Rick S.
Yelp
Decided to give Wrigleyville another shot after my last visit didn't go so well. I'm happy to say that the experience was much better this trip although there's still room for improvement.
The hot dogs here really do have the right stuff for a Chicago garden-style dog, with Vienna-brand wieners. Using a Vienna wiener is really important for a couple reasons. First, the vast majority of Chicago dogs use this particular brand (yes, David Berg is the other wiener you'll see in the Windy City, but Vienna bought them out many years ago). More importantly though, the all-beef sausage is crafted from ground brisket and mixed with its special blend of spices giving the distinctive flavor.
Of course, all of the other requisite ingredients made their appearance: yellow mustard, relish, onions, tomato slices, dill spear and sport peppers, all nestled atop a poppy seed bun. The bun was soft and felt like it was steamed as it should be (I didn't confirm with the counter staff) but overall, I thought it was a very good rendition of the Chicago dog. Crinkle cut fries came out piping hot.
I was a bit disappointed however with the Italian beef. The sliced meat used in the sandwich was high quality but the au jus that the beef was cooked in was more salty than flavorful and was missing the traditional spices. Also, I don't care for the red sweet peppers used on the sandwich. Sweet peppers used on this particular sandwich are normally green bell peppers that have been cooked in the au jus just enough to soften them and eliminate the crunch. Giardiniera (the "hot" pepper mix) was decent. The sandwich was a bit of a miss for me.
Nevertheless, I think that this is one of the best places for a Chicago hot dog in Austin and for that I am appreciative for a little taste of home. Wrigleyville South is Recommended.