CHICAGO — When one visits the horror-inspired Monster Canine meals truck, they’re greeted by a crimson and green-eyed, freakishly big, foam Chicago-style sizzling canine. It would not symbolize one of many 4, terrifyingly tasty sizzling canine varieties supplied by the Windy Metropolis’s latest restaurant on wheels, however its objective is to attract a crowd.
“The concept was we might have sort of a extremely distinctive picture op for folks once they come see the truck,” mentioned Monster Canine proprietor, Louie Mendicino. “It is in your face and you may’t miss it.”
Mendicino and Chef Jason Gilmore developed Monster Canine out of a love of horror films and loopy meals combos. Their horrifying menu contains sizzling canines topped with pork rinds, potato chips, and even breakfast cereal.
“The canines themselves are monsters so we determined why not go monster with it,” mentioned Gilmore. “They’re sizzling canines; they need to be enjoyable.”
Each menu merchandise is a uniquely garnished Vienna beef sizzling canine named after a horror film monster. The ‘Kids Of The Corn Canine’ is topped with chipotle crema corn salad, fried pork pores and skin, sizzling sauce, and sizzling Cheeto mud.
“It is my interpretation of a corn canine,” mentioned Gilmore. “Throw some elotes on a hotdog and I feel it should be fairly good.”
Gilmore mentioned one other widespread menu merchandise, ‘The Gremlin,’ was impressed by baseball, Crackerjacks, and sizzling canines. It is topped with miso maple sauce, sriracha mustard, sesame seeds, scallions, and caramel popcorn.
“Jason’s the man. He is a mad scientist,” mentioned Mendicino.”I do not know anybody else who can put caramel corn and make it style good.”
Their choices even embrace a breakfast sizzling canine topped with blueberry jam, bacon, cereal milk mustard, and Cinnamon Toast Crunch on a French toast Hawaiian roll. It is known as “The Daywalker.”
“That one got here to me in a dream I suppose,” mentioned Gilmore. “Cinnamon Toast Crunch is the very best cereal ever, so why not put it on a hotdog?”
Mendicino and Gilmore turned to Chicago filmmaker Ryan Oliver and a workforce of collaborators known as “The Rot Store” to construct and design the horror components that adorn the meals truck.
“All of us mixed developed every thing from the emblem all the way down to the palms popping out of the aspect of the truck holding precise replicas of the recent canines,” mentioned Mendicino.
The truck debuted at Riot Fest, a three-day punk rock pageant on Chicago’s Southwest Aspect. Monster Canine grew to become a preferred vacation spot with concertgoers virtually instantly.
“I feel at one level the road was 80 deep,” mentioned Mendicino. “We may by no means have dreamed that it was going to be that profitable in our first run.”
Mendicino is grateful for the preliminary reception and is hoping for even greater plans sooner or later for Monster Canine.
“It may simply flip right into a brick-and-mortar some day,” mentioned Mendicino. “We’re all actually excited concerning the prospect.”
