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Portillo's Chicago Style Hotdogs



For my first meal in Chicago, I went to a restaurant that, according to Ellie, will make any Chicagan's eyes light up. Portillo's self-describes their style as “‘30’s Prohibition”. The restaurant started out as a modest hot dog stand out of Villa Park in 1963. Portillo's opened in Chicago in 1994. They serve, along with an array of other delicious things (including this chocolate cake milkshake), the traditional Chicago hot dog, something I didn’t know existed until Ellie demanded to know if I would get one.

The signature Chicago hot dog was allegedly created by two European immigrants at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. The hotdog includes a beef hotdog, a poppy seed bun, yellow mustard, chopped white onion, sweet pickle relish, sport peppers, tomatoes, a kosher dill pickle spear, and celery salt. When I first unwrapped this beast I should’ve felt trepidation, but hubris won out. The thing sitting before me was a wonderfully monstrous creation, and I was ready for it. 

Actually biting into the hotdog was amazing. It seemed like it should be too much, but everything blended together perfectly. The sport pepper was the only thing that really felt like it stood apart to me, but even that wasn’t overwhelming. It wasn’t a spicy burn. It just added a slight kick. Hotdogs have been one of my favorite foods since childhood, and I say without a doubt the Chicago hot dog was the best hot dog I’ve ever had. 

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