India Jenkins makes a signature sandwich at The Corned Beef Hideout packed with meat, heat and history. The chef, owner and solo operator of the sandwich shop calls her creation That Jerk. The hot spice mix infuses not only the meat, but a house-made jerk sauce too.
My memory still burns from that first taste, despite dozens of sandwiches over the years on the corned beef beat. Its intensity will surprise you, given the dramatic draping of layers made with the care of a couturier. Bold yet elegant, it is a statement piece in sandwich form.
When you go in search of that sandwich, prepare for a bit of a quest, which will take you about 35 miles southwest of Chicago to the village of Romeoville, through the winding roads of a residential complex, to a community center, and finally a stand hidden within, where you’ll find the shop.
So what goes into this destination sandwich, piled high with tender sliced corned beef, gilded with radiant sauce, all barely contained by fragrant rye bread?
“Love,” said Jenkins laughing. “Just different herbs and spices to give it that kick.”
The chef declined to share her recipe, understandably, but did reveal a few details.
“You got cayenne pepper,” she said. “And I put some paprika in it.”
But no scotch bonnet, which I’d guessed, given the impressive yet fruited heat. The chile pepper is a traditional jerk spice mix ingredient. That fiery flavor is tempered by soft yet sturdy slices of seedless rye bread.
“I use a local bakery here in Joliet called Milano’s,” Jenkins said.
The DeBenedetti family founded Milano Bakery in 1915, now run by its fourth generation.
The Corned Beef Hideout opened in 2023, but can trace its lineage back to an iconic sandwich shop on the West Side of Chicago that opened in 1933.
“I grew up on Moon’s,” said Jenkins, who was born and raised in the North Lawndale neighborhood. “And Jimmy is the person who was my master class teacher.”
James Radek has owned Moon’s Sandwich Shop for 47 years. He originally partnered with the sons of the late Anthony Gambino, who founded the restaurant 92 years ago.
“I went to him,” said Jenkins about Radek. “And I said, ‘Jimmy, I’m interested in opening up a corned beef place out in Romeoville. Do you mind if I come in and you teach me?’ He said, ‘Absolutely, come in.’”
He allowed her to come in and learn to cook and cut the meat, she said.
“I just talked to him a couple of weeks ago, because my mom was visiting him,” Jenkins said. “And she said, ‘Jimmy’s here.’ I thought Jimmy retired, but he got on the phone, and I told him again, thank you so much. Because sometimes business owners don’t have the time or want to do that. And he allowed me the opportunity to come in and ask questions, recommended vendors, gave me suggestions and allowed me to learn. And I’m so forever in his debt for that.”
While many places use bottom flat corned beef, Jenkins said she uses top round. “With the top round corned beef, it stays a little juicier,” she said.
She seasons the corned beef with her jerk spice mix, then simmers it for three to four hours, before slicing it thin, but not too thin.
“Each sandwich comes with almost a pound of meat on it,” said the chef. “Where pretty much one sandwich can feed two people, that’s what all the customers tell me.”
Jenkins just celebrated the two-year anniversary of The Corned Beef Hideout.
“It wasn’t because it’s the month of St. Patrick’s Day,” she said. “My anticipated grand opening day was supposed to be Jan. 1.”
But her father was sick.
“I wanted to be with my dad,” Jenkins said.
Leon Stephany died at 82 on Jan. 23, 2023. Jenkins grieved his loss and wanted to be there for her mother.
“I decided to just open up March 1,” she said. “So my mom was settled, and I was kind of in the right headspace, and could be there 100% for my customers.”
Two years later, she’s developed a devoted following.
And the menu is focused.
“I wanted to make sure it was tight,” she added, with fewer ingredients to purchase due to the economy, and where customers can just order from seven items.
There are a few cozy tables inside the airy space, and outside when weather permits.
How did she find the unusual setting?
“So it’s a beautiful story,” said Jenkins. “I live in this community, and my son attended the Montessori school that’s right here in this building.”
There was a cafe, she said, but it was underutilized.
She originally opened a Surf’s Up seafood franchise in the space, her debut as a Black woman business owner.
“I had never worked in the restaurant industry in my life. I just knew I liked to eat,” said Jenkins, laughing.
She previously worked as a recruiter for more than 20 years, after earning her degree in marketing from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale.
“I stepped out on faith,” she said. “A lot of hard work and a lot of prayer went into stepping out on my own business and just allowing the man above to lead and guide me.”
“My customers and the community have definitely shown their love,” Jenkins said. “And they continue to bring me through.”
The other fan-favorite sandwiches include the Two Faced, with corned beef and pastrami, and the Classic, with just corned beef.
Both can be made Reuben style too, with Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and Thousand Island dressing, on grilled bread.
But not That Jerk.
“I do have quite a few customers request it,” said the chef. “Sometimes you get a customer who says, ‘Well, can’t we have it our way?’ I’m like, this is not Burger King.”
But she is planning to make a jerk Thousand Island sauce.
“That way I can give them that Reuben experience,” Jenkins said. “But for now, I won’t mess that sandwich up.”
$16.50 (That Jerk sandwich). The Corned Beef Hideout; 175 Highpoint Drive, Romeoville; 815-743-2603; thecornedbeefhideout.com
And 29 more of the best corned beef sandwiches around Chicago, in alphabetical order, with new additions noted by an asterisk:
Al & Joe’s*
A Tribune reader recommended the historic sandwich shop last year. Founded in 1960, Al & Joe’s in Franklin Park northwest of the city was revitalized by a new generation led by the late Joseph Gapastione, who died in 2023. A new owner just took over, but everyone and everything should stay the same, including the Mile High with 8 ounces of warm corned beef in soft rye bread slathered in pleasantly pungent horseradish cream sauce.
$14 (Mile High corned beef sandwich, cheese $1). 10348 Addison Ave., Franklin Park; 847-678-6788; alandjoes.com
A.P. Deli
The Battee and Pollard families named their first corner store in the Roseland neighborhood of Chicago after an uncle, Aaron Pollard, in 1984. A.P. Deli now has four locations of the Black-owned business, on the South Side of the city and the south suburbs. The original corned beef sandwich goes back to Joe Eddy Battee, family legend has it, and his recipe for heaping helpings of luscious meat, created as a side hustle at the store his father founded with the namesake uncle.
$13 (Original corned beef sandwich). 1759 E. 75th St., 773-288-4931; 10758 S. Michigan Ave., 773-821-8480; 15033 Dixie Highway, Harvey, 708-596-2270; 1927 W. 170th St.,
Hazel Crest; 708-335-4471. apdeli.com
Burt’s Deli*
Burton Rosenbaum started a small kosher-style deli with his wife, Judy Rosenbaum, in the village of Libertyville, about 38 miles north of the city, 50 years ago this year. Burt’s Deli is now owned and run by their son, Ralph Rosenbaum, who keeps their memory alive and well with deadpan deli banter. He also created what’s become their best-known sandwich, the Yummy, also known as The Yummie, with hot sliced corned beef and pastrami, melted Swiss cheese and chunky fresh horseradish spread on your choice of seeded or unseeded rye bread.
$15 (Yummy aka The Yummie sandwich). 114 Greentree Center, Libertyville; 847-367-9687
Celtic Knot Public House*
Liz Breslin and Patrick Breslin closed their beloved Irish pub in downtown Evanston after 18 years in 2023. But the Celtic Knot Public House is back after the spouses moved and reopened the restaurant on the Central Street strip last December. The corned beef and Swiss sandwich, made by chef Carlos Pérez on griddled dark rye bread with horseradish cream sauce, yields a serious cheese pull, plus there are bonus chips, aka thick-cut crisp and fluffy potato fries, served on the side.
$18 (corned beef and Swiss sandwich). 2022 Central St., Evanston; 847-425-0025; celticknotpub.com
Chief O’Neill’s Pub & Restaurant
Brendan McKinney and Siobhan McKinney christened their expansive bar and grill in the Avondale neighborhood for the legendary Irish music enthusiast and early 1900s police Superintendent Francis O’Neill. Chief O’Neill’s, the spouses’ pub and restaurant, has celebrated his legacy enthusiastically since 1999, now with an annual St. Patrick’s Day festival and a neighborhood parade. The Chief O’Neill’s corned beef sandwich remains a lovely classic made with Swiss cheese and horseradish mustard cream sauce on marble rye bread plus a side of beer-battered fries.
$18 (Chief O’Neill’s corned beef sandwich). 3471 N. Elston Ave., 773-583-3066, chiefoneillspub.com
D.A.’s Corned Beef Stand
Recommended by a Tribune reader as a “corned beef sandwich worthy of your list,” the stand that declares itself the “Home of the One Pounder” is indeed worthwhile. D.A.’s Corned Beef Stand, now with three locations in the south suburbs, started serving sandwiches and soul food in 2022, after Darryl Abernathy founded his namesake Black-owned business on the West Side in 1996. The signature #1 One Pounder, piled high with thinly sliced corned beef, and a touch of tart mustard, threatens to burst beyond its slices of soft rye bread.
$20 (#1 One Pounder corned beef deli sandwich). 4028 W. 127th St., Alsip, 708- 897-8452; 1781 River Oak Drive, Calumet City, 708-933-7499; 5201 167th St., Oak Forest, 708-381-8005, dascornedbeefstand.com
Eleven City Diner
Brad Rubin created his Jewish-style deli as a theatrical American diner experience. Eleven City Diner still stands unparalleled as a pioneer in the South Loop since 2006. The corned beef, roasted in-house every day, transforms into tender slices laced with lean and fat. And an unofficial rule: You have to get the matzo ball soup too with its marvelously glorious orb.
$21 (corned beef sandwich). 1112 S. Wabash Ave., 312-212-1112, elevencitydiner.com
Halal Food
Adnan Zadd opened the small strip mall grocery store in Burbank, the suburb southwest of the city, in 2023. Halal Food makes corned beef for the deli counter that is zabiha halal. The jumbo corned beef sandwich brings a whole pound of feathery sliced meat, on the soft bread of your choice, with Swiss cheese and mustard.
$20 (jumbo corned beef sandwich). 5601 W. 79th St., Burbank; 708-658-6938, instagram.com/halal.foodusa
Half Sour
Elizabeth Norris opened the deli-influenced cafe, named for a pickle, with business partners in the Printers Row neighborhood in 2017. Half Sour offers those crisp and fresh pickles with house-made meats. They currently offer three corned beef sandwiches, including a classic, but with violet mustard, aka moutarde au violette, a purple condiment made with grape must, on rye bread.
$17 (corned beef sandwich). 755 S. Clark St., 312-224-1772, halfsourchicago.com
JB’s Deli
Jeff Bendix decided to help save deli culture by opening a Jewish-style deli inside his pharmacy. JB’s Deli has been making and sourcing traditional deli food in the Andersonville neighborhood for more than 20 years. Their corned beef sandwich remains a radiant tradition, but then there are also the untraditional overstuffed sandwiches with irreverent names, including My Cardiologist Needs a New Car, a triple-decker with brisket, pastrami, and, yes, corned beef.
$19 (corned beef sandwich). 5501 N. Clark St., 773-728-0600, jbs-deli.square.site
Kaufman’s Bagel & Delicatessen
The late Maury Kaufman founded his namesake Jewish deli in 1960, before Arnold Dworkin and his wife, Judith Dworkin, bought the business in 1984. Kaufman’s is still the only place around town where you can clearly order a wide range of meat fattiness (regular, deckle, lean and super trim), unchanged since owner and accomplished baker Bette Dworkin took over from her parents in Skokie. The New Jersey Bypass sandwich (which they describe as your cardiologist’s favorite!) is a double-decker monster with regular corned beef and pastrami on rye bread.
$18 (New Jersey Bypass sandwich). 4905 W. Dempster St., Skokie; 847-677-6190; kaufmansdeli.com
Mabe’s Sandwich Shop
The Kincaid family, from the beloved 5 Loaves Eatery, took over the shop named after the grandmother of the original owner in 2021. The 312 is their terrific take on a Reuben, pressed panini style on brown butter grilled marble rye with corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and Mabe’s sauce.
$12 (The 312 sandwich). 312 E. 75th St., 773-891-1798, mabesss.com
Manny’s Cafeteria & Delicatessen
Gino Gambarota has been making our sandwiches for 42 years. But Manny’s Cafeteria & Delicatessen in the South Loop dates back even older, founded in 1942, now run by fourth-generation owner Dan Raskin. The iconic corned beef will always measure a mile high, and remember to mark your calendar for Gino’s annual sandwich-versary celebrated behind the counter on May 5.
$19 (corned beef sandwich). 1141 S. Jefferson St., 312-939-2855, mannysdeli.com
Mensch’s Deli*
Jack DeMar, Kiki Eliopoulos and Eric Kogan have written a beautiful love letter to the Jewish deli. Mensch’s Deli opened with delicate details in downtown Evanston last July. Even the Reuben with whisper-thin corned beef, melting Swiss cheese and translucent sauerkraut on grilled rye bread comes with Thousand Island dressing on the side to dip at your leisure.
$17 (corned beef Reuben sandwich). 1608 Chicago Ave., Evanston; 847-859-6153; menschs-deli.com
Moon’s Sandwich Shop
Anthony Gambino founded the diner counter shop in 1933, where in 1978 his sons would partner with former Chicago police officer and current owner Jim Radek. Moon’s Sandwich Shop stands firm on its small single-story patch of East Garfield Park now dwarfed by tall and sprawling new buildings. But Moon’s Famous corned beef sandwich endures, as big and old-fashioned as ever.
$15 (Moon’s Famous corned beef sandwich). 16 S. Western Ave., 312-226-5094, moonssandwichshop.com
Morry’s Deli
Morry Orman founded his Jewish-style deli in the Hyde Park neighborhood in 1960. Morry’s Deli is now owned by Sanjay Patel, who added a second location in the UIC neighborhood just last year. The hot corned beef made the move sliced in precise pink ribbons.
$12 (hot corned beef sandwich). 5500 S. Cornell Ave., 773-363-3800; 2227 W. Taylor St., 773-363-3801; morrysdeli.com
New York Bagel and Bialy
The family-owned shop in a narrow suburban strip mall has been the iconic maker of Chicago-style bagels since 1965. New York Bagel and Bialy is still open 24 hours on Fridays and Saturdays in Lincolnwood. The regular corned beef on rye bagel, with its aromatic crackly and chewy crust, remains one of the best sandwiches anywhere.
$9.49 (regular corned beef on rye bagel sandwich). 4714 W. Touhy Ave., Lincolnwood; 847-677-9388; newyorkbagelandbialy.net
Romanian Kosher Sausage Co.
Karen Levin and Katharine Loeb are the third-generation owners of the butcher shop founded by their family after fleeing the Nazi regime in Romania by way of the Dominican Republic. Romanian Kosher Sausage Co., open since 1957 in the Rogers Park neighborhood, also makes a few sandwiches. The corned beef XL (for extra lean, not extra large, but big it is) holds carefully sliced and deeply spiced meat.
$8.29 (corned beef XL, extra lean sandwich). 7200 N. Clark St., 773-761-4141
Schmaltz Deli
In 2019, Mark and Michael Goodman took over as the new owners of a beloved deli business founded in 2004. Schmaltz Deli moved to Lisle under the father and son team with executive chef Michael Garbin, previously at the prestigious Union League Club in Chicago. The #5 Wall Street has made all the moves, still available half-stuffed, overstuffed and their 20th anniversary superstuffed with warm corned beef.
$18 (#5 Wall Street sandwich). 3011 Ogden Ave., Lisle; 630-245-7595; schmaltzdeli.com
Schneider Deli
Jake Schneider transformed the tiny diner space at the iconic Ohio House Motel in the River North neighborhood in 2023. Schneider Deli fans buy out his house-made bagels every morning. The corned beef Reuben with chunky meat, alongside a thick corned beef burger and corned beef hash, of course, sometimes make it through the day.
$24 (corned beef Reuben sandwich). 600 N. LaSalle Drive, 773-590-1345, schneiderdeli.com
Steingold’s
Aaron Steingold fulfilled a lifelong dream when he opened his original modern Jewish deli-inspired restaurant with wife, Elizabeth Abowd, in 2017. Steingold’s moved next door to the historic Music Box Theatre in 2021, and added a location across the street from Wrigley Field last July. The Uncle Rube can be found at both, as a thick-cut corned beef Reuben built on beautiful grilled rye from Publican Quality Bread.
$19 (Uncle Rube corned beef sandwich). 3737 N. Southport Ave., 773-661-2469; 3626 N. Clark St. (inside Hotel Zachary), steingoldsdeli.com
The Bagel
In 2023, Marvin Barsky took over as the new owner of the historic Jewish-style deli that’s bounced around the city and suburbs since opening in 1950. The Bagel first opened in the city, then the suburbs, then back again to where it still stands in the Lakeview neighborhood. The classic corned beef with mustard on rye bread has remained the same, and we’re still hoping Barsky can bring The Bagel back to the reimagined Old Orchard shopping center in Skokie someday.
$17 (corned beef sandwich). 3107 N. Broadway, 773-477-0300, bagelrestaurant.com
The Brunchery
Derek Rylon brought his brunch game when he took over as chef and owner of the restaurant formerly known as Frances’ Deli founded in 1938. The Brunchery has kept the historic deli classics as a Black-owned business since 2018. Just remember to get your B.Y.O. corned beef deli sandwich early, since they close daily at 3 p.m.
$16 (corned beef B.Y.O. deli sandwich). 2552 N. Clark St., 773-248-4580, brunchonclark.com
The Chicago Diner
Mickey Hornick and Jo Kaucher founded the pioneering vegetarian restaurant with the slogan “Meat free since ‘83.” The Chicago Diner began with the original flagship in the Lakeview neighborhood and added a second location in the Logan Square neighborhood in 2012. Their Radical Reuben sandwich (piled high with corned beef-style seitan, grilled onions, peppers, sauerkraut, Thousand Island dressing and dairy or vegan cheese) has become an iconic sandwich beyond Chicago and beyond vegetarians.
$18 (The Radical Reuben sandwich). 3411 N. Halsted St., 773-935-6696; 2333 N. Milwaukee Ave., 773-252-3211; veggiediner.com
The Goddess and the Grocer
Debbie Sharpe makes rock star sandwiches. The Goddess and the Grocer chef and owner has long been a caterer to popular musicians. Her corned beef and Swiss, made with meat from Manny’s, layers sauerkraut and Thousand Island dressing with the prettiest marble rye bread, now available at a new Gold Coast location.
$16 (corned beef and Swiss sandwich). 1649 N. Damen Ave., 911 W. Randolph St., 845 N. State St., goddessandgrocer.com
The Onion Roll
Ryan Rosenthal and Igor Russo, a Ukrainian immigrant, were loyal customers before becoming the third owners of their favorite Jewish-style deli in Oak Park in 2004. The Onion Roll, established in 1954, has been remodeled, but started making their own bagels too. And the hot corned beef sandwich still comes on your choice of bread or an onion roll or the new house-made bagels.
$16 (hot corned beef sandwich). 6935 W. North Ave., Oak Park, 708-383-2548, theonionroll.com
Top Butcher Market*
The Bomprezzi and Scorza families have owned the International Meat Company, a small processing business in the Galewood neighborhood, since 1952. But Top Butcher Market is their relatively new market, butcher shop and restaurant opened across the street in 2022. The stunning corned beef sandwich by chef Dave Berni features a 14-hour. house-cured, slow-smoked, thick-cut meat with Swiss cheese and mustard on a griddled rye bread.
$13 (corned beef sandwich). 7128 W. Grand Ave., 773-831-7200, topbutchermarket.com
Vienna Beef Factory Store
Sam Ladany and Emil Reichel, Austrian Hungarian Jewish immigrants, founded what would become the iconic house of hot dogs and more in 1893. The Vienna Beef Factory Store is the company’s fast-food business in the Bridgeport neighborhood. Their corned beef sandwich is a staple food of the factory workers who make the definitive Chicago-style hot dog and the patented official corned beef of St. Patrick’s Day. (Still no word yet on the opening date for the $20 million Vienna Beef Plaza in the Bucktown neighborhood.)
$16 (corned beef sandwich). 3847 S. Morgan St., 773-435-2298, facebook.com/TheViennaBeefFactoryStore
Yellow Rose Cafe
Angelo Kalogris and his wife, Rula Kalogris, took over as the owners of an existing café and made it our collective home away from home in 1996. Yellow Rose Cafe was originally opened by a bus driver in 1957. Their so-called “plain” corned beef sandwich is anything but, and, in fact, has lovely layers nestled within soft rye bread, served with fresh horseradish and yellow mustard on the side. The cafe has been highly recommended by the Breakfast Queen Ina Pinkney, barbecue life coach and author Gary Wiviott, as well as food writer Dennis Lee. Remember it’s cash only, but if you forget, the closest ATM is at Coletti’s nearby.
$15 (plain corned beef sandwich). 5640 N. Elston Ave., 773-631-2297
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