Dear Frank...How About That Beef

Taking a suggestion from Cathy2, I tried Dear Franks for a beef sandwich. As Cathy pointed out, they make their own beef in house. That is not always such a good thing. While I found Dear Franks' beef to be good enough, it lacked any real depth of flavor. About the only thing I could taste in this beef was the taste of bay. No garlic, oregano, or any other spice. As a result, the gravy was equally bland. The beef was cut slightly thicker than most IB places and it was served in a manner that reminded me of something you might get at a carnival. The giardinara was pretty much run-of-the-mill, right out of a jar. Fries were standard issue crinkle cut, cooked to perfection. Don't get me wrong, this wasn't a bad beef sandwich, but surely not in the top tier.

If I were to return to Dear Franks, my order would end with the phrase, "Don't wrap it and leave it on one piece."

Dear Franks' Carny Style Beef Sammy


Dear Franks (Niles)
Village Crossing Shopping Center
5699 W. Touhy Ave.
Niles, IL
847-647-9099

Dear Franks (Glenview)
2841 Pfingsten
Glenview, IL
847-498-1717

Dear Franks (Deerfield)
843 Waukegan
Deerfield, IL
847-945-6666

which location did you go to? the one in Deerfield is fine as good as far as beef's

I went to the Niles location. As I said, it was a perfectly good beef. Just nothing special, despite the unusual serving technique.

stevez wrote:I went to the Niles location. As I said, it was a perfectly good beef. Just nothing special, despite the unusual serving technique.

I do remember them being very generous in size as well.

That looks pretty good to me!

Dear Frank's also uses a Merkt's or Merkt's like cheddar cheese that's always a plus. These locations were all bought from U Dog U, and I worried that the quality would slip with the change. I'm glad to report the quality is still high.

One thing that has changed is the impeccable service that U Dog U usually demonstrated. While there is nothing really to complain about the current staff (many are the same as before), I was always amazed at the way the old staff never wrote anything down and always got the order right, with speed and efficiency. If you'd been to the location more than once, one of the owners would usually recognize you and remember how you liked your fixings.

I've heard that the U Dog U clan has now reopened at some of the new Oases. This is a very good thing -- now I can actually eat something served there! I wonder, though, how they got this cherished contract?

I'd be afraid to ask how they got their "cherished contract" or their agreement. Anyway, when at the Des Plaines Oasis or O'Hare pretty much the only places doing good business are the McDonald's. They probably would've been better off staying where they were, imo.

stevez wrote:Don't get me wrong, this wasn't a bad beef sandwich, but surely not in the top tier.

Steve,

I was at the Niles Dear Franks a week or so after they took over from U Dawg U. I was not overly impressed with Dear Franks (Niles), but I suppose I'll give them another chance if I find myself in the Village Crossing Shopping Center and hungry. Dear Franks still beats the hell out of Noodles & Company, just East in the same shopping center.

Enjoy,
Gary

I had a burger there just after the name change and it was not bad at all. I don't think I will ever order another beef, though.

I work five minutes from the Glenview location, and we would order from there every once in awhile. I never found the italian beef to be that great, but you did get a lot of beef in the sandwich. I would always go for the gyros, which were average. Now that I don't drive to work anymore since the North Glenview Metra station is a two minute walk from my work, I haven't had a chance to try Dear Franks. Maybe I'll bug a co-worker to drive over there this week.

so how much does a beef set u back at Dear Franks.

gp60004 wrote:so how much does a beef set u back at Dear Franks.

I don't remember exactly, but it was not out of the ordinary.

What a difference a few miles makes.

The other evening my son and I went to Dear Franks in Deerfield, rather than the Niles location, where we ordered an IB and a sausage sandwich which we shared.

Our experience was different from Steve Z's though our conclusions were the same -- the food is OK, but hardly memorable.

Our IB was served as it should be: in one piece -- no Arby-type wrappers. I asked for it dipped and it was given a mighty soaking (none of that chintzy dink-dink at each end) which probably helped.

The sandwich was also one-note but from a very different song. The note was red pepper -- lots of little red flakes were floating in the juice. It was definitely the hottest IB sandwich we'd ever had. Not fire-breathing gasping-for-breath, but noticeable to the point of drowning out other flavors. It still was a serviceably sandwich but not anything special.

The sausage was properly crisped up on the gas grill, but didn't have a lot of flavor and wasn't particularly juicy. The best term to describe it is ordinary.

The fries were as SteveZ described, nicely-prepared crinkle cut.

The IB sanwich, which was good-sized, cost $5.69 (I think). Total for the 2 sandwiches, 1 order of fries and 2 regular drinks was about $15 with tax.

Conclusion: If you're in the area Dear Frank's is acceptable, but we wouldn't go out of our way for it. My son thought he would rather go to Cookers which is just over a mile away.

Cookers' IB is nothing speciall but he likes their hot dogs (rates them up there with Poochie's), and it's cheaper.

Cooker's
469 Lake Cook Road
Deerfield
847-272-7222

FWIW a few days ago my son went to Cookers where he had their Italian Sausage sandwich. He preferred it to the one we had at Dear Franks' -- more flavorful and juicier.

I ride my bike to my new job most days and Dear Franks - Niles is right around the corner from my office, so if I'm craving food that will certainly offset the calories burned riding, I head there.

I've only been twice, and I've ordered the Bacon Cheddar Char Burger with Fries each time. Perfectly serviceable, but nothing to write home about. As mentioned up thread, they use Merkt's and the bacon is ample in quantity and cooked nice and crisp. The burger seems to be food service frozen patties and they are cooked through but they do have a nice char on them. Also as mentioned prior, the fries are previously frozen crinkle cut but they are fried perfectly.

I'm sure I'll try other things on the menu as time goes by but, I have been craving burgers both times I've gone. They do seem to have a 'manager's special' each day which saves you about 50 cents for a sandwich with fries/drink combo....but that leads me to my only real complaint. I feel as if it is a bit overpriced. I think my meal has been $8.50 or so which, while not expensive, I think it's a bit high for the small frozen patty you get.

So yeah, definitely not a destination, but if you are in the area and in the mood for that kind of food, you could do a lot worse.