Legit Dogs & Ice brings owners’ passions to South Elgin

After begins and stops and openings and closings with a number of totally different ideas, a restaurateur goes again to his roots and his first loves with Legit Dogs & Ice in South Elgin.

“Punk rock, road meals and video video games,” Matthew Habib mentioned whereas describing the resurrected restaurant, which opened this week in a strip mall at 322 Randall Highway. “I needed daily to return to work and it’s the happiest place on the planet with the whole lot that I love to do.”

The recent canine, burger and Hawaiian shaved ice restaurant takes over the area beforehand occupied by their extra austere idea Purple Poppy Bistro. A drastic redesign displays the brand new sensibility.

The partitions of the one-time Panera are actually splayed with colourful graffiti completed by native skaters and artists. An elevated stage can maintain tables by day and live shows by night time. The again nook of the restaurant options eight traditional online game stations with a number of retro video games you may play free of charge, in addition to a number of pay-to-play pinball machines.

Polit mentioned the punk rock aesthetic permeates past the restaurant’s look.

“Punk is antiestablishment, but in addition accepting of anybody,” she mentioned. “And the menu is a mirrored image of that, as a result of it’s not what you’ll usually anticipate, but it surely’s a celebration of meals and anarchy in essentially the most optimistic manner potential.”

At first look, the soft-opening menu of scorching canines, hamburgers, fries and shaved ice won’t appear to be the issues of anarchy, however none of those are run-of-the-mill choices of their respective genres.

The artisan scorching canine creations begin with proprietary, domestically made wieners utilizing Habib’s recipe. They’re nestled in fresh-made buns, then piled with a bevy of toppings.

The Max n’ Cheese canine at Legit Canine & Ice weighs in at a couple of pound. The recent canine is topped with mac and cheese, diced ham and bacon, extra cheddar cheese and sriracha in case you choose it spicy.
Courtesy of Legit Canine & Ice

The Max n’ Cheese, which weighs in at a couple of pound, is roofed in home made mac and cheese after which topped with bacon, ham and extra melted cheddar. Including sriracha to it makes it a Mad Max. As a lot as it could be a blow to your Midwestern scorching canine sensibilities, I needed to take a fork to it when making an attempt it not too long ago. Mortifying, however scrumptious.

Lots of the scorching canine ideas date again to the circa 2016 Legit Canine & Ice meals truck menu, however improved, Habib mentioned.

The Dangerous Hombre is a jalepeno cheese canine topped with papaya and mango, sprinkled with chile y limon seasoning, their creamy Hombre sauce and crunchy fried corn and cilantro. Habib payments it on the menu as “The right stability of affection, taste & cultural appropriation.”

Polit mentioned individuals can order a plain scorching canine, but it surely would possibly include a facet of mockery from her husband or some mild counseling from her.

“I’ve actually instructed individuals, ‘You didn’t come right here for that. I do know it’s scary, however we’re going to search out one thing you want. I’ll maintain your hand,’” she mentioned. “And in the event that they hate it, we’ll give them a free plain scorching canine.”

Burgers from Legit Canine & Ice function two Angus smash patties on brioche buns with myriad toppings.
Courtesy of Legit Canine & Ice

The burgers are all double smash patties served on brioche buns. The Legit Burger is their tackle a traditional with normal toppings, whereas others just like the Gouts of Flame take a extra excessive strategy with grilled jalepenos and onions, cheddar and Swiss cheese, banana peppers, bacon, gochujang barbecue sauce and pink scorching ghost pepper sauce.

After a comfortable launch interval to get their bearings, the menu might be expanded with road tacos and extra. The Hawaiian shaved ice choices will transcend the same old family-friendly fruity decisions, with a singular grownup beverage lineup made with the finely shaved snow-like ice.

Habib and Polit began Legit as a meals truck in 2016. After one profitable season, they opened a restaurant in Dream Corridor, a meals corridor in downtown Elgin in 2017.

They closed a few years later earlier than opening Purple Poppy Bistro, their European-inspired restaurant, in 2020. That restaurant had a couple of incarnations, together with transferring from Elgin to South Elgin final yr.

Purple Poppy was shuttered abruptly final yr with solely a cryptic social media submit to elucidate the closure. Polit and Habib blamed a contentious partnership gone very awry for the awkward episode that noticed them shut just some months after opening.

“We actually thought that was it,” Habib mentioned. “That was the zero hour the place I used to be like, ‘I’m completed.’”

However Habib had all the time been drawn again to the Legit idea, which he initially conceived as a “tapas on scorching canines” mash up. A visit to Hawaii had the couple hooked on shaved ice, which he noticed as an ideal complement to the canines.

A little bit time, some new, trusted companions and an entire lot of spray paint later, Legit Canine & Ice has him excited once more.

“That is the primary time I’ve made my meals the place I’m saying I wouldn’t change something,” Habib mentioned. “I’m happy with it, and I’ve by no means had that occur.”

The couple hopes followers of the unique idea and dependable clients of Purple Poppy who may need felt jilted by the closure can admire what they’ve been via to get to their new glad place.

“All the pieces has led us thus far,” Polit mentioned. “It’s been actually irritating and laborious in a number of methods, however in case you don’t embrace the journey and take the teachings, then what’s the purpose?”