3324 North California
Chicago, IL 60618
http://hotdougs.com/default.htm
Should we order 1 dog per person? Three dogs between the two of us? Or two dogs per person? These were the difficult questions we debated as we waited outside Hot Doug's on a chilly Friday morning at 10:30AM. Even before the restaurant opened, there were already 20+ people ahead of us in line. With so much hype, publicity and recommendations surrounding this hot dog joint, we knew we had to try it.
Hot Doug's, the "Sausage Superstore and Encased Meat Emporium" is probably the most famous hot dog place in America. I'm sure you can recall Anthony Bourdain's visit during the Chicago episode of No Reservations.
The menu is broken up into traditional offerings and a specialty menu. The traditional menu showcases the more common sausages like bratwurst, polish sausage, andouille sausage, chicken sausage, etc. These hot dogs can be served with all the trimmings, which in Chicago terms means mustard, relish, carmelized onions, tomatoes, pickle and celery salt. The sausage can be prepared in one of 4 ways: boiled, chargrilled, deep-fried or chargrilled THEN deep-fried.
The speciality menu includes more exotic meats like lamb, boar, rabbit, buffalo, etc. They also come with their own specially-paired condiments. You won't need pickles and tomatoes on deliciously-sounding hot dogs like "Ginger-spiked Rabbit Sausage with Roasted Red Pepper Mayonnaise and Creme de Brie Cheese." After trying out hot dogs from both menus, we definitely recommend ordering from the specials menu - all the pairings are SPOT ON and taste super yummy together.
1. The Dog - Chicago-Style Hot Dog with all the trimmings. The Chicago dog is comprised of the following: an all-beef frankfurter on a poppy seed bun, topped with yellow mustard, chopped white onions, neon-green colored sweet pickle relish, a dill pickle spear, tomato slices and a dash of celery salt. Many consider it a disgrace to add ketchup to a Chicago dog - apparently some places don't even carry ketchup! I can't say I loved this Chicago dog very much - the flavors of the condiments were so strong and overpowering that all I could taste was the mustard and tang from the pickle.
2. The Norm Crosby -beef, pork, garlic sausage. We requested "all the trimmings", resulting in the same disappointment as the Chicago Dog. The condiments were so strong that the flavors of the sausage were lost among all the tanginess.
3. Foie Gras and Sauternes Duck Sausage with Truffle Aioli, Foie Gras Mousse and Fleur de Sel - This specialty dog wins for being the tastiest and also the most controversial. Back in 2006, the city of Chicago placed a ban on foie gras (similiar to the one being implemented in Los Angeles next year), preventing restaurants from serving the goose liver in any form. Hot Doug's became the first in the city to be fined - contining to serve foie-based sausages and condiments despite the ban. The ban was eventually lifted in 2008 - rest assured that this delicious hot dog will continue to stay on the menu. Everything about this hot dog was delicious, from the consistency of the sausage, the soft fluffiness of the bread, to the creamy foie mousse and rich aoili. All the flavors were evenly balanced - allowing you to really enjoy each component.
4. Curry Pork Sausage with Spinach Raita and Smoked Blue Cheese drizzled with Honey
Our second favorite - whoever thought blue cheese and curry would go together? A delicious and genius combination - the raita or Indian yogurt sauce paired well with the heat from the curry sausage and the blue cheese added an additional richness and umami flavor. I wish I had room in my tummy to fit in another one of these.
As you can see, we opted for 2 hot dogs a piece, along with an order of the duck fat fries (only available on Fridays and Saturdays). I can't say the fries were that great - they were soggy and not crunchy at all.There was more than enough food for the two of us. Our two favorite dogs both came from the specials menu - make sure you order from here! All in all, we loved Hot Doug's and fully support all the hype and hoopla. It really IS that good. We are already looking forward to our next Chicago trip and returning to Hot Doug's to try the rest of the specials menu!
Chicago, IL 60618
http://hotdougs.com/default.htm
Should we order 1 dog per person? Three dogs between the two of us? Or two dogs per person? These were the difficult questions we debated as we waited outside Hot Doug's on a chilly Friday morning at 10:30AM. Even before the restaurant opened, there were already 20+ people ahead of us in line. With so much hype, publicity and recommendations surrounding this hot dog joint, we knew we had to try it.
Hot Doug's, the "Sausage Superstore and Encased Meat Emporium" is probably the most famous hot dog place in America. I'm sure you can recall Anthony Bourdain's visit during the Chicago episode of No Reservations.
The menu is broken up into traditional offerings and a specialty menu. The traditional menu showcases the more common sausages like bratwurst, polish sausage, andouille sausage, chicken sausage, etc. These hot dogs can be served with all the trimmings, which in Chicago terms means mustard, relish, carmelized onions, tomatoes, pickle and celery salt. The sausage can be prepared in one of 4 ways: boiled, chargrilled, deep-fried or chargrilled THEN deep-fried.
The speciality menu includes more exotic meats like lamb, boar, rabbit, buffalo, etc. They also come with their own specially-paired condiments. You won't need pickles and tomatoes on deliciously-sounding hot dogs like "Ginger-spiked Rabbit Sausage with Roasted Red Pepper Mayonnaise and Creme de Brie Cheese." After trying out hot dogs from both menus, we definitely recommend ordering from the specials menu - all the pairings are SPOT ON and taste super yummy together.
1. The Dog - Chicago-Style Hot Dog with all the trimmings. The Chicago dog is comprised of the following: an all-beef frankfurter on a poppy seed bun, topped with yellow mustard, chopped white onions, neon-green colored sweet pickle relish, a dill pickle spear, tomato slices and a dash of celery salt. Many consider it a disgrace to add ketchup to a Chicago dog - apparently some places don't even carry ketchup! I can't say I loved this Chicago dog very much - the flavors of the condiments were so strong and overpowering that all I could taste was the mustard and tang from the pickle.
2. The Norm Crosby -beef, pork, garlic sausage. We requested "all the trimmings", resulting in the same disappointment as the Chicago Dog. The condiments were so strong that the flavors of the sausage were lost among all the tanginess.
3. Foie Gras and Sauternes Duck Sausage with Truffle Aioli, Foie Gras Mousse and Fleur de Sel - This specialty dog wins for being the tastiest and also the most controversial. Back in 2006, the city of Chicago placed a ban on foie gras (similiar to the one being implemented in Los Angeles next year), preventing restaurants from serving the goose liver in any form. Hot Doug's became the first in the city to be fined - contining to serve foie-based sausages and condiments despite the ban. The ban was eventually lifted in 2008 - rest assured that this delicious hot dog will continue to stay on the menu. Everything about this hot dog was delicious, from the consistency of the sausage, the soft fluffiness of the bread, to the creamy foie mousse and rich aoili. All the flavors were evenly balanced - allowing you to really enjoy each component.
4. Curry Pork Sausage with Spinach Raita and Smoked Blue Cheese drizzled with Honey
Our second favorite - whoever thought blue cheese and curry would go together? A delicious and genius combination - the raita or Indian yogurt sauce paired well with the heat from the curry sausage and the blue cheese added an additional richness and umami flavor. I wish I had room in my tummy to fit in another one of these.
As you can see, we opted for 2 hot dogs a piece, along with an order of the duck fat fries (only available on Fridays and Saturdays). I can't say the fries were that great - they were soggy and not crunchy at all.There was more than enough food for the two of us. Our two favorite dogs both came from the specials menu - make sure you order from here! All in all, we loved Hot Doug's and fully support all the hype and hoopla. It really IS that good. We are already looking forward to our next Chicago trip and returning to Hot Doug's to try the rest of the specials menu!
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