Why no Portillos in Indy? (where to buy, eat, villa)

[mobyhead]

I had an Italian Beef just yesterday at King's Gyros on S. East Street. They do a decent job of it. They also sell Pizza Puffs there as well. http://iltaco.com/Home_Page.html The owner is from Chicago. It's comfort food for me since I grew up on Chicago's southside.

[daschmidty]

I would also recommend South of Chicago pizza and Beef in Fletcher Place for a solid Italian beef. It is honestly the first one I've had since moving to Indy that tasted like it is supposed to (spicy gravy and hot peppers on a Gonella bakery bun)..although the one's I have seen at King Gyros looked decent too.

[missik999]

Originally Posted by mobyhead

I had an Italian Beef just yesterday at King's Gyros on S. East Street. They do a decent job of it. They also sell Pizza Puffs there as well. Home Page The owner is from Chicago. It's comfort food for me since I grew up on Chicago's southside.

The pizza puff looks really tasty. I might try that out for lunch today.

[Chicago76]

Originally Posted by GregHenry

No, we're talking about Portillo's. When you talk about Portillo's, you talk about beef and sausage.



A beef has nothing, whatsoever, to do with a cheesesteak. A cheesesteak is a fried product with very little seasoning; beef is a well-seasoned roast. Completely different cuts. Completely different cooking methods. I really don't know how anyone could see any commonality, at all, between them.

The closest analogue to a beef is a french dip, which, as we all know, has absolutely nothing in common with a cheesesteak.

When you're talking Portillo's, the big movers are still dogs, believe it or not, followed closely by sausage and beefs.

Still, this isn't exotic stuff. The cheesesteak was just another example of regional food (from Philly) that isn't inaccessible to a person living in Indy who has never been to Philly. It's no different than a beef in that respect. If you want to identify the closest thing to it that is commonly served in Indianapolis, I completely agree that would probably be a French Dip. And people can order a French Dip at a lot of chains. McAlister's and places like Houlihan's and Applebees has (or at least had) them. A beef isn't that far outside the standard fare someone in Indy is accustomed to.

The problem with Portillo's in Indy boils down to two things:

1)What they serve isn't that different than what you can find in Indy, and
2)It isn't necessarily good enough to work its way into the market to replace analogous foods that are already there.

There is no nostalgia component in Indy for these things, which is basically what it takes to open up a Portillo's outside of the area. They're in places like southern California and AZ to capture the Chicagoland migrants to these areas. There are former Chicagoans in Indy that probably miss this stuff, but not in the critical #s you find in LA/PHO.

[GregHenry]

Originally Posted by Chicago76

The problem with Portillo's in Indy boils down to two things:

1)What they serve isn't that different than what you can find in Indy,

There's no discussion with someone who just makes stuff up.

[Chicago76]

Originally Posted by GregHenry

There's no discussion with someone who just makes stuff up.

Right, because you can't find a French Dip at chains on every side of Indianapolis, which is the closest thing to a "beef" by your own admission.

[GregHenry]

Originally Posted by Chicago76

Right, because you can't find a French Dip at chains on every side of Indianapolis, which is the closest thing to a "beef" by your own admission.

"Closest" doesn't mean "close," and you can't get a french dip anywhere in Indianapolis.

Further, a french dip doesn't come close to sating the desire for a beef.

Have you ever had a beef? Do you respect a beef as probably the best food ever concoted? I know, you think a combo is the way to go, and you'd be right, but you can't get to a combo without the beef.

[Lkierjess9894]

I am from Chicago and I moved twice to Indiana. The first time from 2000-2005 and went back to Illinois. Due to unfortunate circumstances, I had to move back in 2007. Anytime, that I go back to illinois, my first stop is Portillos. I have seen some very negative posts about the place, obviously from people who have no idea that Portillos is not just about the hot dogs. They have a huge variety of foods that are wonderful. Nobody should ever assume that a restaurant will not make it until they try it. I love Donato's and several other Indy based eateries. Maybe people from Indiana need to broaden their food choices and give things a try before putting it down. I am Jewish and I could not find Jewish foods anywhere close to Indianapolis, where we lived. I adjusted and tried new things. Although I missed the foods in Chicago, I was willing to try new things. Some comments on this post are narrow minded and I find that very sad.

[MortonR]

I just ate at the first Portillo's in Tampa, FL yesterday.

We ordered something different between all of us so we could try pretty much everything.

Sadly, none of us were impressed. The only thing I cared for was the Polish sausage, and having lived in Southeast Wisconsin for a number of years, I've had better Polish sausages.

Not sure what the attraction is, but for now I'll continue to stick to mom and pop restaurants offering ethnic foods. I wish them well, but I won't be back. Dairy Queen has better chili cheese dogs IMHO.

RM

[IndyDancer]

Originally Posted by grmasterb

JITB is packed in Greenwood because it's still a novelty in the Indy market. It'll wear off. There are plenty of places to get decent burgers in Indy. As for Italian beef, I'm with Toxic. I like it well enough, but I'm not that wowed by it. I'd just as soon have a good Philly cheesesteak, for which there is plenty of availability here.

I know this post is a few years old but had to add my 2 cents...

There is also a JITB in Fishers in a high traffic area, and clearly they anticipated the same response as the GW location, set up cones and traffic control and all that jazz. Except the reception was basically a non-response. I've never seen more than a handful of cars in their parking lot since they opened (I drive past it every day on my commute, both ways). OTOH, the McDonald's up the street (which is not visible from the major intersection where JITB is located) routinely has lines around the building. No idea how that JITB is even still open.