Start with Al's #1 on Taylor Street for the classic, Mr. Beef on Orleans for the cramped stand everybody knows from TV, Johnnie's in Elmwood Park if you can get out there, and Portillo's when you want it easy. Order it hot and dipped.
How to order an Italian beef
Learn four words and nobody at the counter will hate you. Dry means just the beef. Wet means a spoon of juice on top. Dipped means they dunk the whole sandwich, and it will fall apart, and that is the point. Hot means giardiniera, the oily pickled pepper mix. Sweet means roasted sweet peppers.
So "beef, hot, dipped" is the whole order. Say it fast. The line behind you has opinions.
The Italian Stance
Feet back, elbows on the counter, lean over the paper. Everything that falls lands in front of you and not on your shirt. This is not a joke. Eat a dipped beef any other way and you'll be wearing it on the train home.
Al's #1 Italian Beef, Taylor Street
The original-location pilgrimage, in Little Italy. If you only do one, make it this. It closes Sundays, so don't build a Sunday around it. Combine it with the rest of the West Loop guide.
Mr. Beef, River North
The cramped little shop on Orleans that the whole country now knows from TV. It was a Chicago favorite long before anyone filmed it, and it still feels like somebody's garage with a slicer in it. See the River North and Loop guide.
Johnnie's Beef, Elmwood Park
Just past the city line, and the one a lot of locals quietly rank first. Pair it with Italian ice in summer. It's a haul without a car, so bring a sober driver or make it a mission.
Portillo's, when you want it easy
Big, loud, efficient and all over the area, with the River North location on Ontario the easy downtown pick. The chocolate cake shake is a known stoner hazard. Purists will sniff. Ignore them.
Why beef is built for the munchies
Salt, fat, heat, bread soaked all the way through. It takes two hands and your whole attention, which is what you want. One rule: if you're eating high, you're not driving to get it. Take the L, take a cab or send the sober friend. For everything else, see Chicago munchies and late-night Chicago.
Next up: the Chicago neighborhood guides.
