Community Corner

Chowdown Showdown Countdown: Who's Winning the Food Fight?

Tinley, Orland and the O-Fo are in a three-way battle for food supremacy in the weekly Chowdown Showdown. Here's where they stand.

Each week, Chowdown Showdown takes three local restaurants—one in Tinley Park, one in Orland Park and one in Oak Forest—and pits their dishes against each other to find the best around.

This week we're giving our waistlines a rest, recapping the battles thus far and asking you where we should go next.

Round 1—Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, Who Has the Best Burrito of All?

The Contest: There's nothing quite like an authentic burrito. Don't get us wrong—we love Chipotle and Qdoba, but we're always looking for that little hole-in-the-wall that is the sleeper in the best burrito contest. And we had a feeling some of you might like hunting down the best burritos around, too.

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The Contenders: in Oak Forest, in Orland Park and El Famous Burrito in Tinley Park.

The Golden Burrito Goes To... In the end, it came down to simply the overall flavor of the burrito and the distribution of the ingredients—and Tinley's El Famous keeps its superlative name, winning the fame of the best burrito across our three towns.

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Round 2—Who Makes the Rockingest Egg Roll Around?

The Contest: It's probably one of the most essential and favored appetizers around. Think shrimp fried rice, and egg rolls. Like peanut butter and jelly. It takes the perfect combination of cabbage, meat, and vegetables to make the perfect egg roll. The popular appetizer is a favorite complement to most Chinese dishes, and it could make or break a restaurant's ranking with the person doing the eating.

The Contenders: Chen's Chinese Cuisine in Tinley Park, #1 Chop Suey in Oak Forest and Mo's Chinese Kitchen in Orland Park.

Rock and Roll, Winner: #1 Chop Suey! Oak Forest's nominee walks away with top prize this week. The flavor-packed roll made the best impression on the taster.

Round 3—Go Ahead—Have Your Cake and Eat It, Too

The Contest: Many might not save room for dessert when they're eating out or planning dinner at home. But this week, we thought we'd give you three reasons to put down the fork, grab a doggie bag—and scoop up one sweet treat.

The Contenders: Portillo's in Tinley Park, Cooper's Hawk in Orland Park and Jewel Bakery in Oak Forest.

Who Takes the Cake? This was a tough one for our taster, Joe Fletcher, and it came down to the final two: Cooper's Hawk and Portillo's. The fluffy, moist slice from Portillo's pulled ahead of the "fantastic, rich chocolate flavor" of the Cooper's Hawk sample.

"Feed"back

With the wins spread across the three this month, it seems the winner is the one who can sample each dish from each place. Want to get your town back into the top spot? Tell us which food you want to see next. Should we be looking for the choicest chicken? The most salivatory salad?

Got a feud with a friend over who has the best fries, chow mein or whatnot? Tell us what to eat, and where. It's up to you, folks. What's next on our plates?

Looking for local eats? Start with your local Patch Places food and dining directory. Please post a review on your favorite restaurant's profile page.


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