The Snuggie, I think we can agree, is not an amazing product. But the TV-advertised sleeve-blanket that makes the wearer look like a fuzzy Jabba the Hutt captured American hearts, minds, and media outlets last year. Suddenly, the Snuggie was everywhere. TV news, late-night comedy shows, and magazines all wanted a piece of it. Here in Philadelphia, there was even a Snuggie bar crawl (I cringe thinking about how much spilled beer a Snuggie could absorb). Was the Snuggie useful? Mildly. It's hard to imagine someone could be so inconvenienced by using a blanket or wearing a robe that they need a sleeved blanket. Was the Snuggie original? Nope, the first Slanket was made in the late 90s. But did the Snuggie have a gimmick that caught people at the right time?

Oh, yes.

The Philly Pretzel Factory's new cheesesteak pretzel is the Snuggie of the Philly food world. It's not amazing, and it's certainly not necessary, but it is gimmicky enough to show up in papers and on websites (including this one, hi!). Don't get me wrong, eccentric food items are always fun to read about, and sometimes even to eat. Guinness-Record-breaking pizzas, deep-fried Oreos, and the mile-long hoagie Wawa is going to trot out for this year's Welcome America Festival all get me excited. And for Phila-specific offerings like Square Burger's (in Franklin Square Park), Tastykake shakes, or Bassett's ice cream’s mildly hilarious WHYY Experience (the pretzel bits must symbolize Marty Moss-Coane’s journalistic crunch) — I'm on board.

When I tried to figure out what to say about the cheesesteak pretzel's introduction to the world, one word kept coming to mind: shrug. Yeah, it's two Philly foods together in one hot-pocket package, so that's notable. Beyond that, though, the cheesesteak pretzel begs comparisons that don't make it look all that wild and crazy. On the fast food side there's the recent KFC Double Down, which is much more of a success at being an over-the-top food pile (and more the success for introducing the phrase “meat bread” into my vocabulary). And on the side of reinventing the cheesesteak, the city is rife with cheesesteaky egg rolls and fancy-meat steaks. Hell, this wasn't even the first combination of pretzel and cheesesteak. From The Cafe's (2011 Walnut St.) 2007 Rocky-celebrating version to PYT's (1050 N. Hancock St.) cheesesteak-pretzel burger-of-the-week, we've seen it before.

Part of my shrug also comes from the taste of the thing: It's not fantastic or terrible. Brown, shiny, and the size and shape of a russet potato, the cheesesteak pretzel is a serviceable snack item. When I stuck my nose in the bag it smelled like a pretzel (a good sign, considering all of the things it could've smelled like). My first bite was a little disturbing – the filling stuck to my teeth – but I mostly enjoyed the combination of beef bits, American cheese, and soft pretzel. The cheesesteak pretzel was not too greasy, not too dry, and pretty easily overpowered by the mustard. And, at 340 calories and with 20% of your daily saturated fat, it's not great for you, but it's also not an off-the-charts indulgence.

Basically, in a world that can give birth to a show like Man vs. Food, and in a city where new restaurants open up with pork-based desserts (I'm looking at you, Kraftwork), I find it hard to see a cheesesteak pretzel as much to shout about. Just like with the Snuggie, though, none of that mediocrity will keep people from talking about the gimmick. So hey, let yourself get caught up in the hype for a little while – laugh about the cheesesteak pretzel with your friends, use it as a conversation topic with boring coworkers, and go to a Philly Pretzel Factory on the 24th to get a free one to try yourself. But I'm going to stick to the classics: Staying warm under a boring ol' blanket when I'm watching TV, and keeping my pretzels and cheesesteaks separate.

Meg Favreau is a writer and comedian living in Philadelphia. Check out her website, www.megfavreau.com.

Article photograph by Meg Favreau, via Flickr (Creative Commons), "Eat Drink Philly" photograph from suvodeb, via Flickr (Creative Commons), "Philly" photograph from camardella, via Flickr (Creative Commons).