Who’s the man behind the cheese steak

By Joe Robertson

A young college student walks into a small white building along York Road as the sound of steak sizzling on the grill permeates the air.

The owner of The Real Thing puts down his spatulas to greet the customer, a Towson University student who eats at the restaurant so often that he can order a cheese steak without saying a word.

“You want meat on it today?” Tony asks jokingly.

“No, just the bun,” the young man says with a chuckle.

He takes a seat as Tony chops at the flat top, breaking the steak into shreds.

“This kid goes all day with no food and comes here just to get a cheese steak,” Tony said.

The Real Thing in Towson offers more than an expertly crafted cheese steak made with fresh sliced rib eye. Tony’s wise guy charm has made him a beloved member of the Towson community.

Harcharan “Tony” Marwah started this cheese steak empire 31 years ago when he was 16 years old. His journey to America started in September 1983 when Marwah’s brother sponsored his trip from New Delhi, India.

Marwah wanted to open a restaurant, so his brother got him a job at Gino’s in Philadelphia. Working for nine months, Marwah said he developed the skills and knowledge required to run a restaurant.

“You have to use fresh meat,” Marwah said. “Quality is the key.”

Shortly after leaving Philadelphia, Marwah opened The Real Thing at 504 Delaware Ave. in 1984 when he was 17 years old. Just five years later, he moved to its current location at 412 York Road.

Since moving to York Road, Marwah says about 70 percent of his business comes after 11 p.m. when he stays open to serve the bar patrons each weekend. But he does remember the people who frequented his old location.

“They used to come [to] my old place,” Marwah said. “They got married, now they bring their children, so I see two, three generations.”

Former employee and second generation Real Deal customer Ben Morehead, 25, makes it a point to visit Marwah any time he’s in Towson.

“I’ve seen him with new customers and just puts a smile on their face,” Morehead said. “He’s just such a character and that’s one of the cool things about the Real Thing.”

Morehead has been going to the Real Things since middle school and said you’re not a Real Thing regular unless you know about spunion sauce, which is Marwah’s version of hot sauce.

The Real Thing attracts 15 to 20 first-time customers a day, all from online services, according to Marwah. Food review applications like Yelp and Urban Spoon drive new people through the restaurant’s doors every day.

“Yesterday, another customer had said we saw [on Foursquare] you were the best in Towson,” Marwah said. “One business helping other businesses.”

Marwah has seen many changes over the years. He recalls the Ridgley Tower across the street as the only high-rise when he moved to his York Road location. The rest of Towson was all one- and two-story buildings.

“Towson’s changed completely, man,” Tony said. “Towson is like a ‘downtown’ in [the] county, we call ‘uptown.’”

He predicted that Towson would look like New York within five years. He has taken notice of all the investment coming into the area that will change the face of Towson again.

However, he sees this as an opportunity for his business to continue growing.

“It doesn’t matter what kind of business coming in Towson, even food chain, it’s good for me,” Marwah said. “People have more choice to eat, when they have more choice, more people will come.”

Getting new customers is not a problem for a man with Marwah’s charisma. His personality spreads to his employees, many of whom adopt his classic “no meat cheese steak” joke.

Marwah still employs many family members, including his 18-year-old nephew, Kim, who came over from India and currently goes to Parkville High School.

Being a family man, Marwah wanted to ensure his daughter, Nupoor, 15, would be going to a good school. Nupoor is a freshman at the Notre Dame Preparatory School in Towson.

During the week, Marwah picks her up from school and she occupies the corner table of the Real Thing with her schoolbooks. Marwah said that Nupoor will often call his wife, who has a PhD in criminal justice, asking for help at the restaurant.

Marwah is the only one who eats meat in his house because his wife and daughter are both vegetarians. He takes many steps to ensure his work does not come home with him.

He uses a heavy-duty washer to keep the stench out of his cloths, but even that isn’t enough. During a typical 10-hour shift, Marwah will take a mid-shift shower at the restaurant before returning home to bathe again.

“I smell like a cheese steak like crazy,” Marwah said laughing. “I don’t need cologne. My cologne is the cheese steak smell.”