After my first two National Cheesesteak Thursdays, and two years of Uncle Sam's subs on the hallowed campus of the University of Pittsburgh, I was prepared to venture out into the world, and spread the good gospel of the day set aside for friendship and feast. The only thing that stood in my way was the Jewish laws of kashrut - keeping kosher.

The winter and spring of 1997 found me living in a dank dormitory on the campus of Tel Aviv University. For sure there was no Pat's, no Jim's, not even an Uncle Sam's in sight. Technologically slowed - email was sparse, located in a bomb shelter in the dormitory complex - I found myself on limited contact with friends at home. I did not receive my NCT letter until days after the celebration...but something magical happened.

On a cool Thursday night in early March, I found myself standing over a hotplate in my dark common kitchen pondering what to have for dinner. Kitchen creativity was limited - we only had one pan, two bowls and a plate to share amongst 4 people. I reached down deep for guidance, sick of store bought hummus and pita, and created a chicken cheesesteak that I can still taste to this day. Deli sliced chicken and sheep's milk cheese, melted together and served warm in a pita for the first (or so I was told) celebration of National Cheesesteak Thursday in a foreign country!

A little bit of home, right in Tel Aviv. That, friends, is what this holiday is all about. So special this moment, it received special recognition in the 1997 NCT letter, broadcast far and wide. If we can take the cheesesteak to a region strife with war and anguish, then we can take it anywhere...

To this day, I have invited friend and acquaintance to share in a cheesesteak where ever I find myself. Each time I do, I remember that night in Israel, and I remember my friends with whom I have spent prior NCTs with.