Review of Hog Wild Restaurant in Midlothian Illinois

A nice long hike of a drive to the south side of Chicago will take one to the small city of Midlothian. The city boasts a small restaurant located at 14933 South Pulaski called Hog Wild. I stumbled upon this far south side eatery at the recommendation of a co worker that lives in this suburban area. I had the pleasure of having this food catered into my office the prior year, so a few associates and I agreed to an early Tuesday afternoon road trip to "dine in" to experience some much hyped pork chops.

Food

As the name implies, Hog Wild is the place to go for pretty much all things pork. Their premiere "sell" is the thick dinner size pork chop. The pork chop is about an inch and a half thick and served open face on bread with drink and choice of potato sides whether one fancies red potatoes, fries, or oven browns. I have sampled the reds before during a catered lunch, so I opted for the oven browns to go with my chop. The potatoes were done to a golden crisp finish and tasty, but not nearly as delicious as the pork chop. The pork chop was rubbed with seasonings and absence of any sauce. Now I usually prefer chops, ribs and pulled pork to be immersed in a nice hickory or mustard based barbecue sauce. These chops are so juicy and flavorful, sauce was not needed. I did manage to run a little side order of apple sauce across the top of the chop which made it taste even more heavenly.

Their other delectable menu offering is the slab of ribs. The ribs are done just right as they pull off the bone quite easily. They have a smoky base within the meat and our finished with what appears to be a sauce much akin to Sweet Baby Rays. The ribs include the potato side and some Cole slaw. The down side to the ribs is that they are offered on Tuesdays. I have had the pleasure of tasting the full rack of ribs through carryout business lunch and they are pretty darn good. Those patrons that miss the Tuesday window for ribs; offerings such as rib tips, boneless rib sandwich and pulled pork are served every day of the week at this restaurant.

The Hog Wild restaurant also serves up other common fare such burgers, chicken breast sandwiches, hot dogs, and steak sandwiches. There is a little something for everyone. As certain days of the week such as Tuesday are "rib days", there is a Friday fish special of Walleye. Unfortunately I live too far away from this location to make the trip out for fish which I dearly enjoy.

If a good helping of pork does not fill you up, the restaurant also serves up free dessert for those customers that decide to dine in. he desserts are typically homemade sheet cakes or occasionally fresh fruit. The table offering up the free dessert also has complimentary coffee

Service

The service experience at Hog WIld for my visit was pretty decent. The line to order food was small, though we went later after the hectic lunch rush. The counter staff was friendly and appeared accommodating to different size groups that were seated throughout the dining room. Counters, tables and even the rest room were very clean.

Ambience

Upon first glance of this restaurant it appears a little like a shack until you walk inside and get past the counter area. The dining room has a north woods Wisconsin lodge feel to it as the area takes on a log cabin look with many high definition televisions located throughout and a large fish tank to boot. As I experienced my first visit to this restaurant, I knew the food was going to be darn right satisfying as I hunkered down to eat in the Paul Bunyan setting.

Parking

Parking at Hog Wild is primarily in back of the restaurant. I have never been to this restaurant during peak lunch or dinner rush, so I cannot say whether or not the parking becomes overcrowded. I visited this eatery at two thirty on a Tuesday afternoon and the lot was two thirds full. That high amount of parking tells me Friday night walleye dinner event must stretch parking beyond capacity.

Overall

My overall impression of Hog Wild is that is a "must visit" location for those in pursuit of that perfect pork chop lunch or dinner. The ribs are good, but can be challenged by other Chicago area locations that are not as far of a drive. The prices of the lunch offerings range from about seven to ten dollars for a very satisfying sit down meal. I give this restaurant a top grade.