Last Friday my friend Stephanie took me on a lunch adventure with some of her friends to show me Mecca... the mecca of hot dogs. Hot Dougs is the Encased Meats Emporium and Sausage Superstore. Located on the Northside of Chicago at the corner of California & Roscoe this is by far the best hot dog I have had in Chicago... and the best dog I have ever inhaled.Before ever coming to Chicago I was always a fan of the hot dog. In most cities people poo-poo the hot dog... they are too good for it. Not in Chicago - and that might be my favorite thing about this city. Almost everyone here eats hot dogs (not all the time - that would kill you). There are so many hot dog eateries and so many choices. I have become the fan of the true Chicago dog (boiled with tomato, pickles, glow-in-the-dark relish, celery salt, and mustard). Yum!
What makes Hot Doug's hot dog so good? Simple enough: choices. You can get any kind of dog any kind of way which will make anyone who likes to partake in encased lips and assholes (and veggie lips and assholes too) jump with glee. These are some of the dogs that were on the menu this past week...
The Game of the Week:
Smoked Rattlesnake Sausage with Blueberry-Port Sauce and Smoked Gouda Cheese
The Dog:
Chicago-Style Hot Dog with all the trimmings: 'nuff said.
The Elvis:
Polish Sausage: Smoked and savory - just like the King.
The Paul Kelly:
Bratwurst: Soaked in Beer – sort of like Paul.
The Jennifer Garner (formerly the Britney Spears):
Fire Dog: Mighty hot!
The Madonna(formerly the Raquel Welch and the Ann-Margret):
Andouille Sausage: Mighty, mighty, mighty hot!
It was a truly Chicago experience that I will partake in many more times and you should to. My only tip is that if you order the cheese fries, get the cheese on the side. I was told about this after I placed my order and my stomach was coated with cheese the rest of the day... which is not always a good thing.
And Pink's in Hollywood is over-rated.
4 comments:
I wouldn't eat one, but I am happy to see that our bountiful city has so many encased options. I once I took Cicero Ave. down to Midway Airport and counted at least 20 hot dog stands on the way. High Class!!
Dude, I was the OG at that place, way back when they were on Roscoe. Snap!!
Great call.
My favourite dog is still the Reindeer Sausage you used to be able to get at the Costco hot dog guy in Alaska when I was growing up. Why Costco thought it was a good idea to have a hot dog vendor, I'll never know but nothing beats it!
You can get them in the summer on the street corner in Anchorage now but it's just not the same...
on of the hardest things about living abroad is that there is no hot doug's. a part of me wishes i had never been there before then at least i wouldn't know what i was missing. but i totally know.
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