Send in your encased-meat related artistic endeavors - you might just get published. more ›

The infamous hot dog shop hopes to reopen on Monday. more ›

We caught up with Yuck bassist Max Bloom and drummer Jonny Rogoff after their intense Sunday afternoon set at Pitchfork. more ›

Hot Doug's new t-shirt designs show an ability to straddle the divide between North and South side baseball loyalties and trade on Jordan-era Bulls nostalgia. Perfect for the sports and tubesteak lover in your life. more ›

The Feast reports that the Choco-Dog, the single most decadent food item in Chicago's sausage-filled history, is back on the menu at Hot Doug's for this week only. The sausage/dessert/calorie bomb of yuminess includes a homemade pork, dried cherry, and apple sausage topped with Vosges' Mo's bacon Bar. We can just die happy, right there. more ›

Take a second or three to marvel at the latest tubesteak experiment from Doug Sohn. The Feast's Kate Bernot sat down to chat with Hot Doug himself to get the details of this pork sausage topped with a Vosge's "Mo' Bacon" chocolate bar. 'I'm not sure this works, but I can't stop eating it,'" Sohn told Bernot. more ›

One door opens, another door closes, at least for a little while. Grahamwich, the new kid in town, opens its doors today, but Hot Doug's is closing for the holidays. Don't worry, there is no chance this closure will be permanent, and you will be able to get your encased-meat fix for (hopefully) many years to come. However, the restaurant will be closed from Christmas Eve through January 4th. So, if you are looking to get your duck fat fry fix, make sure to go this weekend! more ›

With the city's food media and assorted foochebaggery on pins and needles for next week's release of the Chicago Michelin Guide, the Tribune's "Chicago Live" series at the Chicago Theatre, produced in conjunction with the Second City, will focus on all things food in next week's installment. more ›

This morning, Steve Dolinsky posted his list of the top five french fry places in Chicagoland on Vocalo. Dolinsky expanded the list to the suburbs, but may have gone a little too far - out of five, only two are actually in the city. The two lucky Chicago fry joints are Hot Doug's (of course) and Top Notch Beefburger. The other three contestants are in Skokie, Evanston and Forest Park. more ›

Looks like the king of encased meats, Doug Sohn, is getting into the t-shirt business. Pictured above are the new line of t-shirts from Hot Doug's, available only online at www.hotdougs.com. More designs and garments are in the works for fall. I can't help but express a little bit of disappointment that Hot Doug's still isn't shipping duck fat fries across the country. You take it as it comes. more ›

If a hot dog joint dares to venture beyond Chicago-style territory and up its game with gourmet sausages, comparisons to Hot Doug's are inevitable. Alexander Brunacci apparently understands this, which is why he's gone to great lengths to distance himself from the reigning king of gourmet encased meats on my visits to Franks 'N Dawgs. "I understand that people are going to make those comparisons," Brunacci said. "But I think we're more akin to a place like Kuma's Corner with what we're doing." more ›

Wine Distributor, Lagniappe Beverage more ›

As if the wait wasn't already long enough, you might want to start packing a snack before heading to Hot Doug's since the line is probably going to be growing ever longer whilst you wait to order your lunch. Anthony Bourdain has just named Hot Doug's as one of "13 places to eat before you die." [Men's Health] more ›

Here's something to consider for that person in your life who lives to dine out but is a pain in the ass to shop for. à la card Chicago is an update on the clichéd and tacky coupon book. It's a deck of cards offering $10 off the tab at 52 of the area's best restaurants. Looking through the deck we saw a slew of restaurants we love, such as Mundial Cocina Mestiza, Hot Doug's, Mana Food Bar, Le Lan, Naha, Lula Café, MK, Manny's, Mado, Kitsch'n. more ›

Thanks to a reader for shooting this video of the line outside Hot Doug's on Saturday. That was one muggy day to be waiting in line for hot dogs, even those the caliber of Doug Sohn's. more ›

We cursed when we realized that we'd hit Hot Doug's just one day after the infamous Anthony Bourdain made his own trip there (Ed.Note: We usually refer to him simply as "BOURDAIN" around here). Pictures of Tony in line (courtesy of Cinnamon Cooper, AKA "Cinnachick") as well as some wiener shots from our trip below. more ›

• From the "DUH!" Files: Apparently fast food meals aren't good for kids. The Center for Science in the Public Interest released a report this week that concluded that kids meals at fast food chains exceed the 430 calories-per-meal limit. Among the worst offenders, Chili's makes the list twice with kids meals at or over 1000 calories each. [via MenuPages Chicago]
• "Rock Star Chef City" alert: BOURDAIN is in town through next week finally filming for the No Reservations Chicago episode. He's got the venerable Louisa Chu in tow, who'll be escorting him to Calumet Fisheries, Burt's Place in Morton Grove and L2O, among other places. We're so stalking this weekend. [Food Chain]
• Lori Barrett writes about cold soups. [Drive Thru]
• An argument for frozen fish [Washington Post, via]