Hours
Mon 11:00am–2:30pm
Tue–Sat 11:00am–7:00pm
Sun noon–5:00pm
Credit cards Visa, MC
Website
South Lamar
3600 S. Lamar Blvd.
Austin, TX
(512) 300-1791
Like it or not, we live in a mobile society. Fewer and fewer people live and work in the city or town they grew up in anymore. As a result, regional food—thankfully—can pop up in all sorts of locales. Chris’s Little Chicago also happens to be mobile, a little trailer sitting in an empty lot on South Lamar, a fire-engine-red beacon to any of us that have ever been fortunate enough to encounter that great (and often weakly-mimicked) Chicago hot dog. The jaunty trailer and its picnic benches actually have a pretty sweet view of the Greenbelt; just watch out for the angry bees that are sipping from soda cans in nearby trash bins. While the setting is worlds removed from the rumble of L trains overhead, the food is the real thing.
The folks at Chris’s are real-deal Chicagoans that found themselves missing the Second City’s favorite food on the go. You can be sure that your dog will be completely correct in its composition, right down to the tomato wedges, onions, nuclear-green relish, sport peppers, mustard, pickle spears, and (lots of) celery salt. It’s even a totally nostalgic delight when it explodes into our laps upon first bite, just like it did the first time we went to Wrigley Field. You can choose to build your own dog to be less volatile, but trust us: the stains are worth it. Chris’s also serves up a great chili dog, made with homemade chili and just the right amount of heat. Italian and Polish sausages round out the tube-steak offering to great effect. Another Chicago classic, the Italian beef sandwich, is delightful, with its soft roll and tender filling. Ask for it “wet” and they douse the whole deal in salty, delicious jus. Again, it’s a mess but well worth the effort (and do get it “hot”—it won’t hurt). We would skip the oily fries and just have another dog as a side.
There are often specials on the website, including a tailgate-party pack wherein Chris’s provides the ingredients and you can grill ’em yourself. Hide the bags and proclaim your genius to the UT stadium parking lot.
This being a trailer, of course, call first in inclement weather. Chris’s Little Chicago parks its wheels in an unlikely place, sort of in No Man’s Land. With very little security. We’re just sayin’…if we ever have to leave Austin for somewhere other than Chicago, we might just hook this trailer to the back of our car and take it with us.
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