Hot Doug's
Encyclopedia
Hot Doug's is a Chicago
, Illinois
-based restaurant specializing in a variety of hot dogs and sausages. The self-proclaimed "Sausage Superstore and Encased Meat Emporium" is in its second location at 3324 North California Avenue in the city's Avondale
neighborhood. Its first location, on Roscoe Street, closed after a 2004 fire. Hot Doug's is frequently featured in local and national media for its unique menu, and its purveyor and head chef, Doug Sohn, has been noted for his work to create affordable gourmet food. The restaurant is an extremely popular dining destination among both locals and tourists, and at lunch time and throughout much of the weekend customers can expect to wait in lines sometimes exceeding an hour just to get in the door.
, to more exotic items such as the "Game of the Week", a rotating selection of game-animal sausages. The menu also features several specials that rotate over time. Some specials that have been featured include Calvados Infused Duck Sausage with Apple Mustard; Beef and Lamb Gyros Sausage with Artichoke Tzatziki
, Kalamata Olives and Feta Cheese; and White Wine and Dijon Rabbit Sausage with Sauce Moutarde and Tilsiter Cheese. Most of the items on the menu - both specials and regulars - are named after a celebrity, a well-known Chicago personality, or friends and relatives of owner Doug Sohn. Examples include the "Elvis" (polish sausage), the "Brigitte Bardot" (spicy andouille sausage), and the "Charlie and James Sohn" (mini bagel dogs and tater tots). The names attached to the permanent menu items are changed frequently but usually maintain a consistent theme: iconic Hollywood sex symbols, legendary comedians, famous Chicago Cubs
baseball
players, and so on. Hot Doug's is also notable for its "duck fat fries", served on Fridays and Saturdays only, in which the potatoes are deep fried in oil rendered in duck fat.
, which noted the restaurant's "cult status" among hot dog aficionados. Hot Doug's has been featured as a Critics Pick on CBS, NBC, ABC, and the Travel Channel, and was featured in the Chicago episode of Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations. He has also been featured in The New York Times, USA Today, Bon Appetit, The Chicago Tribune, The Sun Times, Time Out Chicago and many other publications. Hot Doug's is highly rated by The Zagat Survey
and is included in many of its Top Lists including Food Tops and Best Buys. Bon Appetit listed it as one of the 50 Best Restaurants on the Planet. The editors of Citysearch
Chicago named Hot Doug's the 2006 Editorial Winner for Best Chicago Hot Dog. The restaurant also received a 2007 Best Hot Dog honors in a reader poll conducted by the magazine Time Out Chicago.
-based sausages and condiments following the banning of foie gras by the city of Chicago. The ban had been pushed by Chicago chef Charlie Trotter
and Alderman Joe Moore. Trotter entered into a public debate with Doug Sohn and other Chicago restaurateurs, arguing that the making of foie gras constituted cruelty to animals
. Sohn flagrantly flouted the law by developing a "celebrity" dog made with foie gras, naming it after Ald. Joe Moore and selling the "Joe Moore" during the ban. Sohn, the owner of Hot Doug's, was eventually fined $250 and 30 pounds of foie gras were confiscated from the restaurant. While Sohn may not have entered the argument to drum up sales, the restaurant did benefit from the controversy as it served as free publicity. Sohn was the first in the city to be fined, though a city spokesman stated that enforcement of the ordinance was "one of our lowest priorities". The ban was repealed in May 2008 and the foie gras items were brought back into the restaurant's rotating menu lineup. Hot Doug's specialty duck fat fries weren't affected by the ban.
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
-based restaurant specializing in a variety of hot dogs and sausages. The self-proclaimed "Sausage Superstore and Encased Meat Emporium" is in its second location at 3324 North California Avenue in the city's Avondale
Avondale, Chicago
Avondale is one of 77 officially designated Chicago, Illinois community areas. It is located on the Northwest Side of Chicago. Its main borders are the North Branch of the Chicago River, Diversey Avenue, Addison Street, Pulaski Road and the Union Pacific/Northwest rail line; bisecting the community...
neighborhood. Its first location, on Roscoe Street, closed after a 2004 fire. Hot Doug's is frequently featured in local and national media for its unique menu, and its purveyor and head chef, Doug Sohn, has been noted for his work to create affordable gourmet food. The restaurant is an extremely popular dining destination among both locals and tourists, and at lunch time and throughout much of the weekend customers can expect to wait in lines sometimes exceeding an hour just to get in the door.
Cuisine
Hot Doug's features a diverse and rotating menu that includes the traditional Chicago dogChicago-style hot dog
A Chicago-style hot dog, or Chicago Dog, is a steamed or water-simmered all-beef frankfurter on a poppy seed bun, originating from the city of Chicago, Illinois...
, to more exotic items such as the "Game of the Week", a rotating selection of game-animal sausages. The menu also features several specials that rotate over time. Some specials that have been featured include Calvados Infused Duck Sausage with Apple Mustard; Beef and Lamb Gyros Sausage with Artichoke Tzatziki
Tzatziki
Tzatziki, tzadziki, or tsatsiki is a Greek meze or appetizer, also used as a sauce for souvlaki and gyros. Tzatziki is made of strained yoghurt mixed with cucumbers, garlic, salt, usually olive oil, pepper, sometimes lemon juice, and parsley. Tzatziki is always served cold...
, Kalamata Olives and Feta Cheese; and White Wine and Dijon Rabbit Sausage with Sauce Moutarde and Tilsiter Cheese. Most of the items on the menu - both specials and regulars - are named after a celebrity, a well-known Chicago personality, or friends and relatives of owner Doug Sohn. Examples include the "Elvis" (polish sausage), the "Brigitte Bardot" (spicy andouille sausage), and the "Charlie and James Sohn" (mini bagel dogs and tater tots). The names attached to the permanent menu items are changed frequently but usually maintain a consistent theme: iconic Hollywood sex symbols, legendary comedians, famous Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
players, and so on. Hot Doug's is also notable for its "duck fat fries", served on Fridays and Saturdays only, in which the potatoes are deep fried in oil rendered in duck fat.
Accolades
Hot Doug's won a 2006 Good Eating award from the Chicago TribuneChicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
, which noted the restaurant's "cult status" among hot dog aficionados. Hot Doug's has been featured as a Critics Pick on CBS, NBC, ABC, and the Travel Channel, and was featured in the Chicago episode of Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations. He has also been featured in The New York Times, USA Today, Bon Appetit, The Chicago Tribune, The Sun Times, Time Out Chicago and many other publications. Hot Doug's is highly rated by The Zagat Survey
Zagat Survey
Zagat Survey was established by Tim and Nina Zagat in 1979 as a way to collect and correlate the ratings of restaurants by diners. For their first guide, covering New York City, the Zagats surveyed their friends. As of 2005, the Zagat Survey included 70 cities, with reviews based on the input of...
and is included in many of its Top Lists including Food Tops and Best Buys. Bon Appetit listed it as one of the 50 Best Restaurants on the Planet. The editors of Citysearch
Citysearch
Citysearch is an online city guide that provides information about businesses in the categories of dining, entertainment, retail, travel, and professional services in cities throughout the United States. Visitors to each of Citysearch's local city guides will find contact information, maps, driving...
Chicago named Hot Doug's the 2006 Editorial Winner for Best Chicago Hot Dog. The restaurant also received a 2007 Best Hot Dog honors in a reader poll conducted by the magazine Time Out Chicago.
Foie Gras Controversy
In 2006, Hot Doug's garnered media attention when it continued to serve various foie grasFoie gras
Foie gras ; French for "fat liver") is a food product made of the liver of a duck or goose that has been specially fattened. This fattening is typically achieved through gavage corn, according to French law, though outside of France it is occasionally produced using natural feeding...
-based sausages and condiments following the banning of foie gras by the city of Chicago. The ban had been pushed by Chicago chef Charlie Trotter
Charlie Trotter
Charlie Trotter is a chef and restaurateur.-Biography:A graduate of New Trier High School, Trotter started cooking professionally in 1982 after earning a degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. For the next 5 years, he worked and studied in Chicago, San Francisco at...
and Alderman Joe Moore. Trotter entered into a public debate with Doug Sohn and other Chicago restaurateurs, arguing that the making of foie gras constituted cruelty to animals
Foie gras controversy
The production of foie gras involves the controversial force-feeding of birds with more food than they would eat in the wild, and more than they would voluntarily eat domestically...
. Sohn flagrantly flouted the law by developing a "celebrity" dog made with foie gras, naming it after Ald. Joe Moore and selling the "Joe Moore" during the ban. Sohn, the owner of Hot Doug's, was eventually fined $250 and 30 pounds of foie gras were confiscated from the restaurant. While Sohn may not have entered the argument to drum up sales, the restaurant did benefit from the controversy as it served as free publicity. Sohn was the first in the city to be fined, though a city spokesman stated that enforcement of the ordinance was "one of our lowest priorities". The ban was repealed in May 2008 and the foie gras items were brought back into the restaurant's rotating menu lineup. Hot Doug's specialty duck fat fries weren't affected by the ban.