THE BATTLE OF THE ENCASED MEATS
Chicago had a nice turnout with this one. I live in NYC, but my Top 4 all hail from Chicago…
Dictionary.com says; minced pork, beef, or other meats, often combined, together with various added ingredients and seasonings, usually stuffed into a prepared (this word intentionally left off) or other casing and often made in links.
Thank you all for your contributions.
My Top 4 in no particular order:
Little Louies: Northbrook, IL
Hot Dog- straight out of the water, not charred. Served on a perfectly steamed poppyseed bun with just a little bit of ketchup. I know, I get it, but I was 10 years old when I consumed these, so give me a break.Vienna Beef- The Factory Store: Chicago, IL
Spicy Polish- Eating at the Vienna Factory Outlet is the equivalent to tasting beer at the Coors Brewing facility. Unbelievable- I don’t even need to explain what goes on it, but just know that when you take a bite of it and hear the snap, you can see the spices permeating throughout. Straight from the source.
The Weiner’s Circle: Chicago, IL
Grilled Polish Sausage- Late night swearing and popped collars aside, this charred piece of goodness with some spreadable cheddar and grilled onions is good at noon or at 3 in the morning.
Mustard’s Last Stand: Evanston, IL
Corn Dog- golden brown and glistening, this taste of goodness is really something special.
THE TOP 5’s:
1.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Dogma
City: Miami, FL
Testimonial: “Just a great size and texture hotdog, that is simple with a perfectly soft bun.”
2.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Romanian Kosher Sausage (need to cook them yourself)
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “I believe the very best place to buy uncooked hot dogs is Romanian Kosher Sausage in Chicago. The hot dogs come in all sizes and have the best taste.”
3.) Item: Jumbo Char Dog
Location: Michael’s
City: Highland Park, IL
Testimonial: “The jumbo char dog at Michael’s in Highland Park is my all time favorite. Great pickles and sauerkraut.”
4.) Item: Morcilla Sausage
Location: Tierras Colombianas
City: Queens, NY
Testimonial: “This place has a real authentic morcilla, served only with an arepa and a slice of lemon to cut the fat. This is the real deal, and the only morcilla in town that can stand up to my own, but I use my Colombian business partner’s Grandmother’s recipe.”
5.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Romanian’s
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “These hot dogs are fucking huge, and have the real butchers casing snap to them when you bite into a good charred one. In the city of hot dogs, these guys stand alone in my book…”
6.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Pink’s
City: Los Angeles, CA
Testimonial: “UMMMM PINKS… Hello….WORLD FAMOUS”
7.) Item: Fig and Brandy Duck Sausage
Location: Hot Doug’s
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “… with Sweet Dijon Mustard Sauce and Cheese-Stuffed Sweet Peppers- though the ribeye steak sausage with horseradish & fried onions gives it a run for it’s money. And you have to go on Friday or Saturday for the duck fat fries.”
8.) Item: Slaw Dog
Location: The Varsity
City: Atlanta, GA
Testimonial: “If you find yourself down around Atlanta make a bee line to The Varsity. You will be greeted by a chorus of “ whatadya have, whatadya have” say a slaw dog and you will be just fine.”
9.) Item: Full size pig in a blanket
Location: Knish Knosh
City: Forest Hill, NY
Testimonial:
10.) Item: Venezuelan Street Hot Dogs
Location: Street Cart
City: Caracas, Venezuela
Testimonial: “The perfectly thin sized wieners are boiled in water while the bread is placed above the steam it produces. It’s topped with finely chopped raw cabbage, raw onions, and potato chips. Then one stripe of ketchup, mustard and mayo. Found throughout the streets of Caracas.
11.) Item: Polish Sausage
Location: Express Grill
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “24-hours, have to eat in your car, completely reasonably priced, free fries, perfectly spiced polish, generous topping of grill onions, and of course mustard on top to make it a true Maxwell Street Polish. Amazing! And don’t forget the charm of being hustled by the tube sock salesmen.”
12.) Item: Whoopskidawg
Location: Superdawg
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “I love their Whoopskidawg (Polish), but the secret is to order it on a poppy bun instead of the bun it comes on. I find that bun to be too hard. The special sauce is great and makes it one of the best.”
13.) Item: Surfer Dog
Location: The Trolley Stop
City: Wrightsville Beach, NC
Testimonial: “Boiled hot dog on steamed bun (steamed bun is key), with dijon mustard, american cheese, bacon bits and jalepenos. Seriously… the best dog”
14.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Michael’s
City: Highland Park, IL
Testimonial:
15.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Stash’s
City: Highland Park, IL
Testimonial:
16.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Hoagie Hut
City: Highwood, IL
Testimonial:
17.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Home Depot Hot Dog Cart
City: Deerfield, IL
Testimonial:
18.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Norton’s
City: Highland Park, IL
Testimonial:
19.) Item: Jumbo Cheddar Char Dog (well done)
Location: Dear Frank’s
City: Deerfield, IL
Testimonial: “w/ tomato, onion, pickle, SPORT PEPPERS, celery salt, merkt’s cheddar, mustard & ketchup. Served on a french roll, which keeps everything together.”
20.) Item: Bacon Dog
Location: Bacon Dog Cart
City: San Francisco, CA
Testimonial: “sadly, i have not eaten here yet, but it’s next on my list. it’s
sinful isn’t it?”
21.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Portillo’s
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial:
22.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Charlie’s Famous Hot Dogs
City: Brentwood, NY
Testimonial: “Hot dog with cheese (H2O based) awesome classic”
23.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Spike’s Junkyard Dogs
City: Allston, MA
Testimonial: “They serve an All American Dog, which has baked beans-mustard-cheddar cheese…amazing! Plus, if you can eat 6 hot dogs in 90 minutes, you get a free t-shirt. Can’t beat that.”
24.) Item: Weisswurst on Pumpernickel Bun
Location: Vienna Cenral Train Station
City: Vienna
Testimonial: “I’ll never forget it and haven’t found a better one since I discovered it… weisswurst on pumpernickel bun with sweet-n-sauerkraut and drizzled brown mustard – can you say, “discht isht dan real ting”!”
25.) Item: Duck and Fig Sausage
Location: Rosamunde Sausage Grill
City: San Francisco, CA
Testimonial: “How could that not be delicious?”
26.) Item: Jumbo Char Dog
Location: Michael’s
City: Highland Park, IL
Testimonial: “I don’t know why but I think the jumbo char dog at Michael’s is the best one ever. The cheese fries don’t hurt either. The hot dog is crispy and has great flavor.”
27.) Item: Blood Sausage
Location: (my brother’s homemade versions)
City: NYC, NY
Testimonial: “I didn’t know that I liked blood sausage until I had X’s! I have no idea how he makes it, but it is very good.”
28.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Romanian Kosher Sausage Company
City: Chicago, IL
Location: Dear Frank’s
City: Deerfield, IL
Testimonial: “My favorite basic Chicago dog on a steamy bun.”
30.) Item: Hot Dog (Hebrew National/Best Kosher Stand)
Location: Wrigley Field
City: Chicago,IL
Testimonial: “steamed bun w/ grilled onions (add your own condiments and don’t be afraid of the flourecent green relish). I can’t help but laugh everytime I see some chump eating a hot dog from a vendor at Wrigley. Nothing compares to the dog w/ the caramelized grilled onions at one of the few stands strategically placed around the park. So good that once I used a ticket to get in the park for a dog and didn’t even see a minute of baseball.”
31.) Item: Jumbo Char Dog on French
Location: Dear Frank’s
City: Deerfield, IL
Testimonial: “choose your own toppings but I guarantee the french bread will leave you plenty of room to fit what you desire.”
32.) Item: Spicy Italian Brat
Location: Brat Stop
City: Kenosha, WI
Testimonial: “these guys know their sausages! I regularly by them raw and cook them at my campsite (boiled in a can of beer and finished off on the grill). If you eat one there you’re almost guaranteed to buy some to go.”
33.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Superdawg
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “So, I don’t even know where to start…as we discussed on the phone I can’t stop thinking about the 100’s of dogs that I’ve eaten in my life and which one is truly the best. Well thanks – now I’m going to think about hot dogs for the rest of my day. I’m a little disappointed with myself that I didn’t list an Italian Sausage (probably my favorite among the encased meats).”
34.) Item: Mini Vienna Hot Dogs rolled in Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
Location: (my house)
City: Deerfield, IL
Testimonial: ““I could eat a 100 of those.”
35.) Item: Grilled Hot Dog
Location: Mazur’s Marketplace and Restaurant
City: Queens, NY
Testimonial: “
Marlo D.: “… definitely worth the trip to Queens! A Sunday meat & produce shopping excursion at Mazur’s is not complete without swinging by their appetizing counter for a hot dog. Plump and snappy, these dogs are served on fluffy white buns and taste best topped with a tangle of tangy sauerkraut and sharp deli mustard.”
36.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Superdawg
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “Who could resist those “boxes?” And how about the fries? From the bottom of our pure beef hearts, these 7:1’s are my favorite. Also, the neon green pickle relish is awesome, and every dog comes with a dill tomato!”
37.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Gene and Jude’s
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “A delicious 10:1 hotdog with the fresh cut fries wrapped up with the hot dog…”
38.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Plush Pup
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “A garden on a dog!”
39.) Item: Corn Pol
Location: Susie’s
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “Ok, just finished my first corn pol from susie’s. A corn pol is basically a polish stuffed with cheese and battered up and fried on a stick, served with a lil’ cup of fancy mustard. Very sweet and it was $1.54, and fresh cut fries, 1 lb. Was $3.21.
Find that in ny! Gotcha!”
40.) Item: Hot Dog
Location: Wrigley Field
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “Hebrew National w/grilled onions”
41.) Item: Cheese Dog
Location: Dear Frank’s
City: Deerfield, IL
Testimonial: “(Merck’s Cheddar)”
42.) Item: Polish Sausage
Location: (home- my dad)
City: Deerfield, IL
Testimonial: “some sort of spicy pepper going on that I always loved”
43.) Item: Jumbo Char Dog
Location: Weiner Take All
City: Buffalo Grove, IL
Testimonial: “great char dogs in the jumbo or double dog variety, great fries.”
44.) Item: Jumbo Char Dog
Location: Portillo’s
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “… no ketchup allowed. An institution.”
45.) Item: Italian Sausage
Location: Al’s Beef
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “Italian Sausage (or sausage/beef combo) – why Chicago is the fattest city in the USA.”
46.) Item: Bratwurst
Location: Harborside Golf Course
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “unbelievably surprising quality bratwurst (hot dog and italian sausage also available) on the 10th hole at Harborside. Nice condiment offering including giardinara.”
47.) Item: Hot Dog (and more)
Location: Susie’s
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “its not so much the actual hot dog but the hot dog experience at Susie’s – first of all the fries are the best and I mean the best in the city- and the fact that it is open 24 hours a day with a steady stream of customers tells you something right off the bat – So when we went there we had a steamed polish- a grilled polish – a couple of hotdogs and a deep fried cheesepol- and not one word of anything but praises- I myself love the footlong polish – I get it in a hotdog bun and the ends stick out – but it is available in a piece french bread – Also the over 100 different types of shakes only help -Also i have heard that the fries in a taco shell bowl with gyros meat or chili or chicken or anything are delicious”
* GONE, BUT NOT FORGOTTEN:
Item: Bratwurst Plate
Location: The Berghoff Restaurant
City: Chicago, IL
Testimonial: “Chicago out done on sausages? Come on. When it comes to encased meat, it’s quality. Not quantity. Allow myself to salivate while I write… Before closing the doors to their iconic main dining room in 2006, the Berghoff’s bratwurst plate introduced me (and a lot of Chicagoans) to a lifetime of encased meat indulgence. Plate included a juicy, perfectly seasoned bratwurst (no bun), vinegary sauerkraut and German potato pancake. Pure Bavaria in downtown Chicago.”
