The Affordable Chicago Side I Think Should Get More Love

There's a side dish you'll find at some Italian beef stands in Chicago that rarely gets any attention despite the fact that Italian beef has recently been thrust into the spotlight thanks to the show "The Bear" (which is loosely based on a real restaurant in Chicago). It usually doesn't cost more than a few dollars, but it's one of my favorite things to get if I want a snack that's almost as satisfying as an entire meal.

This would be what we call gravy bread, which goes by slightly different names depending on where you're at. I've seen them called soggies, dunkers, or pretty much anything implying this item is wet. That's because gravy bread is simply a naked French roll fully dipped into Italian beef jus until it's basically disintegrating. What's interesting about this side is that you won't find it at every beef stand — just ones that have been around for a long time. 

Trust me when I say it's delicious. A full Italian beef sandwich is a simple thing of beauty, but much of the flavor secretly lies in the jus (aka gravy, hence the name). It's salty, savory, beefy, and seasoned with garlic and oregano; those herbs and spices you associate with Italian-American flavors. The French bread used by most of our Italian beef stands is normally light with a tug to each bite, but it becomes soft, comforting, and warming with the jus. Plus, if you're lucky, sometimes you'll get some extra shreds of beef stuck to the bread.

The gravy bread is a local Chicago deep cut, but there are a few other sides here that also feel hyper-regional. One is a particular type of tamale, either by a company called Supreme or another called Tom Tom Tamales. They're cylindrical, machine-extruded tamales with a cornmeal exterior and various fillings like beef or sometimes more corn (for a meatless variety). Rather than being wrapped with a traditional corn husk, they're prepackaged in paper for you to tear into at your leisure. Sometimes you can get them in something called a tamale boat, which is one of these tamales covered in chili and cheese. There's also an item called the mother-in-law, which serves as a main dish and is composed of one of these tamales covered in Chicago-style hot dog toppings.

Then there's the pizza puff, made by a company called Iltaco. This isn't like a calzone or stromboli; it's more of a flat chimichanga filled with pizza toppings like sauce, cheese, and finely-ground Italian sausage all wrapped in a flour tortilla and then deep fried. (I've burned my mouth on many of these things, so fair warning.) These also show up on the sides menu, but they're substantial enough that one can count as a small lunch. I've noticed these are a little controversial, if only because they're admittedly not everyone's favorite Chicago specialty, but I have a soft spot for them. And of course, there's always gravy bread, which is my personal favorite. Just because something's cheap doesn't mean it's not worth way more than what you paid for it.