Cheesesteak, wings take off at Streets on the Fly
Matt Christie has an elementary philosophy when it comes to his food truck’s menu: Make great food and keep it simple.
You’ll find just a handful of items on Streets on the Fly’s menu, including a Yinzer take on a Philly cheesesteak and some of the best wings in the city.
He also keeps it high energy, with rap music blaring from the truck’s speaker on a recent Friday in Ben Avon.
“I holler out the window at people, too,” the 38-year-old
South Side resident says with a laugh.
For a chef with classical training — he graduated from Pennsylvania Culinary in 2002 and has held some pretty highprofile jobs, including a “pretty dope” gig with the Philadelphia Eagles — peddling street food from the back of a former ambulance might seem a step down. Not to Mr. Christie.
His signature Wiz Wit cheesesteak ($ 10) is as
authentic as any you’ll find in the City of Brotherly Love. Served on a soft Amoroso sandwich roll, it features thin-sliced ribeye steak cooked fresh on a flattop grill, caramelized onions and a generous helping of fluorescent-orange Cheez Whiz.
“I bring them in once a week from Philly,” he says of the rolls, which are soft on the inside and crusty on top.
The Yinzer Wit ($11) is Pittsburgh’s take on the classic sandwich, made with American or sharp provolone cheese and lettuce and tomato.
He’s prouder still of his confit wings (five for $7 or 10 for $18). Instead of being baked or fried, his wings are cooked low and slow in the oven in fat with herbs and vegetables until they’re fall- off- the- bone tender and then deep-fried. They come smothered in your choice of five sauces, including the stellar and tangy 24K that Mr. Christie claims is not just a sauce but a lifestyle.
“They change people’s lives,” says his employee, Olivia Trulli.
Her boss is mum on details, including how long they take to prepare, though he will concede the process can stretch a day before the wings even make their way into the fryer.
Trying to cut down on gluten? The O-EE ($13) is a cheesesteak served on fresh-cut fries instead of a roll. It became a menu item after customers caught sight of Ms. Trulli eating the poutine-like combo while on the job at Grist House Craft Brewery.
“We sold like 15 that day,” recalls Mr. Christie with a chuckle.
The truck is the fulfillment of a dream that started with Streets on Carson, the restaurant serving global street food that the Beaver Falls native opened with his wife,
Lauren, in March 2016. He’d always dreamed of running a food truck. But the rules were so strict at the time that he put off his plans until last year.
Streets on the Fly launched in February 2020, in a truck that he bought from “a chick who owned an antique store” in Columbus, Ohio. “We had two amazing weeks” before
COVID-19 shut it down for the next nine months, he says, because he couldn’t afford to pay staff.
He chose to focus on cheesesteaks because no one else was doing it, and he knew it would be a success.
With fine dining credentials that include serving as executive chef of Bridge Ten Brasserie and Wild Sage,
Mr. Christie admits he never thought he’d go the sandwich route. Still, it suits him. He focuses on “little guys” (small plates) and “sammiches.”
All he’s ever wanted to do since he was 5 years old, he says, is be a chef, recalling the many happy afterschool hours he spent watching Julia Child, Jacques Pepin and other “Great Chefs of the World” on TV.
“Now I’m a glorified sandwich guy,” he says, and quite happy about it.
Follow Streets on the Fly at www.streetsoncarson412.com.