Although Rick's has been opened for two decades, Pat's only filed the suit last week, possibly because in April Rick's opened a seasonal shop at Citizens Bank Park, home to the Phillies baseball team. Scott Pollack, the lawyer for Pat's, said the obvious customer confusion is damaging, especially as his client is well-known both nationally and internationally.

So much for Philadelphia being the city of brotherly love. The two eateries are owned by cousins, grandsons of Pat and Harry Olivieri, the famed sandwich's inventors. According to the complaint, Pat's King of Steaks claims Rick's Original Philly Steaks has been illegally trading on Pat's name, crown logo and trademarked phrases. The famous dish, usually served with onions on an Italian roll, is in the middle of a trademark infringement lawsuit. It's so much part of the city that when Men's Fitness magazine named Philadelphia the fattest city in America in 2000, the cheese steak got hit with a lot of the blame. “Rocky” Balboa, Philly's favourite son as played by Sylvester Stallone, ate one while training against Apollo Creed back in 1976. New Orleans has gumbo, New England clam chowder and Buffalo its wings, but no American dish is as closely identified with its hometown as the Philly cheese steak. Maryland has crab cakes and Boston baked beans. CHICAGO is famous for its deep pan pizza.

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