Worth Walking Ten Blocks - Hackney's Printer's Row, Chicago, Il

Cruising through the streets of downtown Chicago on a sunny Saturday, Rebbel and I looked for a good place to park the truck. We wanted to try a burger from Hackney's located on Dearborn Street. We had heard about them on the Food Network's Diner's, Drive Inns, and Dives. We found Dearborn street, and quickly found a parking garage that advertised a weekend "special" on their sign. After driving around the building for what seemed like hours but turned out to be minutes and trying to find a spot without a beam, we finally managed to pull into a great spot. Let me mention we are from a small city and the thought of driving in a building with low ceilings and going up and up is a little bit unsettling. We exited the parking garage and managed
to find Dearborn Street without any trouble. We turned North and started looking for the address. We walked about three or four blocks. There wasn't any Hackney's!!!! I asked Rebbel if she had noticed if the address was North or South. She pulled the paper with the address out and lo and behold, it had an address of South Dearborn, of course we were in the 700 block of North Dearborn.
We turned around and walked back to South Dearborn. Along the way, we passed many closer parking places, taxis, buses, and even a parade that was taking shape. We walked at least ten blocks after walking the original three or four blocks. At last we found Hackney's!!
Hackney's is located in an older building. There is a lot of tables and probably can seem cramped if busy. There is some outdoor seating by the street.
We ordered the Hackney burger and the inside out burger. The Hackney burger came on a rye bun made in their own bakery and fresh ground beef. It was good, but I ordered the inside - out burger and that was delicious. The inside - out burger started with the same Hackney burger, but was stuffed with sharp cheddar cheese and bacon. It was juicy, and very tasty. It took the Hackney burger to a new juicier, tastier, burger bodaciousness. Their housmade chips and slaw rounded out the meal.
They also are known for an onion ring loaf that we will have to try next time.
Our waiter was very friendly and helpful giving us good instructions for taking the trolley and buses. Of course we ignored all the advice and ended walking even farther. Arriving back to our car, we found out the special parking price was for the first two hours. We ended up paying more, but in the end it was all worth it! Hackney's Printer's Row is located at 733
South Dearborn in Chicago. The South part is very important. They also have other locations that you can find by clicking the title and going to their page.

Chicago Lines Up For This Burger - Paradise Pup, Des Plaines, Ill

This wasn't our first choice. We were going to try a place in Alsip Ill. called the Frosted Mug, but, they were closed. Looking over our list that we got from the Food Network site, We decided to drive to a place called Paradise Pup in Des Plaines. As we came up to the little burger joint, we noticed a fairly good sized line snaking from the door to the back of the building. We got in line where Rebbel asked the people in front of us what was the best thing on the menu.
I thought that the place was called Paradise Pup, so the dogs would be the main attraction. I was wrong. They do serve hot dogs, sausages, and Italian beef, but we were told that they were known for their cheddar char burger and now I can see why that is!
Paradise Pup is owned by two brothers, and they have been doing those burgers for over 25 years. . The 1/3 pound char burger was juicy, and tasted like it just came off a backyard charcoal grill. The Merkt's cheddar cheese was oozing out of the sides of the burger from under the grilled sesame seed bun. To go along with the burger, we tried the three way fries. The fries were crinkle cut topped with the Merkt's with sour cream and bacon. It was a real challenge to pick which to eat first.
We were glad that we ended up going to our second choice!! If you want to try this delicious burger that many have said is the tastiest burger in Chicago, drive to 1724 S River Rd. in Des Plaines, Ill. Make sure you have cash, the don't take cedit, and be prepared to stand in line. It will be well worth it!!

A Chain I Have To Mention - Five Guys Burgers and Fries

I usually don't write about chain restaurants, but I have to tell you about this one or I will be doing a great disservice to my readers. I don't know what happened over the years, but most of the chain hamburgers have become tasteless and pretty dried out. They hardly resemble a burger at all. You can get them fast and cheap but that's about it.
Five Guys is a whole differen type of chain. . I first heard of Five Guys on a news site. Someone in the comments asked for people's favorite burger chain. Five Guys kept coming up in the replies. I had never heard of them, so I tried to find the closest. It was over 50 miles away from me, so I waited for an opportunity. It finally came and I was sorry...... Sorry that I didn't go earlier!
There is nothing fancy about Five Guys. The colors are usually red and white. You get your order in a brown paper sack, you can munch on free peanuts in the shell while you wait. (I love peanuts in the shell.)
Five Guys has only a few food items on their menu. Burgers, fries, and hot dogs. They do all of the items stupendously. The burgers are cooked right in front of you using only fresh ground beef. They don't even have freezers! They use only peanut oil. No trans fats here. Their tasty fries are cut from only Idaho potatoes. They have numerous toppings you can choose to have on your burgers and according to their website, there is over 250,000 ways to enjoy your burger. I usually get mine all the way, which means you get everything except the asterisked items. They are free too, but you have to ask for them. The burgers and fries are hot, juicy and delicious!
If you don't believe me, check out their walls. You will find many testimonies from other eaters both pros and amateurs. Hurry and check out a Five Guys near you. It is simply the best chain burger I have ever ate! Hopefully they never go the way of the other guys and sacrifice quality for speed and cost. You can go to their site by clicking on the title.

A Better Butter Burger - Solly's Grille, Glendale,Wi.

On our recent trip to Chicago, we decided to jog up to the beautiful land of cheese and butter for dinner.Wisconsin was just a little bit up the road and there was a burger that we had been meaning to try for quite some time. We would go on holidays and they were always closed. We discovered Culver's because we wanted a butter burger and Solly's was closed. Culver's was good, but now I know what a real butter burger is. Sorry Culvers, you'll always be my first. Solly's Grille, located near Milwaukee in Glendale Wisconsin at 4629 N. Port Washington Rd, is known for their butter burger. In fact, they claim to be the originators of the butter burger in the 1930's.
The place is as neat as a pin. It looks like a house as you drive up to it. You walk in and you see two counters snaking through the restaurant. They have sandwiches,fries, malts and onion rings on their menu, along with other food, but unless you are close by and have time to try everything, I would order the butter burger. It has made numerous lists for one of the best burgers in America. Warning....this burger is not for butter wimps!
The burger comes topped with stewed onions and cheese. Rebbel was wondering what the yellow stuff in it was. I told her it probably was cheese, but on closer inspection, she found out that it was a glob of real, fresh, tasty, soft butter! The longer you let the burger sit, the more of the butter melted in a puddle on the plate and back in to the bun. I was glad we made the trip, and I must say, it was one of the tastiest burgers I have ever had!

True Grits (and Shrimp) - Wishbone Restaurant, Chicago,Il.

Shrimp and Grits. The first time I heard of this combination was on the Food Network. I believe it was Paula Deen. I must admit, I never was a big fan of grits. I have tried this southern staple before when I was at a breakfast buffet somewhere south of Michigan. I found them kind of tasteless and well,... gritty. So when our friend Joyce said she had tried shrimp and grits at Bubba Deen's restaurant in Savannah, and it was delicious, I was kind of curious and skeptical.
On our recent trip to Chicago, we decided to eat at Wishbone. They are known for southern comfort cooking. They had a Sunday brunch and their shrimp and grits came highly recommended by another food blogger. We had to try it!
Wishbone has several locations in Chicago, and we decided to eat at the Wishbone at 1001 Washington that is locted a block from Oprah Winfrey's studios.
Rebbel ordered an omlette that looked pretty good and I decided to go for the shrimp and grits. The grits came with a choice of a corn bread muffin which I went for to keep with the southern theme.
The waiter brought it out in a big bowl. The dish contains cheese grits,shrimp,bacon,scallions,mushrooms surrounded by a pool of wine and cream sauce. It was one big bowl of warm, comforting, hearty, delicousness that I find hard to get out of my hungry mind. I can't wait for another chance to order this meal. Next time, I think we will both order it so we won't have to share! Click on the title to go to Wishbone's page.