Portillo's is Chicago's definitive fast-food institution — a place where Italian beef sandwiches, Chicago-style hot dogs, and chocolate cake shakes have been served to a devoted following since Dick Portillo opened the first stand (called 'The Dog House') from a small trailer in 1963. The River North location is the flagship, and the queue that extends out the door at lunchtime is a daily reminder that Chicago takes its encased meats seriously.
The Italian beef — thinly sliced roast beef piled in a French roll, dipped in natural gravy, and topped with either sweet or hot peppers (or both, which is called 'combo') — is Chicago's most underrated contribution to American cuisine. Unlike deep-dish pizza, which tourists seek out and locals eat occasionally, the Italian beef is what Chicagoans actually eat regularly. The correct way to eat one is to ask for it 'dipped' (the entire sandwich goes into the gravy) and accept that you will need napkins. Many napkins.
The Chicago-style hot dog — an all-beef frankfurter in a poppy seed bun with yellow mustard, bright green relish, chopped white onion, a dill pickle spear, tomato slices, sport peppers, and celery salt (never, ever ketchup) — is the other essential order. The chocolate cake shake, which is literally a slice of chocolate cake blended into a milkshake, is the sort of thing that no reasonable person would invent but that becomes irresistible once you know it exists.
Verified Facts
Dick Portillo opened the first stand in 1963 from a small trailer
The original stand was called 'The Dog House'
Putting ketchup on a Chicago-style hot dog is considered unacceptable
The chocolate cake shake is a signature menu item blending cake into a milkshake
Get walking directions
100 W Ontario St, River North, Chicago, 60654, United States
