Frangella Italian Market

--Got Beef? Italian Beef
a chibbqking production

Those that follow the @hungryhound on social media may have seen his impressive Italian beef crawl he recently did and then wrote about while scoring each stand. What stood out to me was the fact there were a few spots I hadnt been to yet. One of them ranked in the top 5 for the suburbs thus caught my eye. Frangella Italian Deli is a classic family run joint in the Southwest Suburbs. You can get fresh deli sliced meat, imported goods, produce, and food made to order. The business was established in 1993 by Gina and Francesco Frangella, originally from Calabria, Italy.

Locals favorite in Palos Park, IL

Frangella has quite the fresh bread collection. I saw loaves from D'Amato's, Liborio, Gonnella, Turano, and others. They seem to run a pretty well stocked ship when it comes to Italian deli counter needs. While it would have to wait I was very intrigued by the beef and cheddar stromboli listed under the house specialties. It's the type of spot you'd love to call your neighbor.

Beef and Cheddar Stromboli in the display case

Steven pretty much described the process of making it and it's flavors to exactly what I saw and then ate. Although he does mention that they use D'Amato's bread but I'm not sure about that. If they do use them, they use a single sandwich loaf I'm unfamiliar with (as you can see in the pic) as this bread was not cut nor was it crusty. It wasn't bad and held up well to a very generous amount of near perfect roast beef. The giardiniera had subtle kick with extra crunch and the gravy was noticeable in both temperature and taste. I have to say this is one that slipped thru the hole for me. One thing I really appreciated from Da Hounds roundup was his addressing of consistency. It might not be to the level of BBQ but some beef spots do have problems with it, maybe even Frangella.

Beef with Hot from Frangella Italian Market

Rating Scale 5/5

beef: 4
bread: 4
gravy: 4
hot peppers:4

Score: 16/20

Frangella Italian Market
11925 S 80th Ave
Palos Park, IL 60464
(708) 448-2598

Mr. A's Italian Beef

--Got Beef? Italian Beef
a chibbqking production

As the road winds down there's still a few places to pass. Mr. A's has been on my list for a few years now however it's a pretty far drive just to try an Italian Beef. So I waited, and then waited some more for a time when I'd be near there and could give a taste test to what many from this way call the best Italian beef in McHenry County.

Locals favorite in Crystal Lake

As the sign outside points out they make their own Italian beef in-house so I had pretty high hopes for this sandwich. They came crashing down upon the opening of it. I've never seen Italian beef with the texture their sliced meat had. At first I thought there was a hair in my beef but then I saw it was just shredded in a way that made pieces look like some of it fell in I was turned off. It's dry texture didnt help turn it around. The gravy was overpowered with salty beef bouillon taste and the hot peppers weren't anything to get excited about. Was it an off day? Maybe but I got the feeling that had they not regularly served what I got they wouldn't of served it to begin with as it was very unappealing on the eyes. They've been around since the early 80's so it's possible their better days are behind them.

Beef with Hot from Mister A's Italian Beef

Rating Scale 5/5

beef: 2
bread: 4
gravy: 2
hot peppers: 3

Score: 11/20

Mr. A's Italian Beef
475 West Virginia Street
Crystal Lake, IL 60014
(815) 459-9150