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Category Archives: Cheap Eats

Portillo’s chocolate cake – a scam?

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

There have been rumors floating around for years that Portillo’s famous chocolate cake actually comes from a mix. Now that I think about it, I wouldn’t be surprised — the cake is almost unnaturally moist but doesn’t have a buttery richness, and the same goes for the frosting, which is mind-numbingly chocolatey but without any [...]

Also filed in Chicago, Recipes, Sweets | | Comments (7)

Dirty water dogs

Monday, September 24, 2007

Our good friend Ed, a phenomenal cook and native New Yorker, recently returned from the East Coast after a summer of traveling around the U.S. catering music festivals and brought back a case of Sabrett hot dogs. These are the “dirty water dogs” that are sold from carts on the streets of New York, named [...]

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Johnnie’s Beef – what’s the big deal?

Thursday, September 20, 2007

I was reading a blog post on the Tribune’s food blog about the best sandwich in America, and quite a few people mentioned in the comments section that Johnnie’s in Elmwood Park (7500 W. North Ave.) has the best Italian beef. I love Johnnie’s ice — the texture is smooth, the lemon flavor is superb [...]

Also filed in Chicago | | Comments (3)