Chicago – Essen & Trinken: Deep-Dish-Pizza und Hot Dog

With over two million inhabitants, Chicago is the third largest city in the USA. The metropolis on Lake Michigan is not only famous for its breathtaking architecture, but also for its culinary delights.

Deep-Dish-Pizza bei Giordano’s

Chicago's culinary flagship is deep-dish pizza. If you ask a local where the best deep-dish pizza is, they'll usually say "at Giordano's." Unlike the Italian counterpart known to Europeans with a wafer-thin crust, the pizza in the "Windy City" is prepared in a cake-like shape. On the dough you can choose different ingredients as a topping, which are then covered with lots of cheese and baked with tomato sauce.

Shortly before our return flight to Europe, we visited one of the 18 branches in Chicago. We ordered the “smallest” pizza for two, which according to the menu consists of six pieces, and had it topped with minced meat and green peppers. Even if you don't come to the "rush hour" like we did, you have to expect a waiting time of about 45 minutes. The mountain of dough, cheese and tomato sauce takes time to cook. You should be prepared for that and how we can bridge the waiting time with a few delicious beers. The open non-alcoholic drinks are always refilled free of charge during the restaurant visit.

Then it came: a real cheese and tomato sauce monster! The waitress placed the deep dish pizza on a metal stand between us and served each a slice with a cake server. As you can see from the photos, no expense was spared on the cheese and we had a hard time not distributing it on the table. The deep-dish pizza at Giordano's (giordanos.com) is definitely a dining experience. The taste is so powerful that the two of us just finished eating it.

Hot Dog bei GENE & JUDE’S

Die Empfehlung für GENE & JUDE’S (Adresse: 2720 River Rd, River Grove, IL 60171, geneandjudes.com) we got from the breakfast waitress of our hotel. According to her, there is no better hot dog in the Northeast. In short: I can confirm the statement!

The store doesn't look that special at first glance, but it was very busy. The menu is quickly explained: hot dog, double hot dog and corn roll. You can also choose from the side dishes (relish, American mustard, pepperoni and onions). The dog is also served with freshly cut and fried fries. They weren't crispy enough for my taste. All in all very tasty and cheap at less than 3 USD.

Hot Dog bei Portillo’s

You can also find a real Chicago-style hot dog at Portillo’s (portillos.com). Die Auswahl bei Portillo’s ist weitaus größer als bei GENE & JUDE’S. So gibt es bei dem Kettenrestaurant zusätzlich zum Dog, den man übrigens unter keinen Umständen mit Ketchup bestellt, auch noch Sandwiches, Burger und Salate. Ich bestellte mir einen einfachen klassischen Hot Dog mit Senf, Relish, frisch gehackten Zwiebeln, Tomate, Gewürzgurke und Peperoni in einem weichen Brötchen. Für 2,75 USD bekommt man ein leckeres Essen, von dem man satt wird.

Chicago Travel Guide

For the perfect city trip to Chicago, we recommend you this guide. Here you will not only find a detailed city map, but also a lot of information about all the important sights. You'll also get great suggestions for outings in Chicago's outskirts.

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