Chicago Eats: Sausages and The Purple Pig

One of the most fun components about the Hot Doug’s experience is that Doug himself is always at the register. He greets every customer with a great sense of humor and a playful grin. Beyond the service with a smile, the sausage sandwiches themselves are amazing. I ordered a Cheddar Cheese Pork Sausage with Coca Cola Barbecue Sauce and Vintage Farmhouse Cheddar plus a side of cheese fries. I always order cheese fries when I visit Chicago, but Doug’s skin-on version weren’t my favorite as I typically prefer crinkle cut for cheese fries. It’s truly all about the sausages here folks.

Hot Doug's Cheddar Cheese Pork Sausage

The well-seasoned sausage had a nice snap on the outside and was incredibly juicy on the inside thanks to the cheddar mixed in with the pork. The barbecue sauce was sweet but not overpowering. The farmhouse cheddar added a creamy note and melted very well with each bite. Keeping it all together, the bun was a soft roll that held up well to the cheesy, porky assault.

Chris also ordered the Cheddar Cheese Pork Sausage. But instead of fries, he opted for the Spicy Calabrese Pork Sausage with Pesto Genovese and Asiago Cheese as his side dish.

http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c39/scottb57/Allie%20Eats/HotDougs2.jpg?t=1314237932

The Spicy Calabrese Pork Sausage was delicious as well.  The sharpness of the Asiago paired well with the spicy flavor of the pork. Similar to the barbecue sauce, the pesto Genovese did not overpower our palettes. Although we enjoyed this sandwich immensely, we agreed that the clear cut winner of the two was the Cheddar Cheese Pork Sausage.

After eating a total of three sausage sandwiches and an order of cheese fries, we were completely stuffed. This was our second visit to Hot Doug’s, and once again, we left with a stuffed belly and a smile. We will go back every time we visit Chicago. I highly recommend that you do the same.

THE PURPLE PIG

Moving on to another favorite of our Chicago eats, we spent one glorious afternoon at The Purple Pig. Their motto is “Cheese, Swine and Wine.” They are a relative newcomer to the Chicago dining scene, and were voted as one of The 10 Best New Restaurants of 2010 by Bon Appetit. They refer to their cuisine as classic Mediterranean, and most of their dishes are small plates that can be shared. This restaurant holds a close place in my heart after indulging in my first plate of bone marrow there in 2010. I loved it so much that I often order bone marrow at each new restaurant Chris and I eat at just to see if it holds up to The Purple Pig’s. Most versions do not.

The Purple Pig's Roasted Bone Marrow with Herbs

For those of you who haven’t quite embraced bone marrow yet, let me describe it for you. It is like melted fat (or meat-flavored butter), typically spread on a toast point or crusty bread. The Purple Pig pairs this elegant dish with Italian crostini, sea salt, herbs and capers. All together, these flavors are an explosion in your mouth. The salt cuts the fat perfectly, and the herbs add a nice texture and distraction from the gelatinous nature of the bone marrow. It’s a dish I dream of eating at The Purple Pig time and time again.

The menu offers a selection of “Smears” similar to the bone marrow. Of them, Chris was looking most forward to trying their Pork Neck Bone Gravy with Ricotta. This dish ended up being his favorite of them all, delivering a modern take on the classic “Sunday gravy” comfort food.

The Purple Pig's Pork Neck Bone Gravy with Ricotta

The flavors of the pork neck were subtle in this sauce. The fresh ricotta was delicious and creamy. It was hard not to order each one of the smears, but the crostini were so filling. The last thing we wanted was to fill up on bread with so much more to eat.

Another standout dish was their seasonal Raw Corn, Heirloom Tomato & Arugula Pesto Salad.

Raw corn, heirloom tomato & arugula pesto salad

The sweetness from the raw corn paired with the punch of the arugula pesto and heirloom tomatoes was fantastic. This dish stayed true to the Mediterranean flavors described on the menu. Containing ingredients we could easily obtain from any farmer’s market, this salad was a welcome diversion from the heavier dishes that surrounded it. Well done.

The next item we enjoyed was the Chicken Thigh Kebabs, Fried Smashed Potatoes & Tzatziki.

The Purple Pig's Chicken Thigh Kebabs, Fried Smashed Potatoes & Tzatziki

Every meal has a dark horse. This dish won that title. We tend to equate chicken as a “standard” or “boring” dish when dining out simply because chicken in itself is very bland. It is dependent on the restaurant to create magic (or not) from the blank canvas. The Purple Pig’s chicken thighs were delicious. They had a crispy, salty coating on the outside and were tender and juicy on the inside. The tzatziki was a perfect dipping sauce. The fried smashed potatoes were similar to baked potato skins in their thin and crispy nature, but we honestly didn’t think they added much value. The chicken was that good.

Last, but certainly not least was the “JLT.” When one sees a “JLT” on a menu, one is naturally intrigued. What is this “J” that replaces the traditional “B”? This “J” turned out to be jowl bacon! We are in love with jowl, which are actually pork cheeks. The texture is more similar to ham than the traditional bacon we are used to in the United States, and it is generally much more flavorful. Although we were absolutely stuffed by this point, we had to see what this “JLT” would entail.

The Purple Pig's "JLT"

Please look at that picture for a moment. Study all of the layers of ingredients, but more importantly, the colors and textures that you see. Don’t you feel like you are staring at a work of art? We felt guilty about cutting into this dish. It was that beautiful. Your layers are as follows:

Italian bread, lemon aioli, heirloom tomato, frisee, jowl bacon, fried duck egg, fresh herbs

This was a tough dish to share. We each wanted it all to ourselves. The flavors were decadent. This is a dish we could have eaten by itself and gone home happy as it was so rich. It was the perfect closer to a fantastic afternoon meal.

It is amazing to think we were eating such a decadent meal just a few hours before seeing a Phish show, but this was a perfect restaurant to preface a show. This experience came in a close second with our farewell to Chicago dinner three days later at Girl and the Goat. I look very forward to sharing that experience with you next week.

The Sausage Superstore and
Encased Meat Emporium
I was also very excited at the prospect of bringing Chris to this restaurant I had spoken so highly of.

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5 Responses

  1. Funny. And here I thought that (my beloved) Purple Pig held a special place in your heart because it’s where we recovered from the BLACKHAWKS STANLEY CUP VICTORY PARADE!!! Yes, those words are so awesome they needed to be in all caps.

  2. Good to see people doing it right! Next time you’re in town you should check out Franks n Dawgs. They’ve taken the sausage concept to an even higher level.

    http://www.franksndawgs.com/

    Not a knock on Doug at all either.. Love Doug’s and there’s plenty of room in this town for both.

  3. Bryan,

    Thank you for your feedback! Franks n Dawgs is definitely on our radar for our next trip to Chicago. In addition to their sausages, I’ve heard great things about their truffle fries. I’m glad to hear they are able to fill a niche without impacting Doug’s.

    Best,
    Allie

  4. You picked two of the best places to visit while in Chicago. And then a visit to Girl & the Goat? Oh my…we are a blessed city to have such culinary greatness here.

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