A Philadelphia cheesesteak shop is quietly winning over Seoul, one seeded roll at a time.

Wiir Philadelphia, tucked along a side street in the South Korean capital, has become an unlikely destination for one of America’s most iconic sandwiches, writes Adam Davidson for The Philadelphia Inquirer. 

The story behind it is equal parts perseverance and obsession.

Henry Jeong, a former Samsung product manager, opened Wiir in 2022 alongside business partner Adam Choi after noticing a glaring gap in Seoul’s food scene. 

The idea came from his own appetite.

Jeong had fallen for cheesesteaks while studying at Penn State and wanted to bring that experience back home. 

Early on, the sandwiches didn’t deliver, and at above-average prices, skeptical customers were hard to win over. Jeong sold his car and stocks to keep the lights on.

He knew something had to change. 

“I just thought to myself, ‘What am I doing in Korea?’” Jeong said. “I’m selling garbage food and pretending I’m selling authentic cheesesteaks.”

So he flew to Philadelphia.

In 2023, Jeong visited some of the city’s most respected shops — John’s Roast Pork and Angelo’s among them — and came away with a lesson that shaped everything that followed: “Bread is everything,” he said. 

After 18 months of experimentation, Wiir landed on seeded rolls baked daily through a 48-hour cold-fermentation process.

Inside those rolls are USDA Prime ribeye, sautéed onions, and a house-made Whiz.

The result has earned praise from Korean diners and Philadelphia expats alike. 

A second location inside Seoul’s Shinsegae Gangnam department store confirmed what Jeong had wagered everything on: that Philly’s signature sandwich could travel.

Discover how Wiir has brought an authentic slice of Philadelphia to Seoul in The Philadelphia Inquirer.

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