Glad I made my first and last stop to Hot Doug's a few months ago. It was a great experience and worth the 1 hour wait. Not sure it's worth taking out the sleeping bag though. More power to 'em, I guess...

Ive got a creative way to pass the time while waiting in line...#shamelessplug http://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20141001 ... -hot-dougs

Wonderful interview with a wonderful guy in this morning's Trib. Even though I'm one who speculated that even Doug wouldn't wait 5-12 hours in line for one of his sausages, I really appreciated his take on it. To paraphrase, "Some people spend $500 on a meal. Some people spend $60,000 on a car. Some people spend 12 hours binge-watching The Good Wife. I don't judge."

JayB wrote:Glad I made my first and last stop to Hot Doug's a few months ago. It was a great experience and worth the 1 hour wait. Not sure it's worth taking out the sleeping bag though. More power to 'em, I guess...

Yeah, I had family in town back in July, and we hit Doug's twice. It was about a 90 minute wait at 10AM on a weekday; we all knew this was going to be our last trip, and we treated it as such; we took pictures, bought T-shirts, and got an autograph. We love Doug, and I'm glad we got our chance to say goodbye.

rubbbqco wrote:Ive got a creative way to pass the time while waiting in line...#shamelessplug

Shameless plug for the upcoming http://www.windycitybbqclassic.com yes, but a good time, especially since Jared got there at zero-dark-thirty as I had a early segment on Fox News and was only there an hour while the briskets chugged away in the smoke.

And, yes, we cleared this with Doug first and left two lovely delicious hickory smoked briskets for Doug and crew to enjoy.





Three of us made this 9 wiener round-up disappear in no time flat.

Correction:

I cook with oak, not hickory

..but yes, a lovely lunch.

i can't remember a better meal (partly due to the fact that I was up cooking all night and hadn't eaten anything prior to lunch)

We'll miss him, but glad he's going out in style..

My friend's been hanging out in the final Hot Doug's line all night. They cut the line off at 6:45 this morning. The line is estimated to be 13 hours long.

JimTheBeerGuy wrote:My friend's been hanging out in the final Hot Doug's line all night. They cut the line off at 6:45 this morning. The line is estimated to be 13 hours long.

In pouring rain!

Feeling sad. I've made two pilgrimages lately, once as recently as last week. I guess it seemed as if Doug would always be sitting there, taking orders, serving up amazing encased meats. I guess I thought it would never end. Sort of like the Cubs never winning a World Series.

No one is in line for Hot Doug's today.






...lol

Loved everything about Hot Doug's except one little tiny thing...Why did he include grilled onions on his Chicago-style dog? The first time I ordered it I was surprised by the non traditional-traditional version.

iblock9 wrote:Loved everything about Hot Doug's except one little tiny thing...Why did he include grilled onions on his Chicago-style dog? The first time I ordered it I was surprised by the non traditional-traditional version.

In his book, Doug writes that he thinks that they taste better and that by caramelizing them in butter, it adds another flavor and texture to the hot dog. The restaurant had raw chopped onions on hand for those who preferred the traditional way and for vegans.

In media interviews he has said that he doesn't like raw onion all that much.

--
edc

I am not debating that Doug or other people might feel that grilled onions taste better than raw--I only question their place on any hot dog billed as Chicago-style.

iblock9 wrote:I am not debating that Doug or other people might feel that grilled onions taste better than raw--I only question their place on any hot dog billed as Chicago-style.

In his book after he mentions the modifications to the standard Hot Doug's Chicago dog, Doug says:

"We sometimes get a bit of grief for that -- it's therefore not a true Chicago-style hot dog -- but I feel that one of the great things about the Chicago dog is that there are so many ingredients available. You should feel encouraged to mix and match. Some people simply don't like tomatoes or onions or relish or whatever, so of course they're not going to want the stuff on a hot dog. It's like a wine pairing: If you don't like heavy red wine, you're not going to like it more alongside a steak. There are no food rules."

--
edc

Love that. We're not talking traditional Japanese or French food here. It's America, we have no food rules. Ketchup, too. Never understood the vehemency against ketchup. It's not A5 Wagyu beef. It's a hot dog.

Though there are many good dogs out there, I will miss the well-built version that Doug put out, caramelized onions included.

Despite living nearby (Addison and Elston) I've only made one trip to Hot Dougs and that was many years ago. Thought it was good, but in no way worth waiting a half hour for, let alone longer.

Haven't been to Franks & Dawgs, but it sounds like you can get the same stuff there and not have to wait overnight to do it.

I like F&D a lot and wasn't a fanatic about Hot Doug's (great stuff, not a fan of lines) but wouldn't say the experiences are really the same. F&D is creative but not to the extent of Hot Doug's. And Doug was a huge part of what made the HD experience unique. But as a place to grab a quick lunch of very respectable, interesting sausage-fare, Franks & Dawgs is well worth a visit.

boudreaulicious wrote:F&D is creative but not to the extent of Hot Doug's. And Doug was a huge part of what made the HD experience unique.

Respectfully disagree here. Hot Doug's was tasty, but formulaic: clever sausage, a fancy cheese, and a nice sauce. That was every special ever in my years of eating only specials there. Franks 'n Dawgs actually plays with different toppings, upping the vegetable count. Fries not nearly as good, but no lines and better buns/greater breadth made for a much easier experience. And the Australian accent may not be Doug, but is still pretty okay. I'd bet Doug himself approves of Franks 'n Dawgs.

Royal Lichter wrote:Ketchup, too. Never understood the vehemency against ketchup. It's not A5 Wagyu beef. It's a hot dog.

If you were wondering what moment you lost me, it was here, sir.

Franks 'N Dawgs is actually, when you get down to it, a totally different experience and product than Hot Doug's.

Hot Doug's was more governed by a rough predetermined form-factor as it relates to actually building the sandwich than Franks 'N Dawg's is. For the vast majority of the specials at Hot Doug's, Doug typically varied what was in the actual sausage itself, then chose a cheese and mustard, mayo or aioli based topping (and occasional tortilla crisps, or tomatoes/lettuce for the BLT, etc). That formula worked very, very well and I believe is one of the reasons those specials were so damn delicious (well made simple food with very balanced flavors). As for creativity, this is where I believe he truly got creative.

The rest of his dogs were based on more traditional classics, like the Chicago dog of course, and the Bratwurst. This wasn't as much creativity but fresh, high quality ingredients that were well prepared. Never a disappointment.

Franks 'N Dawgs on the other hand, strays from this in that his sandwiches just simply have more ingredients on them. As opposed to really mixing it up with the sausage in and of itself, their sandwiches are slightly closer to actual plated food. The bun is also different, it is essentially a lobster roll style bun. Franks 'N Dawgs does not even have a traditional Chicago style hot dog on the menu. It is much less governed by guidelines of what a "Chicago hot dog stand" is. Though I'm not arguing Hot Doug's fits inside those lines, Franks 'N Dawgs does even less so. It is a delicious restaurant and I think underrated. It eschews the legendary status and cultural icon that Hot Doug's became.

I do believe they are two totally different restaurants though, and one is not better or worse.

JayB wrote:

Royal Lichter wrote:Ketchup, too. Never understood the vehemency against ketchup. It's not A5 Wagyu beef. It's a hot dog.

If you were wondering what moment you lost me, it was here, sir.

Agree to disagree? (my friend )

My cab took me past Doug's on Sunday. The sign was still up, but brown paper covered the windows. I was sad.

mtgl wrote:Respectfully disagree here. Hot Doug's was tasty, but formulaic: clever sausage, a fancy cheese, and a nice sauce. That was every special ever in my years of eating only specials there.

I'd have to contest that statement.

Example 1: Ribeye sausage with Corn Relish and Chimichurri that was on the menu the last couple weeks

Example 2: His most popular (and only permanent) special, the Foie/Duck sausage

ziggy wrote:

mtgl wrote:Respectfully disagree here. Hot Doug's was tasty, but formulaic: clever sausage, a fancy cheese, and a nice sauce. That was every special ever in my years of eating only specials there.

I'd have to contest that statement.

Example 1: Ribeye sausage with Corn Relish and Chimichurri that was on the menu the last couple weeks

Example 2: His most popular (and only permanent) special, the Foie/Duck sausage

Not saying what Doug did was bad--I still made the pilgrimage regularly. But most of his special sausages have, historically, been of the form _______ sausage with _______ sauce and _______ cheese. His final menu was definitely an improvement, but by no means representative, and even still, comparing them side-by-side proves my point:

http://www.hotdougs.com/specials.htm

http://www.franksndawgs.com/menu

Franks 'n Dawgs doesn't get enough love--here's hoping Doug's graceful exit shines a little more press in their direction.

Too soon!

Looks like a place called Frank Meats Patty will be taking over Hot Doug's space:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertain ... story.html

cilantro wrote:Too soon!

The funeral encased meats did coldly furnish forth the marriage tables?

Would I had met my dearest foie in heaven.

Touching upon the discussion about sauces and toppings that were featured at Hot Doug's, some relevant quotes from Doug regarding how toppings and combinations for the sausage specials were chosen:

"... our sauces are relatively simple; they're most often mayonnaise- or mustard-based with flavors added"...
"Three-quarters of our sausages are topped with cheese, simply because cheese and sausage is a perfect combination."
"We shoot for simplicity--sausage, sauce, topping. That's our style. And the focus is always to make sure it tastes good."

--
edc

Man oh man, I am so seriously glad this place is gone.

All I -- and the rest of the silent majority -- ask of you: please don't blather on and on about how great this place was, or lecture on and on about how much those poor folks who never were able to try it missed out.

Because they missed out on next to nothing.

It's over -- you went, you liked the mediocre food, and you liked waiting hours for mediocre food. You bought into a hipster* version of the standard tourist spectacle -- the fact that the place was "off the beaten path" or "in a non-touristy neighborhood" did not good food make. I'm sorry.

Hot Doug's was a tourist trap in all the worst senses of the phrase.

* What's hilarious is how many on here will rail against hipsters not even knowing what that means, or that they're in at least some way part of a hipster sub-group.

Still, you all bought it. You praised mediocre food because the snarky guy with the inconvenient hours made you feel like he was selling something special. The line somehow reified your sense that the food just had to be good. Why else would people spend hours in line?

Folks, people spend hours in line for Justin Bieber shows.

But when you spend hours in line, when you build up the idea of something in your head, you just can't possibly admit that it isn't what you want it to be, what you want to believe ...

On behalf of the truly legendary places in Chicago that have closed, places like -- just to cite one example -- Great Lake Pizza -- don't try to pretend that your silly little hot dog stand was anything more than that. Don't act as if someone who never went to Hot Doug's missed anything other than an overrated tourist trap.

They didn't miss legendary food -- or anything close to it.

I suppose you bought into the cult of personality, and like all people who fall under the spell of a cult, it made you feel good.

Virtually everyone I took there -- because EVERYONE who visited Chicago over the last 5 years felt it was a holy duty to go there -- found it underwhelming.

This place made Chicago look bad to people who truly know and care about food.

This post is dedicated to everyone who saw that the emperor had no clothes.

Go ahead and snark -- Hot Doug's is gone and I am truly happy about it.

Oh, and I promise you from now until the end of time: each and every last one of you that blathers about the good ol' days of Hot Doug's will get a beer in your face. I have good hearing and good aim -- even if you're halfway across the room.