Chicago Italian beef and hot dogs: what they are and how to order

Chicago's two great street sandwiches are the Italian beef and the Chicago-style hot dog, and both come with their own vocabulary. An Italian beef is thin-sliced roast beef soaked in seasoned gravy on a long French roll, ordered dry, wet or dipped, with sweet peppers or hot giardiniera. A Chicago dog is an all-beef hot dog on a poppy seed bun with seven set toppings and, famously, no ketchup.

What is a Chicago Italian beef?

An Italian beef is a sandwich of roast beef sliced very thin, simmered in a thin, well-seasoned gravy (some places call it juice), and piled into a long Italian or French-style roll. It came out of Chicago's Italian-American neighborhoods in the first half of the twentieth century, and one reason it took hold is practical: slicing the beef paper-thin and stretching it with gravy makes a modest roast feed a lot of people.

It is messy by design. The bread is meant to soak up gravy, and the best ones are eaten leaning forward over the counter with your elbows out so the drips land on the paper and not on your shirt.

How do you order an Italian beef?

You choose how much gravy and which peppers.

Say	What you get
Dry	The beef is lifted out of the gravy and allowed to drip before it goes on the roll
Wet (or juicy)	The beef goes straight from the gravy to the roll, with extra gravy spooned on
Dipped	The whole sandwich is dunked in the gravy, bread and all
Sweet	Topped with mild roasted green bell peppers
Hot	Topped with hot giardiniera
Combo	Beef plus an Italian sausage in the same roll

So a typical order sounds like "beef, hot, dipped". If you are new to it, wet with hot giardiniera is a good middle ground: plenty of flavor, and the roll still holds together long enough to finish it.

What is giardiniera?

Giardiniera is a relish of chopped pickled vegetables, typically including peppers, celery, cauliflower and carrots, packed in oil. It arrived in Chicago with Italian immigrants, and the hot, chile-heavy version that goes on beef sandwiches is a Chicago-Italian style of its own, quite different from the mild pickled vegetables served in Italy. Once you have tried it, you will see it offered on everything from sandwiches to pizza.

What goes on a Chicago-style hot dog?

A Chicago dog starts with an all-beef hot dog in a poppy seed bun, then gets a standard set of toppings:

• Yellow mustard
• Bright green sweet pickle relish
• Chopped raw onions
• Tomato wedges, tucked along one side of the bun
• A dill pickle spear, tucked along the other side
• Sport peppers, small pickled peppers with medium heat
• A sprinkle of celery salt

The full set is sometimes described as "dragged through the garden". Sport peppers can be hard to find outside the Chicago area, which is part of why the dog tastes different here.

Why is there no ketchup on a Chicago hot dog?

The no-ketchup rule is the most famous thing about the Chicago dog, and locals take it seriously. The reasoning usually given is that the dog already has sweetness from the relish and tomatoes, and ketchup would drown out the mustard, peppers and celery salt. You will not get in real trouble for asking for it, but expect a look, and know that a traditional stand will not put it on unless you ask.

What is a Maxwell Street Polish?

The third classic of the Chicago hot dog stand is the Maxwell Street Polish: a garlicky Polish sausage grilled or fried until the casing snaps, served on a bun under a heap of grilled onions and a stripe of yellow mustard, often with sport peppers. It traces back to the old Maxwell Street market on the Near West Side, where a stand at Maxwell and Halsted began selling Polish sausages with grilled onions and mustard in 1939. Unlike the Chicago dog, it skips the tomato, relish, pickle and celery salt.

Where do you find these sandwiches?

Beef and hot dog stands are all over the city and suburbs, from small counters to long-running neighborhood institutions, and many sell beef, dogs and Polish sausages side by side, often with fries. Order at the counter, find a ledge to stand at, and eat while it is hot. Stands that stay open late are a Chicago tradition, but hours vary, so check before you go.

How do you eat an Italian beef without wearing it?

Stand at the counter, lean in, and keep your elbows wide so the gravy lands on the paper. Ask for extra napkins. If you are eating in a car or on the go, order it dry or wet rather than dipped. And do not wait: a dipped beef is best in the first few minutes, before the roll gives up entirely.

If you find a stand you love, tell people. On Mosey you can rate places and the dishes you ordered with photos, build a list of favorite beef stands and follow friends who know where the good ones are.

More guides to read next:

• Logan Square and Wicker Park: where to eat on Chicago's Northwest Side
• Pilsen, Chicago: a guide to Mexican food on 18th Street
• Eating in the West Loop and Fulton Market, Chicago

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