By CHANTAL DE LA RIONDA
The UNITY News Online

About the Takeaway: In this feature, UNITY News Online takes to the streets to uncover which famous Chicago eateries have earned their reputations, and which ones should be put to rest. The first in the series is Portillo’s Hotdogs.

Portillo's Hot Dogs, (pronounced por-til-ohs),is located at 100 West Ontario, Chicago.

Located at 100 W. Ontario Ave., Portillo’s is touted as the premier hot dog vendor, whose popularity has spread throughout the Midwest, with franchises following soon thereafter.

Although you can now find a Portillo’s all over Illinois, Indiana and even California, the original stand, called “The Dog House” was opened by Dick Portillo in 1963. With more than 30 locations, each Portilllo’s has a theme that’s cheesier than the next. The motif of the Chicago location was, predictably, “1920’s Gangster.”

We arrived early since I had been warned of lines forming around the block. When our cab pulled up to the curb, I was surprised to discover a huge red brick building, complete with an outdoor patio. For some reason when I was thinking “hot dog stand” the dynamic, flashing neon signs, blaring music and two floors of seating was not what I had in mind. I proceeded with caution.

Portillo's Famous Hot Dogs, touted as serving the #1 hot dog with the #1 service, is at least half right.

While the ordering line was about 10-12 people deep, the servers maneuvered deftly about the register and within a few moments I had ordered, paid and was now consulting the condiments table for options to add to my already ambitiously piled hot hog.

As I seated myself at the closest red gingham table, I took in the prohibition era décor, complete with a mannequin flapper dangling from a ceiling swing. “Well,” I thought, “at least they are consistent.”

After ceremoniously unwrapping the frankfurter and fries, I began my work.

The first bite was good. Quite good. The dog-to-bun ratio could have been better, but the bread surplus was usefully acting as a doughy dike, holding back a series savory toppings. I asked Miss Nancy “Showtime,” a particularly sociable Portillo’s employee, exactly what goes into a Portillo’s hot dog.

 

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Now this may have been corporate marketing as its best, but I was surprised to hear that, unlike what I had been warned many times before, it was quite common for people to order ketchup on their Chicago dogs. Usually that kind of cardinal sin is pardoned only for those 10 years and younger. Portillo’s serves their dogs with slices of tomatoes, making ketchup feel a little redundant.

Working my way through the all beef Vienna sausage, the flavors of the fourth and fifth bite grew tedious- the neon green relish overpowering more subtle mustard and onion flavors. I gave my palate breaks with nibbles from the accompanying crinkly fries, and soldiered on. Before I was able to finish my dog delicacy, I was scraping off tablespoons of relish and offering the peppers to my tablemates. While beginning the hot dog was a promising adventure, finishing it felt more like a punishment.

The Takeaway:

The obnoxious music, overzealous ’20 theme and the shuffling crowd of the restaurant didn’t really

Topped with mustard, onions, relish, peppers and tomatoes, ketchup is gonna have to sit this one out.

create a cozy atmosphere, and while I had devoured much better hot dogs in other cities, it was really the colorful staff and speedy service that redeemed Portillo’s.

I give it 2.5 out of 5 stars, meaning that while I wouldn’t recommend it to out-of-towners as the go-to hot dog joint, you certainly could do a lot worse.

But in a city that prides its sausages, bratwursts and kielbasas as much as Chicago, is that enough?

topic: Chicagoland

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 23rd, 2008 at 2:29 pm and is filed under Blog, Chicagoland. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.