A FAR, FAR, FAR cry for sure !

Is this concerning the joint in Leesburg ?

Portillo's has formally submitted the plans to Lady Lake. Yahooie...

I'm Chicago born and raised. "Italian Beef Sandwich" was my middle name as a kid. I attended UICC on the outskirts of Chicago and at the time, it was surrounded by an old timey Italian neighborhood where there were a lot of storefront Italian food joints.

So, I visited Portillo's in Orlando near Disney and it was beyond HORRID.
Sad to say. A crusty French bread, a very thin slice of beef, no giardiniera (sweet and/or hot peppers), the "gravy" (I always called it juice) was about a teaspoon though I asked for it "wet". It was darn near unedible. Broke my heart.

I thought to mention it to the manager, then I thought again, the world has enough issues and I wasn't up for it. But I won't go there again.

I'll try the new Portillo's once, but it had better be a whole ton better.
Orlando ain't Chicago, I guess.

Hey John, you left out the part comparing your bar in Leesburg to Dick Portillo's Dog House.

The last three times I've been to Portillo's were in Chicago, Tampa, and the new one in Kissimmee. They were as good as it gets. Looking forward to it opening here.

Odd, have several neighbors that were also born and raised in Chicago and they have a very different opinion of the Portillo's in Tampa and Orlando. Taste bud changes or memory reinvention?

I've not been to the one in Tampa, nor to the bar in Leesburg referenced by another post. I'm just callin' the Orlando Portillo's as I see it, and it wasn't good. As I said, I'll give the Lady Lake location a chance at redemption. My taste buds are just fine, thank you.

The bread and peppers were not up to standards, that's no opinion, that's a fact. Who uses french bread on an Italian sandwich and doesn't offer Giardiniera. Just examples. "nuff said.

From their website: Chicago's #1 Italian Big Beef served on perfectly baked French bread with large fry and drink.
*This picture shows optional sweet and hot peppers that must be added to the sandwich, as they do not come standard.

I’m not normally a fast-food guy, but I do like a good Chicago-style Hot Dog, so I will check that out for sure. Also, I’ve never had an Italian Beef Sandwich (not too popular out West) - so I will try that to see if I like or not.

Just put on a couple of videos on YouTube about Portillos.

As i said in a prior post..nothing west of the Hudson river can be that good. They dont call Chicago the SECOND City for no reason.

Chicgo hot dogs…hmm…baloney dusguised under ridiculous toppinga

Deep Dish pizza…lol…its not a pizza!

Italian beef….hell, no italian would eat that.

Another fast food restaurant serving villagers with no taste buds

major hype about a overblown hot dog stand that is not golf cart accessible

Nobody outside of NYC cares about inflated opinions.

I had never heard of Italian beef sandwiches (which sound delicious, btw) until we started watching The Bear on Hulu.

Jeremy Allen White (Lip from Shameless) stars as Carmy Berzatto an award winning chef who leaves his job in a very high-end restaurant to return to Chicago to take over his dead brother’s Italian beef sandwich shop.

The opening scene in the chaotic kitchen shows that Carmy has his work cut out for him. His brother has left him with a mess.

We like the show — and if you know the territory of Italian beef sandwiches, you might want to tune in to The Bear.

Boomer

Relax, different strokes for different folks. Lived both in NJ and Chicagoland in my life. I like both types of pizza. I prefer Chicago dogs to NY dogs, but it's sort of like saying I prefer Coors Light to Miller Light. Both are about the same just depends how you dress them.

Italian beef? It's just another sandwich. Never had anything similar in the NJ area, other than a French Dip, which is everywhere I've ever been.

And I have been to the Old Chicago place in Leesburg. I wouldn't go back. Food just average, and the atmosphere is a bit too local dive bar for my taste.

Keep stirring the pot, you are keeping the hype going lol