Uncle Johnny's Grocery - Secret Beef in Bridgeport

In an earlier thread there seemed to be a flicker of interest in Italian beef on the south side. There are many good places (more posts to come), including this one hidden in Bridgeport. It was mentioned a couple months ago on Chowhound by Bluskies57 (link at end) and came as a complete surprise to me as I didn't even realize there were businesses on that stretch of 32nd. So a few weeks ago I checked out Uncle Johnny's.

This is a real neighborhood Italian corner grocery that looks unchanged for many decades, right down to the ancient wood and glass coolers along the back wall. The store is quite small, with mostly regular groceries and some packaged goods with an Italian slant but few things out of the ordinary. If you're looking for special olive oils, cheeses, etc, go elsewhere.

At the front counter you can get Chicagitalian sandwiches made to order. In addition to cold subs they have Italian beef, sausage, meatball, steak, and breaded steak. I tried an Italian beef, a meatball, and a breaded steak. Things are clearly prepared to order; I could hear them beating/tenderizing my steak in the back, then I saw it being pan fried on a home-style gas stove. Beef is already sliced but gets dunked in gravy just before being put on the bread.

The Italian beef was very good, very thin slices of good quality beef in a very salty but tasty gravy. Giardiniera was good but perhaps not homemade. The one problem was the bread. I think they get it from Michelle's (at least their packaged breads come from there) and it just didn't have the required texture, too puffy. Still a very respectable sandwich. Uncle Johnny's sells beef by the pound ($7.50; advance notice requested) and that might really be the way to go. I still remember the sandwich of Chickie's beef on the Fox & Obel baguette that Gary brought. Then maybe a little giardiniera from Bari Foods and you'd have a sandwich to be reckoned with.

Breaded steak was good but not without flaws. The meat itself was excellent, without a trace of gristle or sinew that sometimes ruins an otherwise fine sandwich. Breading was good and not greasy (but there was a trace of old oil flavor) though it could have used a tad more seasoning. Eaten after the beef it seemed rather bland. Red sauce, sparingly applied, and sweet peppers were nothing special.

The football shaped meatballs were pretty good and came in quite a bit of sweetish red sauce. Again the bread was the weak link and the sweet peppers didn't add much. If this sandwich could have been topped with some mozzarella plus maybe a sprinkle of crushed red pepper and baked on the bricks of a pizza oven it could have been great.

While you're waiting for your sandwich be sure to tip your head back and take in the wonders of the Elvis shrine up on the top shelf.

Uncle Johnny's Grocery
500 W 32nd St
Chicago
312-225-6111
Mon-Sat 7-6, Sun 8-3
In summer Mon-Fri to 8pm

Original Post on Uncle Johnny's
http://www.chowhound.com/midwest/boards ... 48247.html

Thanks for the great report. Uncle Johnny's sounds like a fine candidate for another Beefathon tour.

There's more than a flicker of interest in the south side. In the Beefathon II report (page 2 of Eating Out in Chicagoland) I mentioned Uncle Johnny's (my post of May 27th) and asked about other south and SW side places. Others then chimed in with a number of places and these are all possibilities for future Beefathons.

Any more suggestions you have will be greatly appreciated. Thanks again for your report.

I know this place was discussed in one of the Beefathon threads but I feel it deserves it's own thread based on not just a good beef, but for it's quality deli sandwiches. This place is a nice walk from my house in Armour Square but it's always worth it. Being a huge fan of Fontano's and Conte Di Savoia on Taylor it's nice to have a great Italian sub option closer to me. Their capicolla, salami, ham, and provolone on fresh Gonella bread with crisp lettuce, decent quality tomato slices, hot peppers, and vinegar/oil is right up there with Fontano's in my opinion. Conte Di Savoia edges both with their awesome sweet giardinera.

Today I had the beef and it was a work of art. Now I'm a die hard Al's on Taylor purist who is not easily swayed to eat other beefs but I really wanted a beef today. It was a good choice to say the least. The friendly girl working the counter dipped the beef into the jus held in a steam table behind the counter. She briefly heated the ultra-thin, house roasted beef and put it on the sliced fresh Gonella bread. Then she gave it a dip back into the very beefy and garlicky jus. The jus while not as rich as Al's is well spiced and seasoned. The sweet peppers were red which was a refreshing change from the usually bitter green peppers put on beefs. The giardinera , while not house made, was decent. If you like cheese on your beef they put it on after putting half the beef on the bun, then top it with the rest of the beef. It's actually a great system so you get cheese in every bite instead of one big glob on top.

Uncle Johnny's is certainly not a restaurant environment though. It's an old-school Italian deli with a lot of charm. The owner and staff are very friendly, and there's a picnic bench(painted like an Italian flag of course), outside to eat at. This place is cheap too. Two sandwiches, chips, and drinks was only $13. This place is definitely of another era but they can still turn out a fine sandwich and a top shelf beef.


Uncle Johnny's
500 W 32nd St
(between Ellis Ave & King Dr)
Chicago, IL 60616
(312) 225-6111