Lists

Where Are the New Italian Beefs?

Al's #1 was #2 on his list.
Al’s #1 was #2 on his list. Photo: Nick Kindelsperger

Steve Dolinksy put up a very simple post about the best Italian beefs in the city on Vocalo, and crowned Johnnie’s in Elmwood Park as his favorite, with Al’s #1 on Taylor at number two. Honestly, we have admit that our own list would look almost exactly the same. We especially love the pick of Chickie’s at number three, a place that certainly doesn’t get as much coverage as it should. Though Feast rightly pointed out the fact that Mr. Beef beat Al’s #1 on Food Wars, we have to agree with the ranking. Actually, the only thing that caught our eye was that all of these places have been open for years. This list could have been published fifteen years ago and it would have looked exactly the same. It begs the question, where are the new beef stands? Franks ‘N’ Dawgs has re-imagined the hot dog stand, and new pizza places are opening at a fast rate. But we can’t think of a crazy new Italian beef stand in the city. We’d like to see this change, as the Italian beef is one of our favorite Chicago delicacies. Just some thoughts for the weekend. We are heading off early today, but we’ll be back after the holiday. [Vocalo, Feast]

Where Are the New Italian Beefs?