Rene G wrote:Other times I'm convinced that crunchy iceberg lettuce has no place in the steamy/greasy/meaty world of the Big Baby.

I done gots to get me a Big Baby, and Soon. Like in right Now!

ReneG done flung a craving on me............

Enjoy,
Gary

David Hammond wrote:One point that I don't believe has been mentioned yet is the range of menu items available. There must be over 125 or so. Also, the specials looked interesting (today, he was offering what seemed to be 4 lamb chops for 8 bucks -- I cannot confirm this, because the magic marker was smeared on the daily specials sign, but the very fact that he serves lamb chops is interesting to me -- not standard drive thru fare).

Hammond

Indeed, it's a massive menu. I think most of the stuff can probably be skipped (the fish and mexican, for instance, although he loves to talk about his tilapia), but I've never come close to making my way through his menu. The kabobs he has (pork, chicken, lamb) are good. My preference is the chicken, since he usually cooks the lamb more than I'd like (nearly all the way). There are also "greek village" sausages.

One thing on his menu that's gone downhill of late is the "beer cheese balls". When he first opened these were discs of mozzarella cheese, lightly battered (not coated in breadcrumbs like mozz. sticks) and deep fried. The thin shell and the gooey cheese inside were fantastic, better than any mozzarella sticks around. Since then, he's greatly thickened the batter and the product has suffered. Also, because of the shape, his crew has to remember to microwave the balls to start thawing the inside before the fry. And they sometimes forget to do so.

Also, last time i saw the greek salad was still dressed with italian dressing, which is just bizarre.

Rene G wrote:I also thought Mickey's version was very respectable, especially considering the price. I never did get back there to try the Big Mickey though. Does it have only the 'classic' dressings (i.e., no lettuce and tomato)? I do think Mickey's is an exemplary fast food place.

A big mickey is two 1/8th lb patties, cheese, grilled onions, ketchup, mustard, and pickle. No lettuce, tomato, etc. When I was in high school they were $1 (and I was in high school within the past 6 years, mind you). I think they're now up to $1.49, which still makes them some of the cheapest babies around. And, again, I'll take a big mickey over a big baby from K&Q/nicky's any day... mickey's does a better job toasting the bun, which I think is crucial.

-ed

A candidate for the easternmost Big Baby? Doesn't get much more east before Greek burger joints give way to BBQ and chicken joints than Hyde Park. Hyde Park Gyros on 53rd and Kenwood serves something called a Big Baby, although I've never sampled it (never had the guts to order anything in there except their gyros, which are the second-best in Hyde Park* and fries, which with enough salt taste like McDonald's fries plus love).

*There are two places in Hyde Park that serve gyros. The other is Sammy's, on 57th and Cottage Grove. Med students, UofC hospital workers, and apartment dwellers in "West Campus" or "Behind the Hospital" (the four-square-block area between 56th, 58th, Cottage Grove, and Ellis) swear by it, and the gyros really aren't bad for something whose taste has pretty much been standardized throughout the city. The drawbacks, of course, include the relative sketchiness (a rather lengthy Health Department shutdown in 2003 caused quite a stir around here). I don't know if Sammy's serves Big Babies, but I wouldn't be surprised, as it thoroughly passes the Greek burger joint test otherwise.

Today, for reasons entirely coincidental and having nothing to do with inexplicable hungers or hidden desires, I found myself in front of Mickey's around brunchtime.

As Rene remarks, the Big Mickey is the equivalent of the Big Baby at most other places.

Now, gleam has referenced the shameless self-promotion of Nicky, but the last time I was at Mickey's, the joint's namesake was consistently redlining on the ego-meter. Here's a conversation we had:

ME: What's the difference between the Big Baby and the Big Mickey?

MICKEY: The only difference is cheese on the Big Mickey. Only 25 cents more.

ME: So, no cheese on the baby. There's a place south of here that sells a Big Baby with cheese.

BLONDE SERVER: Oh, yeah, somewhere way on the southside.

ME (preparing to show off my newfound encyclopedic knowledge of this sandwich as a curl of contempt crosses Mickey's smile). No, actually, it's at the old Kings and Queens on Roosevelt. In fact, they have like six different kinds of Big Babies: a Big Baby BBQ, a Big Baby Western, even a Triple Big Baby!

MICKEY (perking up): We have that. No, we have that. We've been making a Triple Mickey since 1985.

ME: Since 1985?

MICKEY (bethinking himself): 1972

And so the legend grows, right before my very eyes.

The Big Mickey is just as Rene described (of course!), and though I felt the meat was a little 'cheaper tasting' than Nicky's, it's tough to beat a buck and half for one of these double burgers (which, incidentally, seemed 'better made' than Nicky's; no greasy thumbprint on the crown, careful arrangement of condiments, and the sammy was wrapped with origamical precision)

Mickey's is kind of an interesting place, what with a Kreskin at the counter and the Midwest's only giant-sized picture of Ingrid Bergman looking like a wet ferret.

Mickey's
525 N. Harlem
Oak Park, IL
708-848-3333

OK, but Mickey's opened in it's current location in 1990 - prior to that it was a Vietnamese restaurant - and prior to that a Booger King....

Where was Mickey before?

kafein wrote:OK, but Mickey's opened in it's current location in 1990 - prior to that it was a Vietnamese restaurant - and prior to that a Booger King....

Where was Mickey before?

Kafein,

He said he was at Midway airport before.

Hammond

There's another mickey's on harlem in bridgeview pretty far south. That one, unlike the Oak Park location, has a drive through, but I've never been.

Mickey's Gyros Inc
(708) 563-9600
7101 S Harlem Ave
Bridgeview, IL 60455

gleam wrote:Stick to the gyros (greek village style, with feta+lemon, cut thick, crisped up on the grill), kabobs, buffalo wings (a big surprise, but very good), avgolemono, greek roasted potatoes (he runs out very quickly, but they're worth it if they have them) and the fruit milkshakes.

disregard the roasted potato rec., I went by this evening and they were mediocre. no longer the crispy lemony goodness they were a few months ago.

the greek village gyro and raspberry shake, though, more than made up for it.

service was also really really slow, since they'd gotten a half dozen orders at once before I came in and there was only one guy cooking. nicky wasn't around.

-ed

gleam wrote:

gleam wrote:Stick to the gyros (greek village style, with feta+lemon, cut thick, crisped up on the grill), kabobs, buffalo wings (a big surprise, but very good), avgolemono, greek roasted potatoes (he runs out very quickly, but they're worth it if they have them) and the fruit milkshakes.

disregard the roasted potato rec., I went by this evening and they were mediocre. no longer the crispy lemony goodness they were a few months ago.

the greek village gyro and raspberry shake, though, more than made up for it.

service was also really really slow, since they'd gotten a half dozen orders at once before I came in and there was only one guy cooking. nicky wasn't around.

-ed

Well, for a'bout a week, we've been egging to try Nicky's. I've been super-busy workwise, and trying to help out here and there with the big meal forthcoming. Which gets at? That gosh did Nicky's hit the spot last night. It was exactly that combination of not too long, really cooked, satisfying food that I needed.

The Condiment Queen and I split the villager style gyros, a big baby and an order of feta fries. First of all, the notion of crisping the gyro meat up on the grill (not the griddle), brill. Why do not more places do that. It really accentuated the flavor of the meat and added some nice apealing char in spots. More importantly, it eliminate the slimey grossness that comes from the way many places get their gyros to temp. The villager style with the lemon and oregano and feta, well those almost dumb ingredients seem to spruce up anything. And spruce up, gosh I liked the fries feta style, which are basic, frozen fries, done Wiv crisp, and then doused with greek dressing and feta. The extra cook on the fries kept them from wilting under the force of their toppings.

Big baby. I though the meat at Nicky's was just a bit cheap tasting, in that almost cafeteria style of burger, but the toppings worked very, very well, including the lettuce/tomato. It was a better whopper. Also, the onions were nigh perfect at Nicky's, not too much for me.

The chowhounditas split the greek chicken. One daughter made most of her meal out of the garlic bread and roasted potatoes. Nothing was quite as good as the gyros/big baby. I think it was a timing thing.

Nicky's was very much empty nearly the whole time we were there, which is a shame. To once again channel JeffB, Nicky's is the kinda place, that in say, LA, would be famous. It has Oskar Shindler panache, it has intringue and interest within its menu, and it has very much quality for its price.

Thanks once again to ReneG who opened my eyes to the big babies all around me, and thanks to Ed F who opened my eyes specifically to the fun at Nicky's. You know between Nicky's and Salerno's, I might need to move to the opposite quadrant of Oak Park.

Rob

Glad you had a good experience. I wish I lived closer to oak park sometimes just for the salerno's/nicky's combo.

My favorite in the summer, actually, was to get a gyro, a burger, wings, kebabs, whatever, at nicky's and then get fries, extra crisp, from Parky's. Heaven.

-ed

Rene G asked

How far north and east can Big Babies be found?

Maxwell St. Express on 87th near Racine. The sign reads Big Baby,Gyros and Polish.

Rene G has adapted his original Big Baby report for this week's featured food article in Time Out Chicago.

Congratulations,
E.M.

I grew up on 58th and Christiana. (about a block away)

Worked at Gerties in high school in the 80's, spent many a midnight show at both the Colony and Marquette theaters, and Nickys was always where we ended up.

But we didnt stop with just a Big Baby.

A true glutton for punishment opted for the Big Baby with Chili.

Slopped right on top of the burgers, then the onions, then the bun, it was a mess.

And it was good!

Evan B. Druce wrote:A candidate for the easternmost Big Baby? Doesn't get much more east before Greek burger joints give way to BBQ and chicken joints than Hyde Park. Hyde Park Gyros on 53rd and Kenwood serves something called a Big Baby, although I've never sampled it (never had the guts to order anything in there except their gyros, which are the second-best in Hyde Park* and fries, which with enough salt taste like McDonald's fries plus love).

*There are two places in Hyde Park that serve gyros. The other is Sammy's, on 57th and Cottage Grove. Med students, UofC hospital workers, and apartment dwellers in "West Campus" or "Behind the Hospital" (the four-square-block area between 56th, 58th, Cottage Grove, and Ellis) swear by it, and the gyros really aren't bad for something whose taste has pretty much been standardized throughout the city. The drawbacks, of course, include the relative sketchiness (a rather lengthy Health Department shutdown in 2003 caused quite a stir around here). I don't know if Sammy's serves Big Babies, but I wouldn't be surprised, as it thoroughly passes the Greek burger joint test otherwise.

So has the above been confirmed yet, BTW? That is, that the Hyde Park Gyros
Big Baby is actually the real deal? And/or that Sammy's serves the Big Baby
too? Have been to Sammy's before, but never knew to look for the BB -
will the next time.

Would like to sample the aforementioned BB, but its a long way away from
the Northside. However, will be on the Southside this weekend, near
Hyde Park (55th and Cottage Grove). What would be the closest good
Big Baby available? Just try these 2 spots above? Or is there a really
good one within, say, 3/4 miles someplace?

c8w

I have enjoyed the Big Baby at Hyde Park Gyros quite a few times. Its tastey and not a bad deal at $4 bux with fries and a pop.

Rene G wrote:I have yet to come across a Big Baby that doesn't have a griddle-toasted sesame seed bun, condiments on the bottom, cheese between the two beef patties, and sauteed onions on the top. That seems to be the sacred formula.

Rene,

While watching Hamburger America the other night I noticed The Billy Goat makes their famous double "Cheezborger" with the cheese slice in the middle of two burger patties. This struck me as very Big Baby like.

Possibly a link between the Sianis family and the infamous Nicky?

Enjoy,
Gary

Nice work on the original post Rene G; sorry for being so tardy. Although, I can be of little help nailing down the origin of the Big Baby (I was hardly born), I did grow up on them and through the course of my life have probably eaten well over a hundred of them. I grew up in the South Suburbs and around here they are very common. Most of the Greek-style places that serve Gyros and dogs almost always have some type of Big Baby. Additionally they are often very similar. The main characteristics are the dual patties, melted American cheese, and lots of grilled onions. They almost always have pickles and mustard. I’ve had them prepared with ketchup and without, although most have it. The idea of tomato and lettuce on them is new to me, and sounds out of place.

The beauty of these burgers is, well, that there is no beauty. They are cheap, greasy, and to an untrained eye, not appealing. The cheese, as described earlier, it melted to a point of cheese whiz consistency that makes the whole thing a big gooey mess. The ingredients are often not the freshest, nor is the meat the finest. But so help me God, are they good.

In the suburbs there are spin-offs of Nicky’s- The Real McCoy, and Mickey’s which are both on Cicero. Both are good. My personal favorite lies between these two stops at a place called, what else, Nicky’s. I have no ideas of its origin and admittedly it could be my favorite for nostalgic reasons as it was my first. However, this is where you will find the cheapest and greasiest Big Baby, with almost too many onions. For this type of place, the other food is pretty good too.

I’ll keep an eye out, for more places.

Nicky’s
14001 Cicero Ave
Crestwood

There is also a Nicky's on 63rd Street, between Archer and Harlem. They serve their own version of the big baby but I cannot remember the name that they use on their menu. It's been in that location since at least the late 60's to early 70's as my mom remembers it being there when she and my dad lived in Summit. I remember going there as a kid and they'd serve their french fries in little brown paper sacks.



Nicky's
7509 W 63rd St, Summit Argo, IL
(708) 458-4012

I just came upon this site today and this particular post from a link in the burger, burger post.

I grew up right near Nickey's on 58th & Kedzie and went there all the time! I occassionaly got the Big Baby, but mainly the 3 hot dogs & fries deal ($1.29 and then $2.49 last time I went there).

Your analysis was amazing and one of the funniest things I've ever read when reading it at a fast pace, easily the part about the Mama burger.

thanks!

Rene G wrote:On 47th Street a mile and a half north of the original Nicky's is another Nicky's, without any turquoise and pink but with Big Babies ($2.39). These are made much the same as the originals but in addition to the standardized toppings they are dressed with shredded lettuce and a slice of tomato which just seems wrong. This Nicky's has an old yellow and white keystone-shaped sign, like the sign at the old 58th and Kedzie location before they moved and switched to turquoise and pink.

A mile west, on Pulaski is another Nicky's with an identical yellow and white keystone-shaped sign. In addition to the old sign there is newer pink and blue neon to make it look a little more Nicky's-like. I asked if they were related to other Nicky's and before I could finish my sentence they answered no. The Big Baby is pretty much the same as at the 47th Street Nicky's.

I just wanted to add to this report that the Nicky's on 47th a few blocks east of Kedzie (the first one mentioned in the above quote) is now steering even further away from tradition by char-grilling their Big Babies, in addition to serving them with lettuce & tomato. Also, they appear to be a little bit bigger, as well, and they are advertised as being so. I had one today and, to tell you the truth, I couldn't tell they were grilled at all. They do still contain copious amounts of grilled onions, one slice of cheese between patties, and sesame bun.

Plus, I'm not sure I would say the Big Baby on the Pulaski location is the same as the 47th Street location, as the Pulaski Nicky's Big Baby is your orthodox Southwest Side sandwich sans lettuce and tomato.

edit: Nope, I'm wrong about the above. They do serve it with lettuce and tomato. They didn't when I lived in this neighborhood as a kid, but apparently they do now. Yuck.

Nicky's on Roosevelt in Berwyn, formerly Kings and Queens, and home to the best gyros in the western burbs appears to have gone out of business.

Very sad.

Aw.

I think Nicky mentioned a place on the west side he had.. maybe southwest on Central? I can't remember. I wonder what the story is there.

He was rarely at the Berwyn loc. on my few visits there the past few months. Maybe focusing on the other location, or on who knows what else, instead of that space.

Ann Fisher wrote:Nicky's on Roosevelt in Berwyn, formerly Kings and Queens, and home to the best gyros in the western burbs appears to have gone out of business.

Very sad.

I noted this a few days ago when driving to the Turano store. Is second best "Pete's" on Ridgeland and Roosevelt? I have been feeling a gyros in my future, and now have nowhere to turn to.

No big loss if you ask me.

After reading many positive reviews of this place I tried it last summer. What a big disappointment. The place was filthy! If a business can't keep their front windows clean how can they keep the rest of it clean? Tables had small pieces of food still on them, straw wrappers, napkins , etc. on the floors.

Food was mediocre. Waited almost 20 minutes for a couple hot dogs and a burger.

Ann Fisher wrote:Nicky's on Roosevelt in Berwyn, formerly Kings and Queens, and home to the best gyros in the western burbs appears to have gone out of business.

Very sad.

Oh, crap. Where do I go now? When I wanted a gyros, this was what I wanted, Village Style.



-ramon

Ramon wrote:

Ann Fisher wrote:Nicky's on Roosevelt in Berwyn, formerly Kings and Queens, and home to the best gyros in the western burbs appears to have gone out of business.

Very sad.

Oh, crap. Where do I go now? When I wanted a gyros, this was what I wanted, Village Style.



-ramon

Could try Micky's, at 525 N Harlem Ave in Oak Park; ask for "Gyros with Feta."

Thanks, David, I'm breathing a little bit easier. Is the meat spiced as aggressively? Does it come with my beloved lemons? No need to answer, I'll never be satisfied until I find out myself.

-ramon

[/quote]Nicky's on Roosevelt in Berwyn, formerly Kings and Queens, and home to the best gyros in the western burbs appears to have gone out of business.

Very sad.


I just spoke with Nicky at the 115th & Western Location. He said that he will try to open his Berwyn shop sometime in December. Let's hope it's sooner than later. I miss those friggin Zesty Gyros and garlic fries!!!!!!

crank moosek wrote:I just spoke with Nicky at the 115th & Western Location. He said that he will try to open his Berwyn shop sometime in December. Let's hope it's sooner than later. I miss those friggin Zesty Gyros and garlic fries!!!!!!

Aha, that's his other location? But he doesn't have the same stuff on the menu there?

Is the Nicky's at 24th St & Cicero Ave. owned by the same guy?