Hamburger King or "Chesters"...

Ive lived in the city my whole life and I love food so when I hear somebody hype a place up as having great chow im always quick to react to the claim and try it. However theres always been this restaurant called the Hamburger King in the middle of Wrigleyville, people swear by it but I never got to trying the place until I went there today. Even though its called the Hamburger King and im told they have a great burger thats not what I always hear people raving about, its their breakfest specials with an Asian twist. Upon entering the place I immediatley begin to get whiffs of the food being made for a pretty steady crowd and when I glanced over at the grill my head started spinning as I tried to figure out what I was going to order. Luckily there were four of us so I got to try a few things. First off we decided to try the teriyaki, which has high praise, we ordered beef teriyaki with two eggs, done scrambled all egg dishes come with a choice of potatos or rice and gravy, we got the rice and it was the best call yet. The teriyaki was also above average and I would eat that again as well. To go with that we added the chicken teriyaki with fried rice, which was an extra large serving of yummy goodness, a Vegetable Akutagawa, which had mushrooms, onion, eggs and peppers and a Bowl of Yet Ca Mein, which I had to try despite the heat. I wish I had a camera when they brought out our dinner tray, it was enough to feed duoble the four we were with and everything was actually really good and I think it will be new spot to cure a morning hangover. Its very filling and the price is right at about $6 plate. Ill be back to try a few other menu items that looked very tempting the first time around. I did a search on this place and came up with nothing, has anyone else been to this establishment?

Hamburger King menu


Hamburger King
3435 N Sheffield Ave, Chicago, IL
6.5 mi N - (773) 281-4452

Da Beef wrote:I did a search on this place and came up with nothing, has anyone else been to this establishment?

Da Beef,

Hamburger King has been around forever, a cool place with a lengthy Chicago history. Far as never being talked about on LTH there have been any number of passing references, but never a full on Hamburger King post such as yours, which is terrific as there is now place for Hamburger King to hang it's hat on LTH.

Akutagawa w/rice and gravy, hamburger, never chicken, is pretty much the only thing I order, delicious and, though it's been years since I put it to the test, a great hangover cure, long as you make liberal use of hot sauce and Togarashi.

A few passing Hamburger King references, G Wiv, JeffB, Vital.

Enjoy,
Gary

It once figured in a Harvey Pekar story in "American Splendor."

More than 25 years ago, I lived three doors north of Hamburger King. That was when Chester still did the cooking. It was a total dump, with cracked formica tables, and Melmac plates. The food was not great, but it was tasty and cheap, and the joint was always crowded. I ate akatagawa for breakfast there almost every day. As I recall, it was $1.85. The dinner specials were $2.25. Believe it or not, back then, south Wrigleyville was still a fairly desolate and dangerous area. There were not a lot of other dining choices (aside from the fortress-like Royal Palace Burger across the street in the triangle between Sheffield and Clark).

Because of the cheap prices, a lot of homeless people, students, actors, musicians, artists, families, day laborers and seniors would eat at HK. In fact, if it weren't for Chester's, many of us probably would never have gotten a hot meal. No matter who they were, or what their lot in life, Chester always treated his customers with great respect. He also had a reputation for treating his employees well. He not only gave his waitresses health insurance, but each year he would close the place down and give everybody 2 weeks off with pay. Even then, that was amazing for a place of that size.

Whenever I hear people comment about yet another overpriced pseudo-Italian cafe, saying "that is just the kind of restaurant this neighborhood needs", I think about the affordable and unglamorous places like Chester's Hamburger King, that are the heart and soul of their communities, and really are what every neighborhood needs.

Anyhow, sorry to wax nostalgic on you all.

d4v3 wrote:
Because of the cheap prices, a lot of homeless people, students, actors, musicians, artists, families, day laborers and seniors would eat at HK. In fact, if it weren't for Chester's, many of us probably would never have gotten a hot meal. No matter who they were, or what their lot in life, Chester always treated his customers with great respect. He also had a reputation for treating his employees well. He not only gave his waitresses health insurance, but each year he would close the place down and give everybody 2 weeks off with pay. Even then, that was amazing for a place of that size.

Whenever I hear people comment about yet another overpriced pseudo-Italian cafe, saying "that is just the kind of restaurant this neighborhood needs", I think about the affordable and unglamorous places like Chester's Hamburger King, that are the heart and soul of their communities, and really are what every neighborhood needs.

Anyhow, sorry to wax nostalgic on you all.

Don't forget the Wobblies had their international HQ in the same building!

Also, don't discount the burgers. They can be quite tasty as well.

I work in the area and eat lunch here every so often. I've had the yat ka mein, beef terriyaki & fried rice, and bi bim bap as well. Occasionally I get a breakfast/egg dish and always opt for the rice & gravy. It's a great spot!

The previous posts extoling the virtues of Hamburger King are exactly how I feel. I think of it with affection from the days of living in Lincoln Park and having little money, 25 years ago. It was also a good place to go in an "altered state". It is one place I keep telling Evil Ronnie he must go with me. We tried one Sunday but parking was impossible so I probably took him to the Superdawg which he had never been to and loved. Perhaps HK will be on our agenda this weekend.

LTH,

I've been to Hamburger King countless times over the years, but never actually had a hamburger. Turns out they serve a pret' near perfect 30's style burger. Slice of raw onion, spritz of mustard, dusting of Korean style pepper powder on both fries and burger and I was in business.

I'd stop at Hamburger King more often if not for, as the Lovely Donna points out upthread, impossible parking.

Enjoy,
Gary

With the holidays in full swing Ive been attending alot of parties and that means alot of booze which means breakfast at the king. Hamburger king has become my go to spot for hangover cures and just to eat real good at a reasonable price when im hungry. Since its a must stop after a night of binging I have found myself here more than usual, maybe 4 times this week, and I gotta say that its really the last of a dying breed in Chicago that I just cant get enough of. The hamburger aktagawa with rice and gravy, rec'd by GWiv above, is a true Chicago original that you probaly wont find anywhere else. According to story, the former chef at Nissei lounge which sits next door was an old navy cook and regular at Chester's who would special order this dish everyday and eventually other people would always want what he was having so the wonderful owner, Sonia, put it on the menu and called it Aktagawa, the creators last name. It is basically hamburger patty chopped up and cooked with chopped green pepper, onions, bean sprouts and scrambled egg's and I have her add mushrooms into mine, when mixed together with the rice and gravy and some soy sauce, tabasco and Togarashi spice(thanks GWiv, I wondered what that was) and it becomes the ultimate breakfast dish after a long night of partying. The toughest part is deciding whether to get the aktagawa or the yet ca mein. The yet ca mein is a noodle dish in an amazing broth with a few veggies, choice of meat (pork, chicken, beef) and a hard boiled egg chopped in half, this is where its at on a cold winter day. I could on forever about the asian part of the menu, they have the best bi bim bap I have come across and the fried rice with beef or chicken teriyaki deserves a mention in the fried rice thread. This is the last of its kind, the greasy spoon joints that are almost extinct, but with its legion of regulars and the fact there are always people eating in there, I dont think its going anywhere for a while.

I'm for bumping the Hamburger King any time. My wife's grandpa is a Japanese-American by way of Hawaii and WWII relocation to Wrigleyville (and now in LA). Hamburger King is the restaurant version of this great person, to me. Hamburger King could be on a corner in Honolulu or Hollywood, and we are lucky to have it.

Hamburger King for GNR '08!

hamburger aktagawa w/ mushroom's and Sonia's special spice dust on top served alongside rice and gravy.


The aftermath of mixing it all together with tabasco and soy sauce

HK is still doing what they have been doing forever...good comfort food, right price, great for hangovers and before Cub's games.

Its that time of the year...soup, stew and chili season. One of my favorites, the yet ca mein with chicken from Hamburger King. A bowl of this will warm you up better than any North face jacket out there. I love the Asian cross breed food spots like HK and was surprised to learn that this dish has traces back to New Orleans and is a mix of Asian and Soul food. Although I think at HK they use Asian noodles and not spaghetti.


yet ca mein


Chicken Teriyaki over fried rice

Beef -- I love HK, and I love yet ca mein, but I'm not sure the HK version of the dish comes to us by way of NOLA. I followed the link, which itself has a link to an interesting thread. It seems from what's there that this dish is pretty new to NOLA (especially by NOLA standards) and was brought back from the Korean War by soldiers -- this allegedly according the to premier NOLA purveyor of the Soul Food version of the dish. My initial assumption was that the dish came by way of ethnically Chinese Vietnamese immigrants, of which there are obviously many in NOLA. But the Korean veteran explanation is at least as plausible. I'd assume the dish at HK came to Chicago more directly, as the long-time cooks and owners are Korean-American, and we know that Cantonese dishes make their rounds through Korean menus nearly as much as Vietnamese menus.

Then again, I seem to remember that the original Nisei owner/cook was a one-time military cook -- maybe he made Chinese noodle soup for the NOLA soul food guys when they were in Korea. In any event, it was interesting to learn that this dish is ubiquitous in NOLA soul food places. Like a Chinese version of hot tamales. I love this stuff.

Good prompt to get back to Hamburger King.

So, based on their website, since earlier this year, Hamburger King has been under new ownership and renamed Rice n Bread. And they've made it nicer inside. But, the menu is almost totally the same, and the website speaks in terms of how they are continuing the Hamburger King tradition:
http://www.ricenbread.com/index.php/abo ... er-service

So, anyhow, a buddy and I visited before the Cubs' game tonight and both had the galbi burger with the added kimchi upcharge. And allow me to say holymolywow it was good. Really, really good. Similar to a Korean taco but a burger and ridiculously delicious.

Maybe we had a lucky night. Maybe it was a Brigadoon like mirage and we will never have a burger that good there again. But I sure hope so, because I really want that burger again (the menu has a picture of it).

Hilarious name--delicious sounding menu--great pictures (the Pa-Jeon looks incredible)--and YetCaMein...in Wrigleyville. If this place isn't a one-visit-wonder Shasson, I'll be a very happy gal. My favorite part of the website is the quote from Nick--"I got two words for you: Get the BulDak." Priceless! Thanks for the heads up. Looking forward to checking this place out!

Check your history, B. HK is a Wrigleyville institution and a remnant of post WWII Japanese/ Nisei culture on that stretch of Clark. Tokyo Rose worked down the street at the now closed Japanese general store.

Pretty well documented here, HK, albeit in the early days. I think it was one of Da Beef's earliest favorites. One of the prototypical GNRs that isn't. Get the white rice with brown gravy if you are living on pocket change. Otherwise splurge on one of the non ironic, pre-fusion Japanese/Korean/blue collar American specials.

Edit: I now see Bo was referring to the transformation of HK to bread N rice with its very not HK fancy website. My mistake. As long as they respect the classics, I'm happy to have the place survive rather than fall into the hands of another college town shit pizza chain or Barleycorn Junior clone.

Given that I never knew any of the various incarnations or aliases, you aren't far off in the correction Jeff, though I did realize from reading the post and the history of the place on the website that this was "related" to a neighborhood institution. But since I've never been and from what I read, it had mixed reviews at least over the last few years, Shasson's update is a good one. And the new website is entertaining...

The mixed reviews are mostly from folks who I'd posit were not coming to HK/Chester's with the correct mindset. The place is an old corner workingman's diner serving not only Depression-era burgers, but Depression-era everything from a worn formica island in the style of Teresita in Tampa, all with a notable Korean/Japanese aspect that (as noted early in the thread) makes the place quite like something you'd see on a side street in Honolulu or Hilo or parts of SF or LA, though less and less these days. If one goes in expecting Father's Office or an homage to post-war grease, rather than actual post-war grease, one will be disappointed (like going to the Diner Grill looking for Au Cheval or even Johnny Rockets). The place is (was) great. With losses like Ramova, Pepper's, Harry's and other simple, unaffected neighborhood anchors dying or morphing into the unrecognizeable, attention should be paid to places like HK by LTHers. Looking forward to seeing the old place in its new state.

I'm really sad that I never knew about this place. Shocked actually. Thanks for the history. Actual post-war grease, particularly with a side of kimchi and an order of pan-Jeon is JUST fine with me. Hope to get a few folks together for a meal there soon!

To further the Japanese flavor of HK: I haven't been to HK in the many years since I moved from the area, but these was for many years, (hell, it may still be there) an adjacent tavern to the north called The Nesei or Nisai Lounge that had a substantial Japanese (and regular neighborhood) clientele. You could grab some food from HK, then take it next door to enjoy with a beer. Yet ca mein and Old Style. I can still taste that Saturday morning breakfast wonder.

Shasson wrote:and the website speaks in terms of how they are continuing the Hamburger King tradition:

Cleaner, brighter, a few additional menu items and marginally friendlier waitress, but Rice 'N Breads's Akutagawa, which is pretty much the only thing I ever ordered at Hamburger King, seemed exactly the same. Really hit the spot, thinking of going back again tomorrow.

Akutagawa at Rice 'N Bread

Big fan of that dish myself . . . though I prefer the gravy on the side . . . and I thought you did too! Okay, I realize we're not talking bbq.