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| - I read all of the great reviews for Matt's Chicago Dog, and as usual, I took them with a grain of salt. What really caught my eye were the reviews from Chicago natives. They stated that the Chicago hot dogs and Italian beef was either a close approximation or a dead ringer for what they grew up with in Chi-town. I woke up Saturday morning with this (somehow) stuck in my mind, so this called for a road trip.
I found the restaurant easily.
The staff was welcoming and friendly.
The menu options were easy to read on the overhead menu board.
I knew what I wanted before I left home, a Chicago hot dog all the way, and an Italian beef, with onions, sweet AND hot peppers, dipped. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/matts-chicago-dog-cornelius?select=dbHpU-kSLiSb46kgygvzcQ#dbHpU-kSLiSb46kgygvzcQ
I have tried to cultivate a taste for Chicago style hot dogs, but my Southern taste buds are having none of it. I'm not saying that this wasn't a delicious hot dog, because it was exploding, both literally and figuratively, with flavor. My problem with a Chicago dog is that the toppings are so pervasive in flavors that I find that they overpower the taste of the frankfurter. Since I am not from Chicago, I don't have any frame of reference upon which to base a comparison of Matt's Chicago Dog, but I thought that it was the best example of a Chicago dog that I ever tried.
The Italian Beef was an entirely different animal.....
I ordered mine pretty much loaded to the gunwales. After reading the other Yelper's reviews, I went with grilled onions and both the hot and sweet peppers. And it's NOT an Italian beef unless it is dipped in the au jus.
When I received the sandwich, it was so large and unwieldy, I immediately gave up hope of picking up the sandwich and eating it that way. I had the foresight to grab a knife and fork, so I attacked it as an open face sandwich, and I'm glad that I did. One can take basic good bread and dip it into au jus, and the sandwich is darned good just like that. Add piles of tender, thinly sliced beef, jalapenos, sweet pickles and giardiniera, and one has a truly delicious sandwich.
The young lady who took my order jokingly said that I wouldn't be able to eat both sandwiches. She was wrong. The Chicago dog disappeared in four bites and the Italian beef followed soon thereafter. I washed everything down with a Barq's root beer which quenched the jalapeno flames well.
I enjoyed my initial visit to Matt's Chicago Dog very much, and I look forward to returning again. Memories of that delicious Italian beef sandwich linger.
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