HOT DOUG'S

Whenever I go anywhere, I am always inclined to try their hot dogs. Why would I want to try hot dogs that aren't hot dogs from Chicago?  I once got in an argument with this lady over NY versus Chicago Hot Dogs. NO contest, SORRY! She was from Brooklyn, so I couldn't understand much, and she was also in town because she drove her 17 year old kid to show off his Jordan collection for a documentary they were shooting and would not even TRY Chi-Style's. ANYWAY, there are MANY places in Chicago to score a Chi-town Style Hot Dog.  BUT, my favorite Hot Dog joint, the one that makes me feel that "Harold & Kumar satisfaction" is HOT DOUG'S, because not only do they have the best Chicago Style, they have gourmet hot dogs.

  It's self-described as the "sausage super-store & encased meat emporium." What that means is GOURMET Hot Doug's and complete satisfaction.

Along with having tons of different gourmet hot dogs named after celebrities, the selection of condiments exceeds all:

Mustard (yellow, spicy brown, honey or Dijon), Caramelized Onions,Relish, Tomatoes, Pickle, Celery Salt, Ketchup, Raw Onions, Sport Peppers, Sauerkraut, Spicy Giardiniera, Chili, & Cheese.

Here are a few selections of hot dogs with descriptions:

The Trefor Proud-Irish Banger with Guinness Stout Mustard and Cheddar-Chipotle Cheese 

Spicy Thai Chicken Sausage- Sriracha Mustard and Sesame-Seaweed Salad

The Kobe Cinci Dog-Wagyu Beef Hot Dog with Yellow Mustard, Cincinnati Skyline Chili and Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Jamaican Jerk Pork- Sausage with Passion Fruit Mustard and Sautéed Plantains

Magical. I could go on about this place, but I have to say it is the one place I'll wait in line to eat at, and it's the one place where I wake up early, hustle on lunch to go to. More Info: Here.

2008 Taste of Chicago

The Taste of Chicago is the world's largest food festival in the United States.  Located conveniently in my city, I usually go and eat with no disregard to anything or anyone.  This year I decided to get more into my food consumption a little bit more attention.  The Taste of Chicago features over 70 food vendors and brings in millions (sometimes 1 million each day alone).  You can find anything and everything here.  Food is purchased with tickets, 12 tickets for $8.  What does that get you?  NOTHING!!! Most basic entrees cost about 9-10 tickets, and most "Taste" portions (smaller portions of the foods) cost at least 4.   Here is what I consumed in one trip to the Taste:

Rib Sandwich- I have never had a real rib sandwich until now, usually I get the vegan version, and I was super into it.  What made this sandwich as delicious as it was?  BBQ SAUCE.  Perfect sauce overload, handmade BBQ sauce, loved it...until I dropped it on the floor and declared myself defeated.

Mango Italian Ice- Some of you might know it as "Water Ice" this is one of the reasons why I'm glad the Italians have such a a big influence on Chicago.  This one was made not from flavoring, but from Mango purees.  Italian Ice is made the same way that ice cream is made, and is technically a sorbet, but not really.  Miko's Italian Ice in Chicago offers these for $1.25 a scoop, I coughed up $4.  Well worth it, the flavor of Mango was on point, not too tangy and not too bland.

Banana Crepes-  This was from the same joint that I bought the Mango Italian Ice from.  The presentation looked great, but the banana was not a good option for the inside.  It was too bland, and the chocolate syrup was way too abrasive for the overall sweetness.  They should've put Nutella inside the crepe instead, and offered up strawberries.

Nutella Crepe-  I am a freak for anything Nutella.  After realizing I made a mistake in trying the banana crepes, I decided to get the Nutella Crepe...Perfect.  Just enough Nutella on the inside, not too much whipped cream, not to mention this time the flavoring of the chocolate syrup was perfect with the other combined flavors.

Chicago Style Hot dogs-Mustard, Onions,Sweet Pickle Relish, Dill Pickle, Peppers, Tomatos, Celery Salt= Chicago Style.  Originated in 1929, this is a Chicago STAPLE..  Supposedly, there are supposed to be more hot dog joints in Chicago than all other fast food restaurants combined.  The only rule about Chicago Style that I break?  KETCHUP.  Putting ketchup on a Chicago dog is supposed to be sacrilegious, but whatever, this rule may be broken.

Giant Turkey Leg-  I only tasted this, because to eat it would be the equivalent of eating my own weight, basically.  Giant turkey leg with BBQ Sauce & Louisana Hot Sauce added on makes for an interesting taste.  This thing is HUGE.  Imagine tons of people chewing on this with no precautions: sauce all over their faces, sans bibs trying to dominate this turkey leg.  

All in all, I'm still full to say the least.  The Nutella Crepes and Italian Ice were #1 in my book for the night, and I spent over $40 and STILL wanted to eat ( chocolate covered bananas & funnel cakes get an I.O.U.).  If you ever get a chance to go, check it out, but get there early before all the fatsos come and pillage the Taste for all its worth.

Dark Knight x Hershey

I'm a huge fan of Hershey.  I'll always love those Kit Kats, Spoiler knows what I am talking about.  When Hershey began to jazz it up with different variations of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, my life was officially complete.  Reese's Big Cups? Check.  Reese's Peanut Butter Lovers? Check.  Batman Edition Peanut Butter Cups? CHECK! As soon as I heard these were released nationwide, I took myself to the nearest Hershey retailer (aka Target).  There they were.  Someone (ovb dumb) pointed out that the regular version of those Hershey products were available as well, but seriously, I'm paying for pure HYPE.  

• Reese's Bats: Available in Dark Chocolate & Peanut Butter Bats,  Milk Chocolate & Peanut Butter Bats.  I opted for the Milk & Peanut Butter.  Of course they didn't taste any different.  It's similar to buying a pair of shoes that are  sold at Foot Locker versus a pair of sneakers coped at Saint Alfreds, or any sneaker boutique.  Both are essentially the same thing, but the added specialty makes the other meek. The packaging was exciting, and the bat shape, was, well....CUTE.

• Reese's Pieces: Available in same form (Peanut Butter filling, crunchy shell) BUT they are colored in dark blue & black.  I'm not really a fan of Reese's Pieces, but there was no way I wasn't about to cop the 3/3 Hershey's products, not to mention increase my odds of winning a $35g motorcycle.

• Kit Kat Wafer Bar:  I would pin these up in competition to the Bats.  Embossed (love it) with the Bat, and various Dark Knight knick-knack, they also feature  movie facts.
  

All in all, I would say I was impressed.  Good spin on the classics, and did I mention that each version of this candy was available in multiple "Take Home Bags?" No wonder children in America are so obese.  Hershey also created an interactive Dark Knight website, which in my opinion was cooler than the website Pizza Hut created for the film.  I am loving this snack, you better believe I'll be sneaking these babies in when I go see this shit on IMAX.