The Gino's and Johnnie's Taste-Off

So today I thought I'd compare two Chicago icons, Gino's East and Johnnie's Beef (they practically rhyme), head to head. To keep it on a level playing field, I ordered the chicken taco at both places.

Okay, not really. However, I did eat food from both places in the last 24 hours or so. And here's my report.

1) To sum up my tasting of both thick and thin when ordered in for a working lunch in Evanston: who the hell told Gino's they could make pizza? How did this wanly stereotypical Chicago pizza wind up in all the tourist guides as a must have Chicago experience?

Okay, there's always a perspective. In Wichita in 1978, or at an airport, Gino's would be an okay pizza. But it tastes like airport pizza even when not served in an airport. The thick was just kind of tired, tired canned sauce, limp cheese, the churn-em-out-by-the-millions yellow crust. Uninspiring, and that's not by definition the condition of local chains serving pizza to tourists-- I order Malnati's at home occasionally and the crisp crust and fresh chunky sauce make it seem like Alice Waters is working in the kitchen by comparison. The thin supreme actually had a little more flavor-- at least their sausage and pepperoni isn't bad-- but was hurt by the fact that something in it, mushrooms or whatever, expressed so much water in the cooking process that it soaked the crust, making it impossible to judge its original virtues.

As I once said on another board to yet another tourist seeking validation of his choice of Gino's as a must-have Chicago meal, "It's not only not the best pizza in Chicago, it's not even the best pizza starting with G in Chicago, in fact it's not even the best pizza starting with G-I- and ending with O-apostrophe-S." (If the question is, did I mean Giordano's or Gigio's, the answer is yes, and there's probably a Giorgio's somewhere that does better, too.)

2. Would you believe I've never eaten at Johnnie's before today?

Let me repeat that so there's no mistake. Would you believe I've never eaten at Johnnie's before today? I've tried twice but the place was always packed. So... I went somewhere else.

Today, however, I not only ate there, I was there to OPEN Johnnie's. A meeting in Rosemont got out at 10:30, 90 looked like a living hell, and I thought, well, surely they open by 11. And so there I was, sixth customer in line waiting for the doors to open.

Of course, one reason I'd never been there is... well, I'm not crazy about Italian beef. It's okay, but not something I feel a need to eat regularly. In this town Italian beef will happen to you a few times a year if you just let it. No need to actually go looking for it.

But there I was. Desperately trying to remember what to tell the ordering Nazi ("Beef weck with fries?" "Adam and Eve on a raft?") Fortunately, "Combo with sweet" seemed to be the order of the day, so I figured I couldn't go wrong.

Conclusions as I sat trying not to get Johnnie's on my dress clothes? Well, any Italian beef sandwich is improved by a big hunk of sausage in its middle, I'm sure. So I yanked it out and ate the beef sandwich part by itself. And... I was converted. I'd love to say you're all nuts and Johnnie's is no better than any other Italian beef, but it is. Rapidly dissolving bread and juice and thin beef and mushy green sweet peppers and lots of spices all came together fairly sublimely. Honestly, it was almost as good as a good cheeseburger. So if you must eat Italian Beef, take it from me, the Italian Beef Agnostic. Eat at Johnnie's, the rare legend that lives up to its publicity.

Johnnie's does indeed make the best Italian beef, however, as a beef stand aficionado I believe that the experience (there) could be made better. My suggestions for Johnnie's managers:

1. Get rid of those crappy thin french fries! Start using crinkly potatoes along the lines of the ones that are used at Superdawg.
2. Re-think the sweet peppers that you use. On many occasions, they are limp and almost tasteless. Roma's ( on Cicero ) wins sweet peppers, hands down. (I do like Johnnie's hot peppers,though)
3. Start carrying Coca-Cola, for crying out loud!
4. Spend a few more bucks and supply decent napkins.

If these 4 minor suggestions were adopted, I probably wouldn't eat fast food anywhere else.

Best Wishes---------

Mike G wrote:To sum up my tasting of both thick and thin when ordered in for a working lunch in Evanston: who the hell told Gino's they could make pizza? How did this wanly stereotypical Chicago pizza wind up in all the tourist guides as a must have Chicago experience?

I could not agree more. My office recently ordered Gino's for a meeting and I had the displeasure of trying two different types of deep-dish. Their "veggie" pizza had all of the veggies minced finely into the bland sauce. A totally tasteless hunk of cheese, limp bread (i won't call it crust), and ketchup.

I feel sorry for the tourists who stand in line there, and I understand why a New Yorker might swear up and down that Chicago pizza is inferior. They probably ate at Gino's.

Save yourselves. Go to Lou Malnati's.

I agree Johnnie's could improve on it's sweet peppers, napkins and beverages.

Johnnie's fries are nothing special but I doubt Superdawg's fries would be an improvement. Frannie's fries are a far better example.

Partly it's because I've never been a fan of crinkly fries, preferring the skin-on kind as at Frannie's.

Also, Superdawg insists on putting the fries in a box with the dawg and closing it up tight. Result -- steamed fries. Yuck.

Johnnie's fries are nothing special but I doubt Superdawg's fries would be an improvement. Frannie's fries are a far better example

I'm partial to Al's but that's because its the best of the 2 different Italian Beef's I've had.

Going onto French Fries. The best french fries in the world are at Arthur Bryant's in Kansas City. Russet potatoes fried in lard. Makes me want to hop on a plane.

cito wrote:Johnnie's does indeed make the best Italian beef, however, as a beef stand aficionado I believe that the experience (there) could be made better. My suggestions for Johnnie's managers:

1. Get rid of those crappy thin french fries! Start using crinkly potatoes along the lines of the ones that are used at Superdawg.
2. Re-think the sweet peppers that you use. On many occasions, they are limp and almost tasteless. Roma's ( on Cicero ) wins sweet peppers, hands down. (I do like Johnnie's hot peppers,though)
3. Start carrying Coca-Cola, for crying out loud!
4. Spend a few more bucks and supply decent napkins.

If these 4 minor suggestions were adopted, I probably wouldn't eat fast food anywhere else.

Best Wishes---------

I like Johnnies sweet peppers a lot. They have a lot of character. I order sweet and hot at Johnnies, the only place I do that. I also think those brown, as seen on TVFoodnetwork napkins, are part of the Johnnies charm.

Fries are OK. Not Al's.

I agree , I think Johnnies sweet peppers are the best. Very tasty and there napkins are napkins, just keep making the best beefs and sweet peppers and lemon ice . I can always use my sleeve.

Mike G wrote:To keep it on a level playing field, I ordered the chicken taco at both places.

I just snorted 15 year old scotch out my nose!

Johnnie's Beef plus Portillo's fries = daaaaaaamn, that's a good meal. Johnnie's standard fries, though, do the job, especially when loaded with salt as they usually do at the Elmwood Park location.

I'd say Parky's fries rather than any of the alternatives. Fresh cut, fried to order. I'm fairly sure the cooking liquid is a mixture of oil and beef tallow, but they also use that liquid to fry bacon (they deep fry the bacon for burgers) and polish sausages, so it's got tons of flavor floating around.

Make sure you order the fries "extra crispy", otherwise they tend to pull them a bit too early and they're limp and soggy.

extra crispy parky's fries are heaven in a brown paper bag.

gleam wrote:I'd say Parky's fries rather than any of the alternatives. Fresh cut, fried to order. I'm fairly sure the cooking liquid is a mixture of oil and beef tallow, but they also use that liquid to fry bacon (they deep fry the bacon for burgers) and polish sausages, so it's got tons of flavor floating around.

Make sure you order the fries "extra crispy", otherwise they tend to pull them a bit too early and they're limp and soggy.

extra crispy parky's fries are heaven in a brown paper bag.

Amen! Parky's is the church of excellent fries!

as a beef stand aficionado I believe that the experience (there) could be made better

One could argue that while Johnnies makes the best beef (far and away, probably), they do not make the best beef sandwich. But it is damned good, and that really is enough.

What do you think they would do at Johnnies if we brought Fox and Obel bread to make a sandwich?

Having said that, Al's and Chickies may well make better sandwiches, but that beef. Given that achievement, it seems so petty to criticize Johnnies - but I gush too much.

Great line on tacos, Mike. I laughed.

Gino's, eh? And you do generally prefer pizza to Italian Beef, don't you? Since I am no fan of Chicago Pizza, I will say no more.