Poochie’s | Chicago Red Hot At Its Best In Skokie, IL

Exquisite Cheap Eats

Informal though it may be, Poochie’s serves food that I would call nothing less than exquisite. To me, a meal here tastes more delicious and satisfies more deeply than nine out of ten deluxe $100+ dinners. Star of the menu is an all-beef Chicago red hot.

Dressing the Dog

Of course, the red hot comes nestled in a steamed-soft Rosen’s bun. Also of course, you can choose from a full array of Chicagoland frankfurter condiments. These include mustard, piccalilli, raw onions, sliced tomato, pickle spears, ground pepper, and celery salt, plus deliriously tasty sweet grilled onions. You may also ask for your dog to be topped with barely-melted cheddar cheese. As a purist, I resist the cheese. But as a ravening appetite, I must admit I like it. It adds such yummy dairy luxury. It works not only on a hot dog, but on Poochie’s hamburgers and its hand-cut, fresh-from-the-fry-basket French fries.

What’s In Your Bun?

Beyond taut, plump red hots that are steamed, Poochie’s offers crunchy-surfaced char dogs. They cook over coals until their skin is chewy-dark and flavored by the fire. Polish sausages are plumper, porky sausages. The chefs split them in a spiral pattern to attain maximum crunchy surface area as they cook. If one in a bun of any of these tube steaks leaves you wanting more, you can get either a jumbo dog or a double. When I dream of Poochie’s I see a jumbo char dog with cheddar fries (such superb fries!) on the side.

Ultimate Chicago

Poochie’s is proud of its char-cooked hamburgers. I especially like them piled high with those sweet grilled onions. But if you are passing through town and stop here with time for only one street-food indulgence, make it a Chicago red hot with the works and a side of fries. This meal is why it’s very difficult to argue with a Chicagoan who boasts that Windy City hot dogs reign supreme.