The Egg Roll King?

-Grubbing in Chicago
The Elusive Egg Roll (Part 3)

Were back on the hunt for that elusive egg roll perfection we've been seeking. So stop #3 takes us to a place on Broadway over in Uptown. Well anyplace that calls itself the Hunan Egg Roll King certainly deserves a shot at the crown however I'll be determining who's King around here. I've actually been here for egg rolls before my recent visit but that was at least 3-4 years ago way before I had a camera and was on this quest. I didn't remember loving them but I also don't remember them tasting like hot garbage so I needed another visit and that came a few days ago.


In Chicago's Uptown neighborhood

Hunan has been in its small storefront for awhile now, I remember it from way back. Inside its a small no nonsense dining room and most of the orders are taken to go or delivered, which is what I recommend you do. The menu is your typical Chinese-American spots menu but I cant speak for anything but the egg rolls. The prices are really low over there and when I paid my recent visit here there were a couple people dining in and at least three others that stopped in for pick up and the lunch specials seemed to be popular. I peeked at the menu and saw that egg rolls came in orders of two and were about three bucks, so pretty cheap. The nice lady told me to give her 5-10 minutes and I said no prob and took a seat to wait for the Hunan Egg Roll Kings egg rolls. Would they take the crown?


Egg Roll from the Egg Roll King

So are they the self proclaimed King of Egg Rolls? or the peoples choice? well while they were not bad I still enjoyed the rolls from stops one and two much more. The Hunan's rolls were a little longer in length than the other two spots but that's about where it ended with advantages it had over them. The egg rolls were somewhat soft and not very crispy and it was even hard to slice it open because the roll was pretty limp. After I was able to gut it open I noticed it was real heavy on the cabbage and real light on the meat and or shrimp. The hot mustard was the stuff in the packets that most places use so another not so good thing. All in all the egg roll was fine but nothing about it was top notch. If I lived right near here I may even get an order of them again here and there out of convenience but have no reason to drive there for them.


These egg rolls didn't have the perfect balance sought

Hunan Egg Roll King
4204 North Broadway
Chicago, IL 60613-1610
(773) 883-2647

Alma Pita

-Oh Yeah, I've been there too...
Alma Pita in Uptown

Welcome to the newest ongoing series at chibbqking: "Oh yeah, I've been there to". Quick run downs of places that I also happen to have been too along the way on the great Chicago eating trail.

Neighborhood: Uptown
Cuisine: Lebanese, Mediterranean
Price Range: $7-$10
Would I go again? Yes if I was in the hood and felt like this type of food, definitely.


Unnassuming on the outside but good stuff from within

Alma pita is a tiny little family owned storefront that I went to over a year ago and quite enjoyed for what it was. Since I just drove by it along Wilson ave and was in the mood for something light that night I decided to give it a try. It had some regulars talking it up with the owners and it looked like a popular neighborhood spot. The menu had the usual stuff seen on a Lebanese menu and I opted for the combination plate with two types of beef including kifta kebab and one type of chicken. That came with a salad and lentil soup. Next time I'm there and there will be one, I hope to further explore the menu but will again be getting some lentil soup. It was quite tasty and quite comforting during the winter. Healthy too I assume. Service was extra friendly and prices were great. All in all it was a very good experience.


lentil soup from Alma Pita


Combination Plate

Alma Pita
4600 North Magnolia Avenue
(entrance on Wilson ave)
Chicago, IL 60640-5083
(773) 561-2787

Helluva lot happenin' at Hella's

--Got Beef? (and lamb)
KingT's gyro-tron

Our next stop on the gyro-tron is Hella's. Located right off the Bryn Mawr stop on the red line in the Edgewater neighborhood. If you like the places that haven't changed thru time then you'll most likely love Hella's. Nothing and I mean nothing has changed over there. This is for the better and worse as you will soon read.


Ill take a gyro but skip the Budweiser and gimme a High Life

They dont do much as far as upkeep goes over at Hella's. The lighting is so dim that I think they may not have switched the light bulbs in 5-6 years. There is a Jim McMahon poster that sits right over the counter and on it you can see different layers of grease from over the years, its almost like a grease rainbow. There's a display cabinet with all sorts of useless junk that the owner keeps there because I assume he doesnt have anymore room at his place. There is a stack of phone book's to the ceiling that im guessing is every edition put out by yellowbook from the past 20 years. The customers arent exactly your Starbucks crowd. They are interesting to say the least. When we left I saw a really short old Asian guy entering with a tall young black transvestite. So they say the neighborhood has changed, not that night. Its also a favorite with the cops though as I saw a few come and go for food. Many people were stopping in to purchase 40 oz. of Miller Lite which along with the gyros seem to be the hot seller. If you like crack with your spanakopita...I'm sure you can find that too.


Dont forget to vote for me this election season

But then there is the food which hasnt changed either and that is for the better. You see Hella doesnt use one of Chicago's gyro manufacturer's. They have a homemade mix that they make in house and have since they opened. There is something really entertaining about the old Greek guy with a thick white mustache cutting the meat from the spit super fast and in style. He had a ninja like approach to cutting that meat.


you can tell from this picture of the spit how dim it is inside

The characters inside are interesting, and the decor is a bit grimy but this place is an old-school uptown gyro spot that gives a little idea of what that neighborhood was like in the 70's and 80's. Aside from gyros they have all sorts of Greek favorites including saganaki (another Chicago original) which I will be back to try. Im interested to see how the old guy lights it without burning off his mustache. The gyro was good but my main complaint was that it is sliced to thick for me. I prefer my gyro's thin and crispy but everything about it was good including the greasy fries. I ate my dinner so quick all I got a pic of was my sandwich when I made it. This is a good gyro I might say. Plus points for using sport peppers as one of the toppings along with tomato and onions. I had never seen that before but I enjoyed it and it gave the gyro even more Chicago flare. In case you didnt know gyros were introduced to America in Chicago.



Rating Scale 5/5

Gyro meat: 3
tzatziki: 3
fries: 3
freshness of pita and toppings: 3

Score: 12/20

Hella's Gyros
1133 W. Bryn Mawr Ave.
Chicago, IL 60660
773-728-3950