Where to Find the Classic Chicago Hot Dog

Alas! The Chicago Dog was born!

They’d start with a Vienna Beef hot dog, a steamed poppyseed bun and cover it with a delicious combination of toppings: yellow mustard, bright green relish, fresh chopped onions, juicy red tomato wedges, a kosher-style pickle spear, a couple of spicy peppers and finally, a dash of celery salt.

Recreating this specialty seems to be a difficult task. Many places (outside of Chicago) try, but fail. Why? They typically forget one of the important ingredients or rules that come along with a Chicago hot dog.

Rule Number One

The pickle relish used on a Chicago dog MUST be bright green. The sweet flavor this relish brings to the dog is important. The relish can be difficult to come by, but if you’re preparing the dog yourself, try Rolf’s relish available at most Jewel stores.

Rule Number Two

Genuine Chicago Style Hot Dogs are traditionally served on a steamed poppyseed bun. Unlike the bright green relish, these should not be hard to come by. There’s no excuse not to have one!

Rule Number Three

You would think that the mustard would be easy, and for the most part, it is. But some people like to get too creative. The Chicago dog is simple folks. Classic. Yellow. Mustard. NO DIJON MUSTARD. That fancy stuff isn’t necessary! Pick up a bottle of French’s and away you go!

Rule Number Four

Find the perfect pickle. The pickle can make or break the dog. The classic Chicago dog will have either a pickle slice or spear (what’s the difference right?!) Once again, don’t get too fancy with it. You don’t want the pickle to overpower the flavor of any other ingredients. I prefer my pickles to have a nice crunch to them. Sometimes, on rare occasions, pickles can be substituted with cucumber slices. I don’t really enjoy cucumbers on my dogs though.

I recommend using Crunchy Deli Pickle Spears from the Puckered Pickle Company or Claussen Kosher Dill. Claussen is located in many grocery stores.

Rule Number Five

The Dog. This is non-negotiable. Vienna Beef hot dogs are the ONLY suitable dog for the Chicago-style hot dog. Vienna Beef is pure beef. Don’t even think of using a Hot Dog made from turkey, chicken or pork. It’s important that the dog doesn’t “snap” when you bite into it.

Rule Number Six

This is the MOST important rule folks. Never, absolutely never, can there be ketchup on your Chicago dog. I’m not sure why it is this way, but it is. Don’t question history folks. Most places will make you “defy” your own dog by putting the ketchup on yourself, or they will laugh at you. Are you prepared to endure public humiliation?

Superdawg is my favorite place for a hot dog. The dogs are jumbo and pure beef! They come snuggled in a cute box with delicious fries. The line is usually pretty long, but the wait is well worth it. If you don’t want to get out of the car, don’t worry! Superdawg is a drive-in. You can order from the comfort of your car and have your food brought to you! They’re also on Twitter

Hot Doug’s is a close second for best Chicago dog. They cost a bit less than Superdawgs and they also offer a selection of different treats from The Elvis to The Kiera Knightley. See menu

Portillos is another one of my favorite hot dog joints in Chicago. Unfortunately, they stray a bit from the classic Chicago dog rules. Their hot dogs snap when you bit into them. It’s okay though, they make up for it with their cheese fries!

Portillos also lets you send a tasty hot dog kit to anyone in the U.S. Nothing says Happy Birthday or Merry Christmas quite like a delicious hot dog.

The Wieners Circle

Their sign says it all. This places offers the classic Chicago dog! I like that they steam their hot dogs instead of charring them on the grill. Be careful when planning your trip though. This place gets pretty busy at night, especially due to the bar-hopping crowd.

I was delightfully surprised to learn that Wrigley Field has some pretty tasty hot dogs. Forget the game, I’m going for the food!