Do-Rite Donuts & Chicken - Streeterville

I tried the new Do-Rite Donuts and Chicken across from Northwestern Memorial Hospital today. The chicken in question is a fried, free range, brined boneless chicken breast served with lettuce, tomato and toppings on a bun (plain or spicy). Also on the menu are some breakfast sandwiches served until 10:30 and a full selection of donuts. I ordered a spicy chicken sandwich and a Valrhona Chocolate Donut. The chicken sandwich was very good until I got to the raw part. The donut was top notch. Obviously, they are still working out some kinks, and the management was quick to deal with the raw chicken sandwich in a satisfactory manner. I'll give them a few weeks to work out the kinks and be back with camera in hand.

Do-Rite Donuts & Chicken
233 E. Erie
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 344-1374

I stopped by here yesterday for one reason: trying their "off the menu" fried chicken sandwich served on house glazed donut (The Fried chicken version of a Luther)...

We stopped by around 1pm, small crowd - but the donut selection was scarce. After ordering my "secret" sandwich - they informed me it couldn't be made because they were out of glazed donuts....I glanced at the selection of what they had left and proudly said, "Guess I'll just eat my fried chicken on an Apple Fritter today". yes, you heard me right - A fried chicken sandwich served using a delicious Michigan Apple Fritter for the bun.

This was an amazing discovery - and probably hard to find anywhere else (don't know anyone else serving fritters and chicken)....

Not a great pic, but a face to put with the name:

(paired next to their standard chicken sandwich)


Gotta say, i thought the chicken was very average compared to what I have sampled as Roost, HBFC, & Leghorn (Leghorn was my favorite sandwich, but Roost has the best bird - 1/2 Bird w/herb seasoning for me). I was also served my sandwich within 1 minute (not fresh fried), while my wife's took about 12 minutes to come out and was much fresher. My breading was a little burnt.

But the point of my story is this amazing discovery of gluttony - the Fried Chicken Fritter! The combination of fried goodness with sweet apples, and a little tang from the pickles - it was really good. In fact, some of the best bites were the fritter with the pickles (sweet, gooey, goodness with a tart, tangy pickle). I took a couple fritters back to Rub's - where we serve house made pickles now - and had a few bites of just pickles and fritter with the staff, really interestingly good.

So, now the challenge - let's have more of these! Fried Chicken Fritters! I'm thinking the best of these might be down south with a fritter from the fritter King (Old Fashioned) and some fried chicken from any of the great joints down there (Far South Harold's come to mind - but any other suggestions for fried chicken in that area would be great).

The Fried Chicken Fritter sandwich - you heard it here first!

rubbbqco wrote:The Fried Chicken Fritter sandwich - you heard it here first!

By the light of Dear Sweet Carol Channing's ghost, fried chicken nestled between apple fritter halves is the most extraordinarily delectable bundle of lusciousness I've heard in ages!

I tip my toque in the direction of Rogers Park and will run, not walk, to follow your shining example of ambrosial innovation.

i'm still working through a dozen of these monsters, but i have to say the double-choco (valrhona, iirc) old fashioned may be the best donut for non-donut lovers. not going to bother waiting in line for the vault, but on a whim, the loop location really did me right.

the fried chicken fritter sandwich was just too audacious for me.

The old fashioned (I've only had from the randolph location by the Daley Center) is my number one donut in town. Beating out the Vault by a nose.

I personally find their donuts (old fashioneds, in particular) to be over fried on and bordering on greasy at times. I'm a huge fan of fried chicken sandwiches though, and have been dying to try theirs. Working in the loop makes the streeterville location just a bit too inconvenient for lunch, though.

Over-fried donuts aside, the Dark Matter coffee is always superb, and does inspire an impulsive donut purchase at times.

thedaxnation wrote:I personally find their donuts (old fashioneds, in particular) to be over fried on and bordering on greasy at times.

When it's a fresh batch, I think the Do-Rite old fashioned crust is about as good as it gets: the glaze syrup gets absorbed into the fresh-from-the-fryer crinkled dough exterior, and hardens to form a sweet crunchy crust. My mouth started watering just typing this up.

On their spicy chicken sandwich this past Sunday:

Me: Wow, I think this is better than Leghorn.

Wife: Actually, I think it's better than *Wendy's.




*We allow ourselves Wendy's once a year, on our holiday visit to the Motherland (New Jersey).

First I consider Do-Rite my favorite donut in Chicago. I also love fried chicken sandwiches, probably more than burgers. Needless to say, I was excited to finally try one, but Streeterville is not convenient to get to. But persevere I did.

I was very disappointed. Dried out chicken breast, but not particularly crispy. It took forever (usually a good sign with fried chicken) to come out. Fries were mediocre and everything was underseasoned. Also the donuts are slightly different, chocolate glazed does not have the signature milk chocolate swirl on top for instance.

I would just get donuts at the original location and leave the chicken to tourists.

The Streeterville location is the only Do-Rite location I've been to, but they've been my favorite of the new school donut shops in town. I hope your experience with the chocolate was just a one-time thing.

botd wrote:
I was very disappointed. Dried out chicken breast, but not particularly crispy. It took forever (usually a good sign with fried chicken) to come out.

At least they're not serving them raw any more.

See the first post in this thread if that's a confusing remark.