#17 Downers Grove Portillo's

We refer to the Portillo’s in Downers Grove as “Lyzz’ Portillo’s”.  Our niece Lyzz has long since moved to Portland, OR where you couldn’t get a decent Italian beef or hot dog if you were willing to pay a hundred bucks.  Not that we miss her, but that’s what she gets for moving away!  Well she’s here today along with the rest of the family enjoying Portillo’s one again.  While the visit is joyous, we’re been brought together hastily and for unfortunate reasons.  Everyone has come to town to say farewell to “Gramps.”  If you’ve been following the blog you’ve probably noticed that I haven’t written anything for a long time.  It’s been six weeks since his passing, and our visit to this Portillo’s, and I’m still having a difficult time putting down some words.  Perhaps this isn’t the best forum, but I really owe him a tribute.  Also, I’m not a historian so I won’t even attempt to write a biography.  I’ll pick up the story where I got to know him and for the sake of the blog, I’m only going to hit the highlights.

Albert Krafft (1916-2010).  He was my sister’s best friend’s father.  He (widower) and my mother (divorced) were, for lack of a better term, "set-up" by the girls and in 1977 they married.  In the process we (my brothers and sister) picked up three step-sisters, three nephews and a niece, including my best friend who instantly became my nephew (even though he’s a month older than me).  It’s not as complicated as it sounds.  Since I was the only one still living with my mom, Al (who I affectionately referred to as “Egg”) became my acting father.  I was graduating 8th grade and the timing couldn’t have been better.  I was very fortunate to have such a great role model!  He was intelligent, worked hard, cared deeply, etc.  Honestly, I couldn’t come up with enough positive adjectives if I tried.  Anyone who has raised a teenager knows it can be challenging, but we never fought.  Stepping ahead, he was married to my mother until she passed away in 1998.  All the while he was there for the birth of my son, my nephews and nieces, weddings and funerals.  I guess the same things we all experience.  There are so many stories, but the most memorable to me was the first time he introduced me as his son.  What a proud moment that was for me and something I’ll never forget!  Before he passed he said to me, “don’t miss me too much.”  That’s one thing that I could never promise.

Jeff
Garbage Salad (accidently flipped the bowl over but missed Sarah – better luck next time)

Joy
Chopped Salad

Josh
Combo Beef and Char-Grilled Sausage
Fries

Sarah and Joe, Greg and Annie, Lyzz and Gabe, Ruth, Nan
Stuff you can't get in Kansas or Oregon

Nan fell asleep while eating - pretty common

#16 Bolingbrook Portillo's

One thing that Portillo’s doesn’t serve is rice, which for my friend Boua (Boo-wah) was either disappointing or a welcome change.  She eats rice at virtually every meal.  Boua (not pictured - replaced by a nice outdoor eating area picture) and I work together and we’re fortunate enough to be able to telecommute (if that’s still the appropriate term) from various locations … nope, I just remembered, it’s now called ‘hotelling.’  That’s a misnomer if ever I’ve heard one!  It somehow implies that I’m on vacation - sleeping, trying to sleep, or lounging by a pool.  None of which even comes close to working in a cube.  Anyway, Boua likes to work a bit closer to home on Fridays so she suggested we meet at the Bolingbrook Portillo’s for lunch.  It wasn’t too bad of a ride for me, since I was working in Oak Brook.  Oak Brook is right next to I88, which by the way used to be I5, bet you didn’t know, or if you’re my age or older, remember that.  Which brings up a good point, why can’t everyone agree that one continuous road should maintain the same name?  Where is the federal, or at least the state, government when you need them?  This is why I’m paying taxes, right?

I’m getting up the soap box now so if you want to check out, off with you.  That was just one example of how the government lets us down.  They spend countless hours writing legislation that often complicates life instead of making it easier.  You’ll laugh at this, but here's one minor regulation could make all of our lives easier.  How about creating some rules regarding clothing sizes!  Depending on the manufacturer, I range from a medium to an XL in t-shirt size.  Does that make any sense?  I recently wrote a letter to my – former- t-shirt supplier complaining that for the last ten years I’ve bought the same size shirt from them.  In my last order, the large t-shirt was four inches wider and four inches longer than the previous batch (yes I order more than one at a time – and yes – I order them on-line).  I understand that Americans in general are becoming more obese, but they should just be forced to buy larger shirts, shouldn’t they?  I guess the whole issue would be moot if I enjoyed clothes shopping, but I don’t.  Boua, you’re always looking for business ideas, how about a company that certifies clothing sizes!?

Jeff
Grilled Vegetable Sandwich (needed more spices)
Strawberry / Banana Smoothie (exceptionally good)

Boua
Chopped Salad (no cheese)

#15 Northlake Portillo's

One of the best things about work, other than the money, is the opportunity to build friendships.  In addition, those friendships lead to free birthday lunches!  Guess where I chose to go … think about it … If you guessed anywhere other than Portillo’s you’re reading the wrong blog!!  Val, Debbie, and Heather (pictured in that order below) are three of my best friends.  We’ve worked and eaten lunch together for several years.  We’re so close that when we don’t have lunch together we get mad at each other.  Debbie and I have been friends the longest.  I’m not going to say how long, but Josh is going off to college and we were friends long before he was born.  I guess that’s one thing I don’t like about work.  While it helps us meet people and become friends it doesn’t always foster those friendships.  Debbie and I were fortunate because we worked together at one company, and after it went belly-up, we both ended up at the same new company.  I know people say that if you really wanted to stay friends after you left school, a job, etc., that you would stay in touch.  To some degree I agree with that, but there’s something to be said for proximity when building relationships.

The Portillo’s in Northlake is on North Ave.  As a kid I could always remember my directions because we lived south of North Ave.  I still live south of North Ave. and east of West St.  I wonder if this helps Josh remember his directions?  Anyway, I’d be remiss in my duties if I didn’t make special mention of Portillo’s Chocolate Cake.  Since it was my birthday, and I wasn’t paying, I made sure to order a piece.  If you think you’ve ever had a better piece of chocolate cake, I’d like to try it.  As the edict goes, “there’s always room for cake.”  What, you haven’t been taking that as an edict?  I have, and I’ve got the body to prove it.

Jeff
Hot Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad (liked it)
Chocolate Cake (loved it)

Val:
Italian Beef
Cheese Fries

Debbie:
Char-Broiled Chicken Sandwich (made like a hamburger)

Heather:
Hot Dog
Cheese Fries

#14 Chicago Portillo's

We had a really good Friday Good Friday this week.  I took the day off and the three of us took a trip downtown, yes actually downtown Chicago.  We stopped at the Portillo’s on Ontario.  Believe it, or not, this is the only Portillo’s in Chicago.  I guess those of us from the suburbs take Portillo’s for granted.  I’ve spoken to a couple of friends who live in the city and they rarely, or if ever, go to Portillo’s.  On the other hand, I haven’t met a person yet from the suburbs who hasn’t been to Portillo’s.  One of the great things about driving down into the city is the ample parking.  I’m kidding of course, our city is not to friendly to drivers.  Case in point, the Portillo’s on Ontario is surrounded by one way streets, so you if you miss the turn you find yourself driving around in ever widening concentric squares looking for a spot.  The irony is that we saw a spot directly in front of the restaurant and had to drive a mile to get to it.  Fortunately it was still there, it was a legal spot, and I didn’t go the wrong way down a one way street like I’ve been known to do in the past.  What’s cool about this Portillo’s is that they have a bunch of actual Chicago memorabilia tacked to the walls.  You’ll have to stop by and check it out sometime.  Also, this is the only Portillo’s, at least the only one that I know of, that has a second floor. There’s quite a bit of seating up there as well.

Today was the last day for Pepper and Egg sandwiches at Portillo’s.  Lent is the only season when you can get this sandwich, and it’s one of Joy’s favorites.  Basically, that was one of the main reasons she agreed to go to Portillo’s two days in a row.  Yes, yesterday we were at the Portillo’s in Merrillville, Indiana.  Before I forget, this is the only Portillo’s I’ve seen with pizza.  I didn’t try it since it wasn’t listed on the official menu (paper version found at all the restaurants).  I don’t have the luxury of trying any other items, since I’m trying to get through every item on the menu this year.

We took the opportunity of being in the city to make a couple of other stops.  After Portillo’s we stopped at Quimby’s book store on North Avenue.  This is no Borders or Barnes and Noble.  They have some of the more obscure and, let’s just call it, interesting zines around.  If you’re as unfamiliar with this term as I was, it’s essentially a self published work reproduced by copier.  The name is a hyperlink if you want to check it out. This was a pick I made for Josh.  I thought he would find it interesting, and it’s good to take advantage of the diversity found in a large city.  The next stop was Windy City Scrapbooking.  I’ll give you one guess who this stop was for.  I think she was pleasantly surprised. The final stop was for all of us. It’s a place we’ve seen on the Food Channel and a place that our friends the Lugo’s recommended, Margie’s Candies on Western Ave.  It opened in 1921, and while I wasn’t completely sold on the ice cream, it was good, and it’s definitely worth a stop.  My boss Nisa knows the owners so if you have any trouble just let me know.

Jeff:
Broiled Chicken on a Croissant (delicious)
Onion Rings (if I knew these wouldn’t make me fat, I’d eat them all the time)
Joy:
Pepper and Egg (last one of the season – better than the last one she had)
Josh:
Jumbo Dog (always a good choice)
Fries

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 






Pictures from Margies Candies (below)

 



 

#13 Merrillville Indiana Portillo's

Today was April Fools’ Day and I really felt like a fool today. We drove to Purdue since Josh has been accepted into the Biomedical Engineering program. This is a great accomplishment and we’re very proud of him!! The foolish part was that we thought that financial aid meant financial aid, not financial AIDS. How foolish is that? Financial aid means that we qualify for loans – whoopty do. The cost for an out of state student at Purdue is almost $42,000 a year. Assuming he finishes in four years that’s $168,000. Mind you that we were told that this is a worst case scenario, since he’s only required to live on campus the first year. Assuming he doesn’t eat, and he sleeps in the foyer of one of the buildings, as we found one student, we could bring the total down to perhaps $130,000. At current interest rates, that will be $1,611 a month for 10 years. That’s more like a mortgage payment! What was even more maddening was that in-state tuition was just about half that cost. Unfortunately the same doesn’t apply to the U of I where the tuition for in-state freshmen students is around $32,000. You can certainly tell where my mind has been lately!

Back to the main purpose of this blog, eating at Portillo’s. That’s something we can afford. We stopped at the Portillo’s in Merrillville, Indiana. This is the only Portillo’s in Indiana and it’s a nice one. We hit it right in the middle of the afternoon, which happened to be a great time to eat, since it wasn’t crowded. This is the first time I’ve noticed, but there was a baked potato side listed on the menu. It wasn’t on my official menu from the blog, so I didn’t have to “officially” order it, but I did and I liked it. Not sure if this is something that is coming to the other stores, but it should. I also ordered the Polish sausage. I’m a fan of sausage, and this was good. I followed my friend Tim’s advice and ordered it on a hot dog bun, although my friend Pete prefers Italian bread. In either case you’ve got to order it with the grilled onions and mustard. That’s the way it’s meant to be eaten.

Jeff:
Polish Sausage
Baked Potato
Joy:
Chopped Salad (bread – where’s the muffin?)
Josh:
Garbage Salad