This weekend I had the pleasure of joining a group of fellow LTHForum.com members at Beefathon III, a five-stop Italian beef tasting and rating event. Each Beefathon event has focused on a different set of Italian beefs. Saturday's event took about a dozen of us to five different spots on the north side. We rated each location on a variety of different categories ranging from the meat to the bread to the giardiniera to the ambiance of the establishment.
The final results have not yet been tallied, but I'll offer a recap based on my tastes:
- Tore's 2804 N. Western
I've been to Tore's many times, and I've found their beef to be improving over the past couple years. Saturday, the sandwich had a good roast beef flavor and a nice spice balance.
Tore's Exterior
- Dino and Nick's Pizza and Beef 2035 N Pulaski
This beef was super-seasoned to the point that the garlic and spices overwhelmed the giardiniera and overall beef flavor. Definitely the middle-of-the-road beef of the day, in my opinion, although a good portion of the group liked the heavy seasoning. (I gave them an extra point for the appearance of an olive in their giardiniera--nice touch!). - Roma's Italian Beef and Sausage 4237 N Cicero
Roma's was a conundrum: great fries, nice people, bland beef. This beef was the exact opposite of Dino's. It was the unpainted canvas of the day. Nevertheless, their hand-cut fries were delicious and our note-taking peaked the owner's interest to the point that we got a "backstage" tour. Roma's has their own recipe for Italian sausage, and I'll be back to have one of those with some of their fries.
Backstage at Roma's
- Quick Bite 5155 N Western
I didn't have high hopes for Quick Bite, and they basically met my expectations. If Roma's was an unpainted canvas, Quick Bite was a hotel room painting: weird, bad, and tasteless. - Max's 5754 N Western
I knew early on that Max's was going to be my winner for the day. I've been eating Max's beef for over two decades and I could pick it out in a blind taste test. Their spice balance is excellent, the mysterious red giardiniera is great (Rob from Vital Information tried to cajole the secret spices from the owner, without success), and their double-cooked fries are simultaneously crisp and creamy. We polished it all off with some of Max's (in)famous "ghetto fries": french fries topped with cheddar, gravy, raw onion, and giardiniera. Max's got good points all around and is the likely winner of the day.
Max's, the beef of the day...
...and the beef's stellar co-star
After all was said and done, it was a great way to spend a Saturday. Some good beefs, some not-so, and a lot of good company. (For the record, we did not each eat a whole beef at each stop, they were split in quarters).
Many thanks to the beef-loving folks at LTHForum.com (especially George R and dicksond, organizers and chauffeur).
For those interested in following the results of past and future Beefathon's here are some important links:
LTHForum.com Main Page
Beefathon III post-discussion
Beefathon II recap
Original Italian Beef Tasting
