Hot Doug's - Chicago, IL - Two Words: "Encased Meats"

Foie gras dog with duck fat fries

My friend Cheryl, with whom I stayed during my travels in Chicago, lives within walking distance of a culinary beacon, an outpost of delicious and might I say, "encased" proportions. Hot Doug's reached the mainstream with Anthony Bourdain's rousing endorsement on a recent episode of No Reservations: Chicago, but it didn't need that support to be recognized as one of the city's best spots for a beloved Chicagoan tradition.

The line can be unbearably long, much like another celebrated hot dog institution in L.A. (Pink's). But to compare the two would be like pitting a Lauren Conrad novel with something by Kurt Vonnegut. We waited about an hour and a half in (what I'll call) bitter cold (it was in the mid 50's with "windchill"). The long wait only serves to amplify the appetite until you approach the humble register, where Doug himself takes orders by hand. When he turns around to shout the order to the cooks behind him, you see a shirt that reads, "There are no two finer words in the English language than 'encased meats', my friend." I immediately tweeted: I agree.

Upon a sprawling menu across the wall are a myriad of hot dog options, if you count the potential topping combinations. There's a simpler menu with common options such as a polish dog or classic Chicago-style hot dog (which they aptly name simply "hot dog"). The $1.50 corndog stuck out to me a good bargain, as did most things on this menu. However, these things didn't interest me as much as the "specials" menu, where one particular dog stands out: Foie Gras and Sauternes Duck Sausage with Truffle Aioli, Foie Gras Mousse and Sel Gris.

All that for just $9.00. Nine bucks for a few generous dabs of fattened duck liver, dessert-wine-inflected-encased duck with truffle-garlic emulsion, foie gras cream and gray salt!? It's almost a steal! And who the heck would order that in Chicago? Well apparently my friends didn't, even though they lived within walking distance. I'm sure a lot of people order it now that Anthony Bourdain waxed about it, but that was the first and only thing I really wanted to order. Oh, and the duck-fat fries, served only on weekends and offered at a paltry sum of $3.50. Seeing these prices, life just isn't fair living in L.A. If I lived so close to this much gastronomic hedonism, I'd indulge more often than filling my car's gas tank.

I went ahead and ordered a polish sausage dog just so I could say I had one while I was in Chicago, but the main event was the foie dog.

It comes on a dense potato bun, just large enough to cradle the sturdy duck sausage dog, whose light smoky flavor is overwhelmed by the foie gracing the top of it. In fact, there's so much foie gras that it almost makes you blush with delight and chill your cheeks to make sure they're not bright and ruddy. It's not often that one is able to eat so much of the stuff without having it butchered by a pan's quick sear or a poorly grilled beef patty. It's not often than one luxuriates in the subtle but decadent flavor of foie gras with such ease, without the pretension of sitting in a white tablecloth establishment or gastronomic temple. I'm both flattered and blissful. I assure you that your reaction will not be any different.

The duck fat fries are certainly delicious, those I wish they were a bit more crispy. The polish sausage dog was certainly one of the better ones I had in the city, though not really a standout to me. I also enjoyed delicious bites of the applewood smoked pork sausage dog, portuguese chorico dog with aged manchego, BLT with bacon sausage, and uber garlic pork sausage with whole roasted garlic cloves. They were all excellent options.

The wait is probably unavoidable unless you drive over at 10AM, half an hour before they open, but even then you're still waiting. Waiting is a reality at Hot Doug's, for this much pleasure for so little money, isn't it worth it? Make sure you have cash because plastic will make that wait worthless.

Hot Doug's
3324 North California
Chicago, IL 60618
(773) 279-9550