Cheap Eats samples Chicago treats

Cheap Eats host Ali Khan gets a taste of Chicago this week when the Cooking Channel series focuses on four local dishes.

Khan has been visiting cities across the country looking for the meal deals that also are the best dishes. With just 12 hours and $35 in each city, the food blogger has to find a delicious breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner.

Airing at 10/9c May 12, the Windy City episode sounds downright tasty.

For breakfast, Khan attacks the $9 Stevie sandwich at Roost Carolina Kitchen, 455 N. Milwaukee Ave. It’s stacked with fried chicken, egg, cheese and bacon on a biscuit.

You can’t take a food tour of Chicago without having one of its staples. Nope, he doesn’t go for the deep dish pizza or a Chicago dog. Instead he tries another Windy City favorite—the Italian beef. He chooses the $5.75 Italian combo at Nottoli & Son, 7652 W. Belmont Ave.

Khan snacks on a $3.75 chocolate almond croissant from Hendrickx Belgian Bread Crafter, 100 E. Walton St., To close out his culinary trip, he drops $12 for the Forever Braised Short Rib Mac and Cheese at Luella’s Southern Kitchen, 4609 N. Lincoln Ave.

For more Cheap Eats across the country, visit Cooking Channel’s web site.

Forever Braised Short Rib Mac and Cheese at Luella’s Southern Kitchen, 4609 N. Lincoln Ave. in Chicago (Galang Images)

The Stevie sandwich at The Roost Carolina Kitchen, 455 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago.

The chocolate almond croissant at Hendrickx Belgian Bread Crafter, 100 E. Walton St. in Chicago

More about Cheap Eats host Ali Khan

As the son of South Asian immigrants, Ali Khan learned to embrace exotic cuisine at a young age. It was inevitable that his passion for food shaped his professional career, and led him to become BlackBook Magazine’s Senior Editor of Los Angeles Dining and Nightlife Guide at age 26. In addition, Ali dedicated his writing skills to several popular lifestyle websites, including Urban Daddy, LA TACO, and was a regular contributor to You Gotta Eat This. In 2015, Ali launched the successful blog series Bang For Your Burger Buck. His passion for all things epicurean combined with his B.A. in Theater Studies from University of Southern California led him to Food Network, where he has appeared on Grill It with Bobby Flay, Best Thing I Ever Made, and on a forthcoming episode of Chopped Junior. When Ali is not traveling the country to discover Cheap Eats, he resides with his wife and son in Austin, Texas.