Geno's Steaks

This guide to Geno's Steaks in Philadelphia opens with what actually stops people on this corner first, not the food but the light: red, white, and blue neon covering nearly every inch of the building. It follows Joey Vento opening the shop in 1966 with two boxes of steaks, a few hot dogs, and six dollars, unable to out-history the older rival across the intersection, so building bulb by bulb instead. Vento left school in the ninth grade to learn the grill in his father's own steak shop, part restaurant, part stage set. Stand across the street after dark for the full glow.