LOU MALNATI'S PIZZERIA, CHICAGO

    

     Ok, so I already blogged about Giordano's Pizzeria on the post below this one. I gave you the rundown on the most famous deep-dish pizzeria's in Chicago, and now I am blogging about the infamous Lou Malnati's. Many say this is the best pizzeria in all of Chicago and the pizza is indeed good. Again, same as Giordano's, it takes an average of 45 minutes for your pizza to be made. It felt like we were waiting forever, but that's how you know they make it fresh and custom made just the way you order it! Giordano's pizzeria is famous for their STUFFED deep dishes, and Lou Malnati's is known for their famous "Buttercrust" pizzas. The crust is buttery, flakey and has a hint of garlic. Their famous Buttercrust is what sets Lou Malnati's apart from the other Chicago pizzerias. This place is a Chicago landmark and has a lot of history. Check out what we ordered below!

      

BUFFALOU WINGS

Oven roasted, then fried Buffalo style wings tossed in "mild with a little giddy up" sauce.  Served with celery and gorgonzola or ranch dressing.  

They were okay. They weren't crispy enough, more soggy. I've had better.

"THE LOU"

"THE LOU" (INDIVIDUAL SIZE, 6")

Fresh spinach, mushrooms and sliced tomatoes covered with a blend of mozzarella, romano and cheddar cheese. No substitutions.

This pizza was great! Very flavorful and lots going on. The buttercrust was so good too! I really liked this pizza- one of Lou Malnati's most famous!

6"  INDIVIDUAL PEPPERONI WITH EXTRA CHEESE & BUTTERCRUST

6"  INDIVIDUAL PEPPERONI WITH EXTRA CHEESE & BUTTERCRUST
I ordered this pizza- I custom made it, although it's pretty simple lol. It was definitely good but not mind-blowing. This was my FIRST deep dish Chicago-style pizza experience, and I guess I had extremely high expectations. I wish we would have ordered one big pizza instead of two individual sizes. But I must admit, for being a thin-crust New York style pizza kinda gal, Lou Malnati's pizza is still very good and I can see why so many people love it. Very fresh and rich, and the buttercrust added great texture and flavor.  I would definitely return to Lou Malnati's!


*Traveling in Chicago*

 

I visited the famous Chicago "BEAN" in Millenium Park! I fell in love with this city. It's so beautiful. 

 

     If you've never been to Chicago, you must go. It's breathtakingly beautiful- amazing building skylines, river views, bridges, and historical architecture. Every where you look it's a postcard and it's just an overall charming city with super friendly people. You can't go to Chicago without seeing all the beautiful sites and of course eating at one of Chicago's famous pizzerias, such as Lou Malnati's!

LOU MALNATI'S

For menu and locations in Chicago, visit:

http://www.loumalnatis.com/

GIORDANO'S PIZZERIA - AUTHENTIC DEEP DISH CHICAGO STYLE PIZZA, CHICAGO

LOLLAPULOOZA MUSIC FESTIVAL & GIORDANO'S PIZZARIA= THE PERFECT DAY IN CHICAGO!

     There is much dispute on which is the best deep-dish pizzeria in Chi-town. The two most famous and popular are Giordano's & Lou Malnati's. You ask anybody who is from, has visited, or lived in Chicago and they will mention these two pizzerias. Read reviews online, do your research and you will find that these two are the most famous and "best" ones. There are of course other great ones like Gino's East, Pizzeria Uno, & Pequod's, which many people will also claim is up there or their personal favorite, but I chose to go to Giordano's and Lou Malnati's. (Look for my Lou Malnati's review in another posting).

     After a long, fun day at Lollapulooza in Grant Park, downtown Chicago, I decided to stop late night at Giordano's on the way back to my hotel. I had already tried the famous Lou Malnati's, and wanted to compare it with another famous Chicago pizzeria to see the difference and which was better. It was 11pm, and the place was packed with a long wait. It took over an hour to get our pizza after we ordered it, which they warned us about. Even if the wait isn't too long at Giordano's, expect to wait an average of 45 minutes to receive your pizza because it takes that long to make. So make sure you have time and you're not too famished lol. Anyway when we finally got our pizza, it was something! As most of you know, Chicago style pizza is deep-dish, with the sauce on top and cheese underneath. Giordano's pizza is stuffed, which makes their pizza famous. We got mushrooms, black olives and garlic stuffed inside the pizza, with massive amounts of cheese and sauce on top. It was definitely delicious and very flavorful. Giordano's was my favorite pizza I had in Chicago. Although Giordano's and Chicago deep dish is great, I have to admit I'm still a New York thin-crust style pizza lover at heart! Sorry Chi-town! I still love you though...*MUAH!*

 

Don't mind my sweaty hot mess. I was drenched soaked in sweat after an AFROJACK concert at Lollapulooza lol.

Side-view of the cheese stuffed inside the pizza! It was very rich and flavorful. Everything is made fresh from scratch so you can really taste the quality.

 

LOOK HOW CHEESY!

I MEAN.....LOL

In my opinion, Giordano's was my favorite pizzeria in Chicago. The pizza has loads of flavor, and loved that it was stuffed. Also loved that it was super cheesy- I hate pizza with a lot of sauce and not a lot of cheese. This one had more cheese than sauce which I liked. I'm more of a cheese on top kinda gal, but I appreciate the Chicago style deep-dish . Giordano's definitely hit the spot after a long and tiring day, good food for the soul lol. This place is a Chi-town staple, and a must when you go. If you've been to this famous pizzeria, let me know what you think ;)

There are a couple locations for Giordano's in Chicago, for locations and a menu check out:

http://www.giordanos.com/

LOLLAPULOOZA FUN!
 *AT THE COLDPLAY CONCERT*

 

HUB 51, CHICAGO

    

     If you are ever in Chicago, you need to do these two things I am about to mention. First, you must take a boat ride on the river in downtown Chicago, and out to Lake Michigan. I took the 7pm cruise and it was an hour and a half. 7pm is a good time because you go when it's still daylight, but you also get to see the sunset out on Lake Michigan and the beautiful Chicago skyline when it gets dark and is all lit up. The boat company is Wendella Boats, you can look up their cruise times daily on their website which I will post below. It's very romantic and you learn so much about the architechure and history of downtown Chicago. It was my first day in Chicago, so it was the perfect introduction to the city, and not to mention breathtakingly beautiful.

     Second thing you should do in Chicago, my suggestion is after you take a Wendella Boat cruise, is have dinner and drinks at HUB 51. HUB 51 in downtown Chicago is a hotspot. I walked in at 9:15pm on a Thursday night and every table was full, and the place is huge. It has an industrial, urban look to it that is dim lit with candles, and the music was blasting all hiphop and recent pop. It definitely has a cool vibe and is a great place to bring someone for a date, go out with friends for dinner and/or drinks, have work or birthday dinners, pregame before going out, etc. SUB 51, a private lounge below the restaurant, becomes an exclusive nightclub on weekends too. HUB 51 is hip and a fun place for any occasion, and the food is great too. It has everything from sushi and seafood, nachos, tacos & enchiladas, steak, sandwiches, salads, and juicy burgers. Food for every palate, and fushion food at its best!

COCKTAILS

HUB 51 has a unique menu of warm weather cocktails, and an extensive wine, champagne, beer and sake list.

Left: Pomegranate Mojito

Right: Prickly Pear Margarita

APPETIZER

SHAKI-SHAKI TUNA

Sushi-grade Big Eye, Spicy Ginger Marinade, Crispy Rice & Peanut Oil

This was delicious! Spicy tuna mixed with a spicy mayo on top of a crispy golden-brown rice cake. I love spicy tuna on crispy rice and this was a different version of it with the spicy mayo mixed in. Great flavor and so fresh tasting. Perfect appetizer.

ENTREE

 PULLED SHORT RIB NACHOS

Tender pulled short rib off the bone, fresh tortilla chips, guacamole, roasted tomato salsa, white cheddar & oaxaca cheeses

JEEEZ HOLY MOLY! This was absolutely heaven for me. The PERFECT nachos. This was highly recommended by the server, and perhaps the most popular dish at HUB 51. If you read all the reviews on Yelp, these nachos are the most recommended dish at this restaurant, and for good reason. They were amazing. The chips were warm and crispy- you could tell they were freshly made. There was so much guacamole, cheese and short rib meat all over the plate. Even when you hit the bottom of the dish, it was all evenly dispersed, and there was just as much stuff on the bottom. This plate was huge. The nachos were like a mini mountain lol. I saw this nacho dish come out of the kitchen at least 10 times while I was sitting, and it was all going to big party tables to share. I ordered this dish for me and one other person. We couldn't finish it all, but I definitely wanted to because it was so good. I hate leaving leftovers, and we couldn't take it to go because we were staying at a hotel. So if you order this make sure you have a big appetite lol! The short rib meat fell apart it was so tender, and also so flavorful. These were the best nachos. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

DESSERT

HUB 51 FAMOUS CARROT CAKE

Cream cheese frosting, vanilla bean whipped cream, and more cream cheese & cinnamon frosting on the side

Since we were newbies to HUB 51, our waiter brought us a huge complimentary slice of their famous carrot cake. If it is your first time there, they bring it out to you after your meal. I usually don't like anything with cream cheese frosting, but I must admit, this was the best carrot cake I've had. The cake was moist and fluffy, and the frosting didn't have that strong cream cheese taste that most usually do. It was sweet and creamy. The vanilla whipped cream on the side was an amazing addition. Made perfectly, it was a great slice of cake!

It was the perfect first night in Chicago. Our Wendella Boat Tour was a beautiful and romantic way to start the night, and HUB 51 was the perfect place to have dinner afterwards. I am a good travel organizer :)

WENDELLA BOAT TOURS

400 North Michigan Avenue

Chicago, IL 60611

http://www.wendellaboats.com/

HUB 51

51 West Hubbard Street

Chicago, IL 60654

(312) 828-0051

www.hub51chicago.com

AL'S ITALIAN BEEF, CHICAGO

     I just got back from an AMAZING trip to Chicago. I went to the Lollapulooza music festival, and journied to some of the best eateries in the city. I told you I would put you guys up on the best food in every city and I did not want to disappoint! I have a lot more Chicago posts coming soon. One of the places I ventured out to was Al's Italian Beef, voted as one of the top 10 sandwiches in America, and ranked the #1 beef sandwich franchise in Chicagoland since 1938. The show "Man vs. Food " on the Travel Channel did a segment on Al's beef sandwich as well. Al's Italian Beef is a true hole in the wall with amazing, cheap food...totally my style lol. 

      I ordered the "Regular Al" which is the 6" beef sandwich fully dipped and soaked in beef au jour sauce, topped with their homemade “HOT” Giardiniera, homemade sweet peppers, and melted provolone cheese. It definitely was in the "top 2" best things I ate in Chicago. The bread was soaked in delicious juice, not one inch of it was dry. The sandwich had a sweet and spicy kick to it, and the beef was very flavorful. It was gooey, cheesy, saucy and amazing. If I could describe any style of food that fit my personality, it would be this sandwich- sweet, spicy, saucy, wet, warm, and JUICY LOL.This shit right here........................BANGIN'!

     There are no other words to describe how delicious and perfect this sandwich is. It is incredible, and not to mention different. You can't find a sandwich like this easily in Los Angeles. A dipped Italian beef sandwich is a Chicago staple, you can find it on most fast food menu's out there, but nothing compares to the original Al's Italian Beef. Highly recommended by Ms. Foodie lol.

For Al's Italian Beef Chicago locations, check out their website:

     http://www.alsbeef.com/

TWO THUMBS UP. GET ON IT.

AT THE BUCKINGHAM FOUNTAIN IN GRANT PARK BEFORE EATING LUNCH AT AL'S ITALIAN BEEF.
I LOVE CHICAGO!