NNTP-Posting-Date: Tue, 22 May 2001 13:42:54 CDT X-SessionID: OqyO6-62542-F4-26776@uchinews X-Hash-Info: post-filter,v:1.4 X-Hash: ca98b885 afc769ee 0525e530 4a23019b 8487fb4f Date: Tue, 22 May 2001 13:42:55 -0500 Xref: usenet.INS.cwru.edu chi.eats:10460 A while back I posted on a few Chicago chili places. Since then I've eaten at a few more and haven't changed my opinion that, in general, Chicago chili is not so great. For what it's worth here are some comments, as much for warning as recommendation. I like chili but I'm not too dogmatic on the subject. The main thing I look for is a good rich, spicy chili flavor. I usually favor hot over bland but there are a couple non-hot versions I enjoy. Chopped or diced meat is usually a good sign but even ground beef can be tolerable. I even enjoy vegetarian "chili" but that is another topic entirely. Beans go well with chili but are often better cooked separately. I'm always willing to give a bean-filled chili a try however. Chili Mac's on Broadway is probably the best of the bunch. Their Texas style is a very respectable version with a fair amount of chopped beef and evidence of real chili pods but no tomatoes or beans. It's reasonably spicy but not particularly hot. I have yet to try the other 3 versions. CM was closed down by the Health Department last September but soon reopened. Ramova is a real old-time chili parlor and grill. I love this place but not exclusively for the food; there are so few like it remaining. The chili is more interesting than great but I appreciate it more each time I go. No tomatoes, no beans (except on request; they're cooked separately), and no ground beef, just lots of shreds and shards of meat. It's a very thick base and a complex but not hot spice mix with hints of cinnamon and clove. Like the rest of the place, I doubt the recipe has changed since the 1920s. This is a classic Chicago place which won't be to everyone's liking. If you're interested in different styles of chili, this is an essential stop. Since Bishop's closed their doors in Chicago, Lindy's is often cited as the classic Chicago chili parlor. I don't know about any of the new locations but the original (1924) on Archer is still worth a visit. Unfortunately the chili is not all that great. Points for the nice red color and tomatoless formula but demerits for blandness. The bar room picture of the Chicago skyline with Daley's disembodied head floating above is almost worth a visit by itself. Filbert's root beer on tap. Cheli's Chili Bar is run by the Chelios family and caters mainly to the Blackhawk crowd. It looks like hundreds of other sports bars in Chicago but they have a much more specific theme than most: Chris Chelios. Since many of the people who work there are family or friends this place has a definite claim to authenticity. You can even buy autographed pucks or sticks. The beer choice is the pits: Bud or Michelob ($3.50 a glass, adding insult to injury). Food choices are precisely what you'd expect from a sports bar: wings, nachos, poppers, burgers, chicken, hot dogs, and of course chili. The chili, $3.50 for a small styrofoam tub, comes topped with cheese and onions and, on request, some pickled jalapeno slices. The chili is clearly homemade and distinctive but not at the top of my list. It's quite thick and homogeneous as if everything was pureed together. A few kidney beans and some clumps of ground beef are in evidence. Another bland bowl, nothing terrible but nothing I'd go out of my way for. Twin Anchors, a bar that serves ribs a lot of people seem to like, makes a clearly homemade chili with lots of big chunks of tomato and kidney beans. Fairly thin broth with a strong chili powder flavor. This tomato-ground beef-bean soup is to chili as their ribs are to barbecue: not bad but not even close to the real thing. There's a lot good to be said about Earle's chili and for Quenchers too. This bar was probably Chicago's first real beer bar, many years before dozens of decent beers became commonplace. It's always been a real neighborhood place and a very pleasant one at that. The chili is extremely thick and meaty; even though it doesn't seem to contain any binder it still stands up in the bowl. It contains ground beef, some tomato in recognizable chunks and a few kidney beans. Nicely spiced but not extreme, it seems to have a good dose of chiles and leaves a gentle glow in the mouth. I'd rank this one much higher but for a noticeable sweetness I don't care for. At $2.50 a bowl it's a good deal and I'd willingly eat it again. I believe last year the Tribune did an article on chili and rated CND Gyros' version highly. They make what must be a Chicago-Greek version. Extremely sweet with a very strong cinnamon flavor. Interesting but not at all to my taste. CND may still be worth a visit; it seems to be one of the few downscale neighborhood bars in Streeterville. Perry's Deli makes a version that's even sweeter. Very thick with ground beef and a few kidney beans. Not a whole lot of chili or spice flavor but a generous layer of floating red grease. An abomination. Stick with Perry's sandwiches, some of which can be pretty good. While "flying" United a few months ago I had many hours to kill at O'Hare. They were good enough to give me some food vouchers so I had a chance to try some places I would ordinarily go out of my way to avoid. Made my first visit to Chili's, which I fully expected to hate. The chili was a pleasant surprise: thick, meaty, and beanless with a very nice mix of chiles and spices. Actually left a slight tingle on the palate. Kind of sad that one of the better chilis in Chicago is to be found at a national chain at the airport. Sadder still is the fact that the chili at White Castle is better than most in Chicago. I've never been a big fan of WC so this one caught me by surprise. Some beans, some meat, and some pretty fair chili flavor. Not real thick, not real thin. I wouldn't rush right out for it but at $1.29 for a paper tub this is one of the best deals going. Some of the meat looked suspiciously like diced-up sliders and the onions were unmistakably the same as on the burgers. Luckily my tolerance for tomato soup with ground beef and kidney beans is pretty high but I've just about given up hope for other good bowls of chili in these parts. Can anyone suggest any worthwhile places to try? I've heard good things about The Texan in Algonquin but that seems like a long way to go. Has anyone been there and is it worth the trip? A couple years ago I posted a little bit about chili and recommended that you just make it yourself. This advice still stands as does my preferred source: Pendery's of Fort Worth. They've been around since 1870 and claim to have been the first to sell prepared chili powder. They have an impressive stock. For example they carry 4 different whole Peruvian pods (aji amarillo, aji limo, aji mirasol, and aji panca) and their selection of ground chiles is even more impressive (about 30 varieties not including the blends). They finally got around to putting their catalog on the web but it leaves a lot to be desired (no descriptions of the chiles). Try to get the print version. Penzey's, the best overall source for spices, also has a good chile selection but without the depth of Pendery's. A very good web site and an even better print catalog. Chili Mac's 3152 N Broadway Chicago IL 773-404-2898 Ramova Grill 3507 S Halsted Chicago IL 773-847-9058 Lindy's Chili 3685 S Archer Av Chicago, IL 773-927-7807 Cheli's Chili Bar 1137 W Madison St Chicago IL 60607 312-455-1237 hours vary depending on the hockey schedule; best to call Twin Anchors 1655 N Sedgwick St Chicago 312-266-1616 Quenchers 2401 N Western Av Chicago 773-276-9730 CND Gyros and Lounge 205 E Grand Av Chicago 312-467-4195 Perry's Deli 170 N Franklin St Chicago 312-372-7557 Chili's O'Hare Terminal 1 (I think) White Castle Many locations, mostly on the south side. The one on Milwaukee can be recommended because afterwards you can walk a few steps to Margie's for a turtle sundae. The Texan 101 N Main St Algonquin IL 847-658-2130 www.penderys.com www.penzeys.com
Chicago, IL