In the southwest suburbs of Chicago, there’s a modest brick building in Palos Heights where locals line up for what might be the most perfect Italian beef sandwich in Illinois.
Pop’s Italian Beef & Sausage isn’t trying to reinvent the wheel – they’re just making that wheel so deliciously, so consistently perfect that they’ve amassed a devoted following that borders on religious fervor.
Let’s talk about what makes a truly transcendent Italian beef sandwich, shall we?
It starts with the bread – a vessel sturdy enough to hold up against the tsunami of savory jus, yet soft enough to soak up all that beefy goodness without disintegrating into a soggy mess…