The Beef Chronicles #1: Johnnie's Beef

The beef chronicles begin with what is considered to be by many the best italian beef in the Chicagoland area. The original Johnnie’s Beef is in Elmwood Park but I found myself in the Arlington Heights area and decided to stop by for an early dinner.

When I arrived there was a small line of about 7-8 people waiting to place an order. Not an uncommon thing as the lines at the Elmwood Park location can be long on the weekend. As I was waiting an older man joked with me and said “must be good huh” as he looked towards the line. I asked if it was hist first time and se said no, he had been going to Johnnie’s Beef is whole life. He told me his son lived in Florida and they would always come get a beef when he was in town.

The Beef

I placed my order: Beef, hot, fries and a large diet. My standard beef order. I missed one thing that I will explain in a second. The process was very quick and after I paid I had my food in under a minute, honestly closer to 30 seconds. This Johnnie’s location has indoor and outdoor seating. I choose indoors to avoid the bees in the patio. This is what my beef looked like: It looked a bit simple but once I took that first bit all was forgotten. It had been at least 7-8 years since I’ve had a Johnnie’s Beef (a huge sin on my part). The meat was so tender and juicy. The giardiniera was pretty hot, it had been a while since I’ve had a giardiniera that was this spicy. It added a nice zing to the meat. It looked like it was mostly peppers, didn’t see any carrots or cauliflower. The fries had a nice crunch and were plentiful, it was a Five Guys situation were they add extra as they drop the fries in the bag. The thing I missed was I didn’t ask for it juicy. I made a mistake since the bread was a bit dry. Some places give the beef a quick dip and I think this beef needed that. That was the only negative of the meal and it was my fault for not asking. When I get around to going to the Elmwood Park location I will fix that error. Overall the beef was delicious and I enjoyed every spicy bite. Looking forward to my next visit.

8.4/10