Cal hound seeks chicken jibarito, "semi-deep" dish 'za

[silverlakebodhisattva]

Getting ready for our annual November pilgrimage to Chicago: coat (check) shopping list for JRM (check) Shaw's reservation for Chowspouse (check) and and looking to try two things based on this month's Saveur write-ups:

a jibarito (but chicken only please; no beef or pig?) and

a "semi-' deep pan pizza, ala Burt's,

but without actually having to get a car. . .

Where do I go? Can I get there from the Loop on public transportation?

[Amata]

Well, I will avoid the pizza controversy and try to help you out with a jibarito.

I must confess that I thought jibaritos were only made with beef, but I used the Find-a-food option on menupages.com and it revealed that a place not too far from the Loop has a chicken jibarito -- Punta Cana. Punta Cana is actually a Dominican spot: I ate there once for lunch and thought the food was not bad, but haven't rushed to get back again. So I have no idea how their jibarito is, chicken or otherwise, but you can give it a shot there.

Punta Cana
1024 N. Ashland Ave.
Chicago, IL

To get there from the Loop, take a Blue Line train heading toward O'Hare, and get off at Division. Walk south on Ashland about 2 blocks; it's on the west side of the street.

-----
Punta Cana
1024 N Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL 60622

[rubinow]

According to the Borinquen Restaurant website (http://www.borinquenjibaro.com/...who knew?) you can get jibaritos in many incarnations (chicken/pork/beef/veggie). I only mention Borinquen b/c it is the home of the jibarito.

That website doesn't really give the true "feel" of the restaurant, fyi.

[Vinny Barbaresco]

You get Jibaritos in as many incarnations as you wish, but they're still made from poor quality ingredients and IMO rather disgusting.

[Vinny Barbaresco]

You can't get to Burt's easily without a car. I'm not a fan of their "burnt cheese" pizza; if you must have this style in the city (burnt cheese, deep dish) you can get it at Pequod's on Clybourn at Webster. As for a Jibarito, why anyone would willingly ingest one of these foul concoctions (chicken, beef or otherwise) is beyond me. Jibaritos can be obtained at Boriquen (multiple locations), but you've been warned that these sandwiches are made from the lowest quality ingredients known to man. Do yourself a favor and skip the Jibarito, your body will thank you for it.

[LabRat]

FWIW, Pequod's and Burt's Place were both founded by the same person (Burt Katz) which is why they are similar. From what I have read, Mr. Katz sold Pequod's in '86 and opened Burt's Place a few years later.

[burton]

This is hilarious. Have never been to Burt's. Am definitely going to check out their pan/deep dish for myself. (Plan to bring a fire extinguisher just in case.)

[nsxtasy]

For pan pizza, Pizano's is excellent and has a location in the Loop (on Madison). Also excellent for pan pizza are Lou Malnati's, with multiple locations including one in River North, and Gino's East, with multiple locations including River North and Michigan Avenue, and the original locations ONLY of Uno's and Due in River North. All of these are a short walk from the Loop. And all are far, far better than Burt's Place and their burnt crust pizza, IMHO.

Of course, there are lots of opinions about Chicago pizza, and you can read many of them in these topics:
www.chowhound.com/topics/327474
www.chowhound.com/topics/319254

[jesteinf]

I think the good people at Saveur magazine disagree on your opinion of Burt's.

http://www.zinio.com/cover?is=224691901

[nsxtasy]

They're welcome to their opinion. I've tried it, and that burnt crust doesn't do anything for me in terms of taste. In fact, I think Burt's (and the somewhat similar pizza at Pequod's) is really a rather poor example of Chicago pizza, compared with the far, far superior pan pizza turned out by Lou Malnati's, Gino's East, Pizano's, and the original location of Uno's. I also think the slightly different style of double-crust "stuffed" pizza served by Giordano's, Edwardo's, and Bacino's is also a superior representation of Chicago deep-dish pizza.

Burt and Sharon are very charming, though, and I suspect a lot of people go there because of their charm (and the rugged quantness of the restaurant), rather than for the pizza itself.

If you *must* travel to Burt's Place, from the Loop you can take the Metra Milwaukee North train to the Morton Grove stop, and it's a few blocks walk from there. www.metrarail.com You can also get there via the #250 Dempster Pace bus, which stops at the Davis Street station on the CTA's Purple Line and the Dempster station on the Yellow Line. www.pacebus.com www.transitchicago.com

[Roger Spark]

Pan Pizza and Deep-Dish Pizza are two completely different styles, although both are made in pans. Deep-Dish pizza has a thinner crust that has higher walls like a pie, which is filled to the top with cheese, sauce and toppings. Pan pizza, or "pizza in the pan" as Burt calls it, has a thicker crust that is flat. It is topped more sparingly, like a regular thin crust pizza. Because the crust is flat, where the cheese touches the hot pan, a 1/4" high, paper thin ring of delicious carmelized cheese forms around the edge of the pie like fine black lace. Burt's pizza does not have a "burnt crust" whatsoever, and I wish certain persons would stop using that misleading term. Pequod's, on the other hand, has taken the carmelization effect to an extreme by actually lining the pan with cheese, which produces a lot of carmelization (too much in my opinion). I suspect that some people who are calling Burt's pizza "burnt" have never actually eaten there, but are assuming that it is like Pequod's.

If you want a pizza styled by a master who has been making pizza for four decades, then go to Burt's, if you want your pizza made by some minimum wage teenager who has been making pizza for four weeks, then go to a tourist trap like Uno's. If you judge your pizza by the pound, and want the maximum amount of sausage for your money, then Burt's is not for you.

As mentioned above, Burt's Place is almost adjacent to the Morton Grove train station. It can also be reached by taking the Skokie Swift (yellow line) from the Howard street (red line) station, then transferring to the Dempster bus.

[nsxtasy]

The terms deep-dish and pan pizza can be confusing, but as they are commonly used, pan pizza is a subset of deep-dish pizza. Deep-dish pizza is made in a pan with high walls; both the single-crust "pan" pizza served by Lou Malnati's, Gino's East, Pizano's, Burt's Place, and Pequod's, and the double-crust "stuffed" pizza served by Giordano's, Edwardo's, and Bacino's, are two popular types of deep-dish pizza.

I have eaten at both Burt's Place and Pequod's this year. They both serve pizza with a burnt crust. Based on actually eating there, I think this is a very applicable term. The crust is black and charred. And IMHO it is not very appealing - not just because the crust is burnt, but because the entire dish - crust, cheese, sauce, toppings, etc - doesn't achieve the balance and delicious taste you will find at Malnati's, Gino's, etc. That is my OPINION but it is indeed based on the experience of eating at all of those places.

The pizza at Burt's and Pequod's is very similar to each other (not surprising, since Burt's was one of the founders of Pequod's, years ago). The main difference I noticed is that Pequod's has a stronger tasting sauce (more like a marinara type sauce rather than a fresh or canned tomato type sauce). Not necessarily better, just different.

I also wish those who hype Burt's and Pequod's would stop using the highly misleading term "caramelization", which connotes sweetness, since it most often refers to the process of heating sugar. If you are expecting a "caramel" or sweet flavor, you will be disappointed. If you are expecting a "burnt" crust, you will get what you expect. The burnt crust is not at all delicious, and doesn't help the taste of the pizza - again, in my OPINION.

Locals have the ability to try any and all of these places, and decide for themselves which they prefer. Out of town visitors, time permitting, are welcome to do the same (although I think they're better off starting with the ones that are most convenient to the part of town they are staying in, rather than spending a significant part of their limited time here on public transportation). I've tried all of these. I like the ones without the burnt crust. I don't like the ones with the burnt crust. Decide for yourself which ones YOU like best - and you are welcome to your opinion.

Website links:
www.loumalnatis.com
www.ginoseast.com
www.unos.com
www.pizanoschicago.com
www.giordanos.com
www.edwardos.com
www.bacinos.com
www.pequodspizza.com
(no website for Burt's)

[Roger Spark]

You are wrong. Deep-dish is made in a pan and is therefore a subset of pan pizza. I will say it again, Burt's crust is not burnt. There is a tiny edge of CARMELIZED cheese around the very top of the pie. That is cheese that is brown, not the crust. Cheese contains lactose, which is sugar. The browning of sugar is called carmelization. That is the correct term.

[nsxtasy]

You are wrong. Pan pizza and stuffed pizza are both made in deep dishes and are therefore subsets of deep-dish pizza. I will say it again, Burt's crust is black and it is burnt. The term "caramelized" is misleading because it connotes sweetness, which the pizza does not have. The pizza tastes burnt, period.

[Roger Spark]

Here is a link to some photos on another site, that clearly show it is the cheese around the edge that is browned and not the crust. Many people like that flavor (think of the edge of a grilled cheese sandwich), obviously Nsxtasy is not one of those people. He and I disagree on many things, but the pizza absolutely does not taste burnt.

http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic....

[nsxtasy]

The pizza tastes burnt. And aside from the burnt edges, the rest of it is rather bland. The pizza at Lou Malnati's and Giordano's is far, far better. That is my OPINION. You are welcome to yours.

[Vinny Barbaresco]

You can call it whatever you wish, bottom line...it's burnt! I'm not saying it's bad, but it is in no uncertain terms it's burnt.