When I first heard of Boston's Italian beef, I was highly offended. I immediately thought to myself "How could a place named after another city, sell Chicago's Italian Beef, in Chicago and get away with it!" If I were looking for baked beans and clam chowder served by a staff who think they’re better than me, I’d go to a place called Boston’s. I wanted to walk in and tell the owner to shove his beef and his Red Sox haaat up an orifice I’ll refrain from stating.
I was pleasantly surprised to find that the name of the Beef stand was not Boston’s, but Joe Boston’s. I was immediately relieved and I hope this information calms the nerves of our readers. Now on to the beef.
Boston’s is a very straightforward beef stand: not too much decor or menu selection, but their options are good. The beef isn’t unique or experimental in any way, but the sandwich did its job. Although pretty tender and very juicy–the beef is nothing that pitched a tent in my pants, but I was satisfied nonetheless. The bread holds up well and the au jus is very good. With a medium heat and taste the peppers are only average, nothing special. The biggest drawback to the sandwich is that the only cheese they use is cheddar (huh?) JuicyBeef had the pleasure of trying the quite tasty cheddar fries. Drink selection at Boston’s is dedicated to the Pepsi beverage company, not a favorite amongst our panel.
The place itself was probably put together in as long as it took me to finish the sandwich. A few pictures of Al Capone, The Godfather, and The WHITE Sox, along with some oversized kitchen utensils mounted on the wall, but that’s about it. Only a few small tables and chairs to eat at and a bathroom are available, which contribute the lower location/ambiance scores. The neighborhood is not the greatest but the place does have a parking lot. Unlike some of the other places we have been to, with neighborhoods that are filled with life and shopping, there isn’t any atmosphere around Boston’s. It is in the middle of two busy streets with out any other businesses around. They do offer refills at a price of 50 cents, which isn’t breaking the bank, but it still isn’t free. The only thing that added to the ambiance is the fact that the place serves chocotacos, one of the greatest desserts of all time. Nice touch, Joe.
Boston’s Beef is pretty wicked awesome but the lack in location and ambiance really take away from the Beefing experience. It could be worse; it could have been staffed by people from Boston. Could you imagine that? The servers would be rude and inconsiderate and try to get you to eat the Beef however they liked it. Not to mention that fact that they would probably try to convince you that the worst day in history was Game 6 of the 1986 World Series…although that might not be so bad. I could then enjoy my Beef while asking them how many world series they won in the past 50 years…and how many the White sox won. Thank God Boston’s is a true Chicago establishment and we don’t have to deal with that dilemma.
Beef- 7.5
Fries- 6.1
Location/Ambiance- 4.3
2932 W Chicago Ave
Chicago, IL 60622
(773) 486-9536
Editor-in-Beef
What's The Beef
Greeting us with a smile, the sign outside What's The Beef happily beckoned us to come inside and fulfill any appetite on one particular hungover Sunday. WTB serves up a multitude of beef products and even delivers to those living in the southwest corner of Lincoln Park. There is no parking lot, but a street spot was not hard to find.
The Italian Beef came in two sizes: the titular What's The Beef and the Big Beef. Mozzarella was offered as well as sweet peppers, giardiniera, and even red sauce. I was hungry as hell and ordered up a cheesy sweet Big Beef with fries. The Beef King approved.
WTB proudly makes their own Italian Beef. It's received raw, sliced, cooked, and seasoned on site. As I eagerly awaited my home-made Italian Beef, I took in the simple yet elegant ambiance of this Clybourn Corridor beef stand. The walls were plain except for a few Coke ads, Van Gough and Monet prints. An exposed brick wall provided a handsome contrast the the otherwise plain wall that featured the friendly Italian chef that had also greeted us outside and who suspiciously reminded me of the Italian American restauranteur from the Simpsons Luigi Risotto, (see photo comparison).
Taking our meal to the oversized picnic table in the middle of the room, we dug in and immediately experienced a roller coaster of mixed feeling towards the sandwich. My home-made beef high hopes feel short as the beef was dry and had little to no taste. The mediocre meat sat atop a Gonnella bread sandwich roll that would have held up well to a thorough dipping. However, upon asking to have our beefs dipped we were told they did not dip but instead would give us personal au jus cups. While the au jus was delicious it was not enough to fully moisten the chewy bread and the beef did not hold its taste.
The otherwise disappointing Italian beef was completely salvaged by the mozzarella and outstanding peppers. The amount of cheese was ample while the sweet peppers were literally the best I have ever had (and I have had my fair share of Italian beef sandwiches). The peppers were cut thin and tasted like none other that has graced any Italian Beef under my belt. The giardiniera was also quite delicious and had lots of heat. Complimenting our sandwiches were WTB's tasty fries. They were thick and hearty and I actually had trouble finishing them all after housing my Big Beef.
All in all, the home-made beef is nothing to write home about. Despite this, the fixings on the sandwich more than make up for that shortfall, allowing the sandwich to receive a solid review. If hunger strikes while driving down this section of Clybourn Avenue, or you find yourself rooted to your couch in Lincoln Park, What's The Beef provides a tasty meal however big your hunger may be.
Bathroom: Yes / Credit Cards: Yes / Soda: Coke Products / Refills: Free / TV: No
Beef: 7.4
Fries: 7.7
Location/Ambiance: 6.8
What's The Beef
1863 N. Clybourn
773-477-7200
BeefMan
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