, and reported it as such to the police. Law enforcement would not clarify Thursday if throwing a cheesesteak qualified as this crime, but as of Friday morning, they have only charged the customer with harassment.
Police have declined to release the suspect's name at this time.
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